In some cultures, including some in South Africa, children are seen as a source of future wealth. But for most parents, having children means careful budgeting to make ends meet. Annual salary increases are not keeping pace with inflation-beating increases...
Never let limited or most recent information and incorrect weighting of the relevance of some factors (referred to as conceptual biases) affect your decision making. Emotional factors such as greed, fear, regret and loss aversion (referred to as emotional...
MANAGE INVESTMENT RISK IN TERMS OF INTEREST RATE MOVEMENTS, INFLATION AND INVESTMENT TIME HORIZONS Contego Asset Managers during a recent presentation revealed some research on the relationship of interest rate movements and the direction of markets in...
THE DECISION ON HOW/WHEN TO ENTER AND EXIT A MARKET OR ASSET CLASS When investing or entering a market (equity, property, fixed interest or offshore markets), the investor has a choice of investing a lump sum amount or to follow a phasing-in strategy...
Investors who select a managed asset allocation solution need to follow these steps: 1. Find a qualified investment planner as ‘life long partner' and agree on roles, responsibilities and fees/commissions payable. Studies in the USA and most...
THE ASSET ALLOCATION MIX AND RISK APPETITE In theory, asset allocation and diversification are the foundation of successful investments. Studies by William Sharpe in the early 1950’s concluded that asset allocation decisions contributed most to...
People often ask me where do they start when they think about investing. Simply put, investing starts with you. Individual investors have little control and influence over market movements, economic fundamentals or cycles, and unplanned personal financial...
The financial world changes continually and stock markets go through never-ending up and down, bull and bear cycles. Many people who have lost a lot of money as a result of the current market crisis are looking for quick fixes. Other people are eyeing...