Investment Articles & Insights

As the commercial property recovery gathers pace, investors are being selective in how they gain exposure. The post-pandemic challenges have taught the market valuable lessons about how the world has changed in recent years. One of the relative winners is the humble neighbourhood, supermarket-anchored centre and the broader convenience sector. What makes convenience retail compelling at this point in the cycle is its combination of dependable income growth and solid relative value.

Genuine diversification strategies from marketing spin in alternative ETFs and Funds. Diversification may be finance’s only free lunch, and Alternatives are often seen as an easy diversification fix for your portfolio. But, as with all things in life, you need to know what you are buying and what that actually means for your portfolio.

With markets looking frothy, demand for defensive investments is rising. Global listed infrastructure is arguably one of the more compelling opportunities fit for these times. Not because it’s flashy or in vogue, but because data-networks, electricity grids, toll-roads and communication towers underpin the digital economy and the decarbonisation of global economy.

Commercial property investors used to be fixated on one number. For half a century, the cap rate was the North Star of commercial property investing, the single figure believed to capture risk, return and value. On that basis, the picture below used to tell the main story of the various commercial property sectors.

For two decades, the search box has been the undisputed gateway to the internet. But this familiar landscape is undergoing a transformational change, driven by the rapid emergence of Generative AI (GenAI).

Analysing inflation-linked ETFs & funds, credit spreads and global income rotations. Between inflation and market activity, investors in fixed income have had their work cut out for them. Post the GFC, rates remained low and investors in many instances were forced to look towards higher risk assets, like equities or more recently, private markets, for yield.

Most investors think of healthcare property as the pinnacle of the commercial property defensiveness. But there’s another essential service property which is on the rise in defensive allocations, and for good reason: childcare infrastructure.

In a year where headlines have been dominated by tariffs, geopolitical activity and the ongoing AI boom – and there are queues for gold bullion snaking down Martin Place – it’s unsurprising that investors are following the money and using ETFs for swift access.