Rising interest rates, falling house prices and persistent inflation may have left many Australians feeling pessimistic about the Australian economy, but not AMP Deputy Chief Economist Diana Mousina.
Most people’s experience of artificial intelligence has been the chatbot: ask a question, get an answer. That use is still growing. What is changing—and what matters for Contrarius’ Funds—is the next layer of demand.
Most people’s experience of artificial intelligence has been the chatbot: ask a question, get an answer. That use is still growing. What is changing—and what matters for Contrarius’ Funds—is the next layer of demand.
A quiet reallocation toward the private markets is reshaping Australian portfolios. It’s not an anti-public market rebellion. Liquidity, transparency, and governance still matter. But it’s a recognition that the public markets are no longer the whole market. More of the world’s future cash flows are now owned by private investors.
Australia’s stock market has a concentration problem: the top ten companies in the ASX 200 account for 48% of the entire index, with three of the top six names being banks and representing over a quarter of the index. Commonwealth Bank alone represents 11.3% of ASX 200. Think about that for a moment. One bank represents over a ninth of the index of Australia’s two hundred largest companies.
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.
Every parent wants their kids to get off to a good start. That means more than just keeping them safe and happy. It’s also about helping them grow into financially confident, independent adults.
You may have come across the unique breed of individual known as a day trader in your travels. Their numbers have been on the rise for some time now, so much so that they’re reshaping the very architecture of markets along with the notion of price discovery. What was once the province of nimble derivatives players is now having systemic ramifications across global equity markets.