To the 22 May 2020, we saw the market continue to rebound. With much volatility still abound our managers have been taking advantage of opportunities as they have presented themselves. Some interesting quotes which come to mind are that of the Contrarian Investor: “The worse off the market is, the better the opportunities are to profit” and from Warren Buffet: "Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful". In our Global Multi-Asset (Global Balanced)

Smoothed bonus portfolios are investment portfolios, offered by life insurers, that provide a guarantee on the money invested into the portfolio and the returns passed on to investors in the form of bonuses declared by the insurer. Sometimes these portfolios only provide a partial (less than 100%) guarantee. Generally, people who invest in smoothed bonus portfolios are conservative investors, who expect to be shielded from negative returns, especially in times of market stres

As if the threat of a large-scale outbreak of an infectious disease isn’t enough to worry about, coronavirus has financial implications too. You might have read about the virtual shutdown of industries in some parts of the world and large falls in global stock markets and in the price of commodities such as oil. It feels like there’s been no shortage of alarming twists. For millennials and younger investors, it’s not all cause for darkness and despondency. A market correction

At first glance, it may seem that the coronavirus pandemic has derailed the global environmental agenda – certainly in the short term. While economies are closed, the massive investment required to decarbonise the way we produce and consume has been delayed. However, as the world emerges from the crisis, we see increasing evidence that the transition may accelerate. Fiscal stimulus will accelerate climate-related policy The level of stimulus put in place by governments around

The market turmoil of the first quarter of 2020 has given rise to opportunities in the South African fixed income market. In an environment of low economic growth and inflation, there are good opportunities to lock in high real yields for investors. This is according to Ian Scott, the head of fixed income at Momentum Investments, who spoke at the first virtual Outcome Matters event for 2020. Scott said it was important to understand the macroeconomic drivers of these opportun

The best news often follows the worst. But the best news may take some time to arrive. The worst news in financial markets often comes from unexpected events, such as the international 2008/10 meltdown as a result of the American sub-prime property crash. This has now been followed by the Covid-19 pandemic, which is expected to have a much larger and longer financial impact. Pensioners are particularly at risk in times of volatile markets, not only in South Africa but around

The full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is as yet unknown, but individuals have already begun to have their lives disrupted by the country’s economic shutdown, with retrenchments, salary cuts and forced unpaid leave making them take stock of their financial position. The basic principles of financial planning are especially relevant at this time, but in the short term, cash flow is more important to many people. To help safeguard you and your family’s financial security, her

The second wave of Stats SA’s COVID-19 business impact survey provides an update on how South African businesses are currently faring under lockdown. The first impact survey covered the period 30 March to 13 April 2020, and the results were published on 21 April.1 The survey asked firms in the formal sector how the COVID-19 crisis was affecting their operations in terms of turnover, trading, workforce, imports and exports, purchases, prices, and business survival. Stats SA qu