Global markets – week in review The global equity market rebound continued into its second week following a less hawkish-than-feared Fed meeting and a soft US payrolls report. Markets were relieved Fed chair Powell played down the risks of another rate hike, even while conceding there’s less scope to cut interest rates anytime soon. US bond yields and the $US declined, while equity markets popped higher. Encouraging US corporate earnings – especially among the Magnificent 7 – further supported equity sentiment. Overall US economic data last week was mixed. The week began with a stronger-than ..read more

A wrap up of the charts catching our eye over the past month. Inflation, geopolitical tension and size premia. April provided investors with themes they have become familiar with in a post pandemic world. In this edition we explore through charts, the drivers and effects of these global and market characteristics. 1 – Gold hits all-time highs as real yields rise The surge in gold prices to all-time highs in April is bucking the trend of its historical inverse relationship with real yields. When government bond yields, after adjusting for inflation expectations (i.e. real yields), are increasin ..read more

For financial adviser use only. Not for distribution to retail clients. Whether they know it or not, many Australians are already familiar with the idea of gearing. Generations of Australians have built their family’s wealth in residential property. If you’ve bought property, either to live in or as an investment, the chances are you funded your purchase partly through a mortgage. Looking at your purchase purely from an investment perspective, if the property increases in value over time by more than the cost of the borrowing, you are better off. Betashares has just launched two Wealth Builder ..read more

Whether they know it or not, many Australians are already familiar with the idea of gearing. Generations of Australians have built their family’s wealth in residential property. If you’ve bought property, either to live in or as an investment, the chances are you funded your purchase partly through a mortgage. Looking at your purchase purely from an investment perspective, if the property increases in value over time by more than the cost of the borrowing, you are better off. Betashares has just launched two Wealth Builder ETFs to provide an effective way by which investors can seek to build l ..read more

One week following the bitcoin halving, bitcoin along with the broader crypto market was little changed. Bitcoin was off -1.93% over the last 7 days with its market capitalisation at US$1.25 trillion. The the total crypto market cap was at US$2.38 trillion and bitcoin’s market dominance sits at 52.8%. Price High Low Change from previous week BTC (in US$) $63,906 $67,203 $62,581 -1.93% ETH (in US$) $3,317 $3,326 $3,082 4.30% Source: CoinMarketCap. As at 28 April 2024. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Performance is shown in US dollars and does not take into a ..read more

Global markets – week in review Global equity markets rebounded last week after a few weeks of losses, thanks to easing Middle East tensions, generally upbeat Mag-7 earnings reports, and an inflation report that was no worse than feared. Expectations for US rate cuts this year, however, continued to evaporate before our eyes. A Fed policy meeting looms large this week, which will keep interest rate concerns front and centre. One of the key highlights last week was what did not happen – namely a further tit-for-tat exchange between Israel and Iran. This is encouraging, suggesting that neither ..read more

Recently, an AFR article coined quality ‘the stock market’s last free lunch’. The piece explores what so many investors have observed over the past 30 years in equity markets. That investing in quality companies, those with reliable earnings, high returns on equity and low levels of debt, has led to fairly persistent long-term outperformance over various market cycles – defying efficient market hypotheses. Whilst the quality factor has proven to generate additional returns over the long run within Global Equities, there is a common misconception that you cannot build a core portfolio of Austra ..read more

Financial adviser use only. Not for distribution to retail clients. Welcome to Betashares Best & Worst for March 2024, bringing you insights into our top and bottom performing funds for the month, as well as a spotlight on some funds with interesting recent performance stories. March was another strong month for equity markets, with performance being driven not just by big tech but the broader market as well. The S&P 500, Nasdaq 100 and S&P/ASX 200 all reached record highs as optimism grew that the Fed would deliver a soft landing without tipping the US economy into recession, whil ..read more

Global markets – week in review The global equity market correction continued last week, with a solid US retail sales report and a hawkish tilt by Fed chair Powell further unsettling bond and equity markets. One market reprieve was signs that Iran is seeking to avoid further escalating its stoush with Israel. The US economic juggernaut rolls on, with March retail spending up 0.7% – much healthier than the 0.4% market expectation. As I warned last week: “Wall Street remains vulnerable to a deeper correction if the bad run on inflation continues and/or the Fed starts to sound more hawkish.” Las ..read more

Gold is on the move and the rally is turning heads, and not least because it’s happening contrary to the traditional drivers of strength for the yellow metal. The recent breakout has occurred alongside a rise in US real yields, the broad US dollar is hardly in a bear market, and gold ETFs globally have been experiencing steady outflows in aggregate. So, what’s going on? Physical demand There are all manner of possible technical explanations, but let’s start with the other side of ETF sales: physical buying. Such buyers of gold are a diverse group, ranging from individual collectors of coins an ..read more