The world has fresh water, but it’s full of poison
By Peter Fisher, RMIT University Images of the typhoon-ravaged Philippines were terribly confronting, vividly conveying what an angry planet can dish up. But amid the destruction and death, an important point was largely missed: the world’s freshwater supplies are being degraded by a seemingly endless sequence of extreme events. While infrastructures such as dams, sewerage…
Right to know: the ‘nation’, the ‘people’ and the Fourth Estate
By Martin Hirst, Deakin University We might forgive politicians for putting the “national” interest before the “public” interest. But when the news media makes the same mistake, it is time to be worried. The Guardian and the ABC rightly pursued the story of Australia’s spying activities on both Indonesia and Timor Leste. Not only have…
10 Stocks for US Exposure
Given the relatively limited scope of the ASX 200, shouldn’t serious Australian investors be looking for opportunities in international markets? According to investment management firm Capital Group, approximately 43% of revenues by companies represented in the S&P/ASX 200 Index come from outside Australia. The ASX Materials Sector receives over 88% of its revenues from outside…
The impact of technology on the investment landscape
View from the dealing floor. Julian Edwards works on IG’s dealing floor: www.ig.com/au The investment landscape has changed over the last few decades as technology has worked its way into all aspects of the field. As one would expect, numerous advantages have spawned from these changes; financial statements that were once acquired by means of…
Concentrated investments are bad bets
By Wealth Foundations Most people are attracted to the idea of becoming fabulously wealthy by being a substantial and early investor in the next Microsoft, or Google. But they generally understand that the chances of selecting such “winners” are slim. However, it is not widely understood that although a large holding in a single investment…
11 Aussie Oil & Gas Stocks to Ride the Rising Tide in African Oil
Africa is well on its way to becoming the next “lucky” continent with an abundance of as yet untapped natural resources. Perhaps the most promising is the rising number of discoveries of oil reserves in Sub-Saharan Africa. The following map of international exploration companies with a presence in Africa is already a bit out of…
Explainer: black markets, grey markets, and dark pools
By Richard Heaney, University of Western Australia There are a range of markets available to buyers and sellers that allow them to exchange goods and services. But whereas some markets are highly regulated, others are not regulated at all. The sale of tobacco and alcohol is fairly heavily regulated, while there is little regulation governing…
20 Stocks With Over 6% Dividend Yield
Gone are the days were you can shove your cash in a term deposit and be done with it. Rates have come back, which means that high-yielding shares are back on the agenda. According to the latest Westpac/Melbourne Leading Index, slower economic growth is in store for the remainder of 2013 and into 2014; 2.5%…
Brokers are watching these gas stocks
In 2011 the International Energy Agency predicted a coming “Golden Age of Gas”. With multiple liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities under construction, some thought natural gas would usher in Australia’s next great resources boom. In that same year the US Department of Energy issued a report indicating Australia has 437 trillion cubic feet of recoverable…
Is residential property a good investment?
By Wealth Foundations There has been a surge in residential property prices recently, apparently driven by investors rather than homeowners. Like most Australians, their answer to the question, “Is residential property a good investment?” would clearly be “Yes”. And typical reasons given would include: – It’s safe and always goes up in value. In fact,…
