Are NFTs an overblown speculative bubble?
Comedian Robin Williams once called cocaine “God’s way of telling you you are making too much money”. This role may now have been overtaken by non-fungible tokens, the blockchain-based means to claim unique ownership of easily copied digital assets. The latest NFT mania involves fantastic amounts of money being paid for “Bored Apes”, 10,000 avatars…
CommSec Daily Download Friday 7 January 2022
S&P/ASX 200 SPI futures are pointing up despite a continued sell-off in the US markets. Today’s Announcements: James Hardie Industries (JHX) terminates CEO, provides upgrade in guidance | Magellan Financial Group (MFG) releases funds under management update | West African Resources releases update ahead of record December quarter | Pinnacle Investment Management (PNI) discloses fees…
CommSec Daily Download Thursday 6 January 2022
S&P/ASX 200 SPI futures are pointing down, following a sharp sell-off in US markets. Today’s Announcements: Insurance Australia Group (IAG) finalises reinsurance program | Nickel Mines (NIC) is granted tax relief from the Indonesian Ministry of Finance | SPI futures indicate a negative start after the Nasdaq sees its biggest one day loss since February….
Assets to consider trimming in the year ahead
While we have a positive outlook on 2022, investors may want to revisit exposure to these three areas. Markets in a minute Powell keeps his options open. This week, the Federal Reserve officially made its pivot from maximum support for the economy to increased flexibility to fight inflation. There are three takeaways that illustrate this…
Steering a steady course
Hopes that the pandemic had peaked were dashed in November with the emergence of the Omicron strain. With markets also wary of inflation, we will focus on managing capital volatility in the short term – while looking for opportunities to deploy cash. Following the very dramatic moves late in October, fixed income markets were more…
Recovery expected, but risks remain
Against a backdrop of the ongoing pandemic, tighter regulation in China, and the prospect of reduced policy support from global central banks, 2021 has not been without its risks. However, as we look to the new year, we see opportunities for careful, bottom-up stock pickers in a wide range of industries across Asia. Fidelity’s Matthew…
Challenges for Australian listed companies
Rising prices, largely driven by the increasingly inflationary environment, are creating challenges for a range of Australian companies. Combined with the transition underway in the energy market, it adds up to a market that benefits from careful stock picking. Changes to the banking status quo The big four may need to be renamed. For so long,…
Sector spotlight: Supply chain inflation
With the inflation debate well and truly established as an investment theme, we spoke to Australian supply chain insiders to get a snapshot of exactly what is going on in their businesses. Perpetual SHARE-PLUS Long-Short Fund Portfolio Manager Anthony Aboud takes us through the findings. Fund manager quarterlies and stock broking strategy pieces are coming…
Could inflation be the painful hangover of excessive policy?
When Freddie Mercury penned the eventual smash hit “Don’t Stop Me Now”, little did he foresee how the lyrics and growing song popularity would be analogous to market conditions today. Originally released in 1978 on the group’s album Jazz, the song only reached 86 on the USA’s top 100. Forty years later, “Don’t Stop Me…
What is Bitcoin’s fundamental value?
As it hits new highs, there is no shortage of bold predictions about Bitcoin reaching US$100,000 or more. Often these are based on not much more than extrapolations by people with vested interests: the price has gone up a lot so it will keep going up. If it gets above its previous high, it must…
