What sort of investments will reduce tax in my family trust?
I have a family trust structure for my business income and am looking at a large tax bill this coming year. What sort of investments are available to reduce the tax I will have to pay? I’ve heard of things like investing in trees or olives, but are these more trouble than they’re worth? And…
I have sold an investment property and want to put the proceeds into my DIY fund
I am selling a rental property and expect a capital gain of about $230,000.00. For tax purposes I reduce it by half and pay capital gains tax on $115,000. Can I place this into our DIY super fund and pay the 15% entrance tax rather than including it in my personal return? Also, can I…
When starting a pension do I have to convert all of my super to a pension?
If I want to start a pension, am I obliged to do so with the percentage minimum of the whole of my super (far too much for my daily living requirements) or may I instead leave some in the accumulation phase and simply start a pension from, say, half the balance? It has always been…
Should I leave my money in super or start an allocated pension?
I am retired and all my money is still in super. I haven’t yet transferred it across to an allocated pension or other form of income stream. The reason I leave it in super is that I am guaranteed 4% in the super fund, and that means that when the markets fall I still receive…
Can your super fund collapse?
I am 52 years old and have all of my savings in super. Therefore most of this money is in shares, or other listed investments such as property securities and fixed interest. With all of this market turmoil, my question is: Can a super fund collapse? Should I be worried about having all of my…
How do I predict commodities prices?
Traders are generally of two breeds with each being at very opposite sides of the trading spectrum. The chartists employ technical analysis to study price and market action by using various charting instruments as a vehicle to price forecasting. Technical analysis considers only the actual price behaviour and assumes all relevant factors have been already…
How can you hedge a US portfolio of shares when the US Dollar is going down?
Hedging is a strategy used as a means of removing or at the very least reducing the uncertainty of exchange rate fluctuations on your portfolio returns. The method you employ to hedge your portfolio will depend on a variety of factors. The first step in choosing a hedging strategy is to quantify your exposure. For…
What is the uptick rule, and how does it affect forex trading?
US regulators revoked the “uptick rule” on the 6th July 2007. Previously the uptick rule, which was implemented in the 1930s following the US stock market crash, was designed to ensure it was more difficult to short sell stock. Under the so called uptick rule, a short sale may only take place if the market…
How do currencies move in relation to each other?
In order to be an effective trader, it is important to understand how different currency pairs move in relation to each other. There are a few reasons why this is significant, but most importantly, it allows traders to understand their exposure. As we have stated time and again, correlations between different currency pairs will inevitably…
What does it mean when a share goes ex-dividend?
To explain what it means when a share goes ex-dividend, we should first understand what a dividend is. A dividend is a taxable payment which is given to shareholders by the company they are invested in. Dividends are usually paid as cash (in the form of a cheque or by EFT if requested), however, they…
