Comment

The requirement to quarantine created the perfect conditions to push virtual meetings past the tipping point to general adoption. Are they here to stay?

The South China Sea conflict has largely been a case of ‘failure to act’ whilst the law of the sea has been flouted. China continues to exert military control over its neighbours over the hotly contested waterways, completely unabated.

Mergers and acquisitions have come to a grinding halt this year. But activity in the renewable energy sector is heating up with a number of deals. According to Bloomberg data, in the wider market, Australia’s deal activity dropped to $13.8 billion in the first quarter of 2020, a 32 per cent drop from the 12…

Last year, one of Australia’s leading investors and fund managers walked into my office for a recording of The Australian Investors Podcast. I had just been scribbling some notes on my whiteboard about philosophy, discount rates and practical aspects of investing in high growth companies for the long run. He saw some of my chicken scratches,…

It seems that every day another ASX listed company is announcing a capital raising with mixed results. Most recently, Vicinity Centres revealed a $1.4 billion capital raising and an analyst is telling investors to subscribe. The shopping centre landlord successfully completed the $1.2 billion institutional raise after announcing it on Monday. A non-underwritten security purchase…

Low interest rates justify high equity PE’s, and that is particularly so for long duration, high growth equities. So goes the story. It’s worked in recent years and therefore the evidence is there to support the pattern. A simpler argument is that low rates push investors into asset classes that can provide relatively higher returns,…

Following the March equity market correction due to the COVID-19 pandemic, global equity markets rebounded sharply in April, with the small cap sector outperforming. Although the short-term outlook remains uncertain, the market recovery was spurred on by several factors. Many companies were deeply oversold, with valuations having fallen significantly. Governments and central banks have responded…

Stock markets have crashed, we can be confident of that. History suggests there is no quick recovery from crashes like these, which means lasting consequences for investors.

Regardless of where they live, investors have a significant opportunity to diversify their equity portfolio outside of their home market.

Asked to conduct an independent review of Australia’s retirement income system, the panel appointed by treasurer Josh Frydenberg reported on Friday that it was all tied up with the family home.

The US Federal Reserve’s latest 25 basis points rate reduction in mid-September is seen by many market observers as another signal that world markets are in, or are fast approaching, a late cycle.

Compared with the rest of the world, income inequality is not particularly high in Australia, nor is it getting much worse. The real problem is housing inequality.