Rainer's Investment Insights

We are at an interesting juncture in the market, - just when short term cyclicals suggest it should arise: Global Equities back to April 18 lows, - finding support? The MSCI World in SGD Markets globally have seen a lot of downward pressure last week, meaning that a lot of sellers came on the market and buyers, although willing to instigate considerable trading volumes initially, did not see it as an outright purchasing opportunity by the time we got to Friday.  Over the weekend sentiment among buyers wilted and come Monday an impulsive rout ensued pushing markets some 2% lower, a little more in tech stocks, less in defensive equities.  The reason I am showing you the MSCI World in SGD terms (instead of a DJIA or S&P500) is to alert you on exactly where you - the SGD investor - are positioned. Avoid being bamboozled by an index chart in any other currency! We are only back to the levels of April 18 and, to all intents and purposes, it looks as though markets could find sup

Today, I don't just want to show you how well our portfolios are faring, but - tell you about some of the strategic decisions that have contributed to their success. The inception of most portfolios was in October 2009.  The graph clearly demonstrates that portfolio valuations are well above benchmark funds and Asian indices.  The only index that has fared 'better' is the MSCI World index, simply because the US and European indices rallied for much of the second half of 2010, while our portfolios were constrained by my conservative view at the time. portfolios in overview since inception in October 2009 The argument was that while portfolios managed to avoid the sharp correction in April, we also re-engaged in equities as early as mid May and stayed in till September, building up a big 'safety margin' and comfort zone vis-a-vis benchmarks and global equities. I therefore did not see the need to 'push our luck', by leaving allocations unchanged beyond

This is the concluding part of our mini-series, which focuses on the recent tumultuous events, namely the triple calamity in Japan, the 'Arab Spring', and Europe's problems with its peripheral states. I guess, it is now obvious that neither of the events turned into the one-off, exceptional occurrence that would destroy market values for a longer period. For most part, they appear to be starting point for change, fermentation, and portent factors for the future, all rolled into one. Each of them has the capacity to bring about a new tomorrow - for better and for worse. Hence, to stand here and say, ' this is my final conclusion ' must sound argumentative at least, contentious even. But every series must find an end. Admit it, it gets boring when asked to read part 4,5,6,7... I simply lose track on what was said before. DID THEY OR DIDN'T THEY? No matter how disastrous the suddenness of forceful change impacted on each region and its people almost simu