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Prior to November’s Presidential election, we discussed three possible outcomes and some of the potential investment implications of each scenario.
Having won both seats in Georgia’s Senate run-off elections, the Democrats have now gained control of both the White House and Congress (via the vice-presidency tiebreaker) – giving them a stronger platform for the legislative action necessary to implement their agenda for government.

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With the U.S. Presidential election now less than a week away, many investors are currently considering how the potential result could impact their portfolios. While, as our Chief Economist David Bassanese noted in his U.S. Presidential election preview, markets ultimately learn to live with whomever the U.S.

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On 20 April, the WTI oil futures price fell below zero for the first time in history – in other words, traders were prepared to pay buyers to take oil off their hands!
A negative oil futures price is primarily due to the mechanics of the oil futures market,

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Fears around the impact of the coronavirus have been compounded by oil’s woes, causing the biggest falls on Wall Street since the GFC. On Monday, the S&P 500 index fell 7.6%, triggering the first automatic halt in trading in more than two decades,

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Late last month, the Indian Ministry of Finance announced a large reduction in the base corporate tax rate from 30% to 22%, including a preferential tax rate of 15% for new manufacturing investment. The effective tax rate will be cut to ~25% (after surcharges and levies) vs.

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The proposed removal of franking credit rebates that is part of the ALP’s election policy has been an ongoing point of discussion over the last 12 months. Irrespective of debate around the upcoming election or the form any rule changes may ultimately take,

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One of the most common questions I get asked on ETFs relates to liquidity, largely driven by the common misconception that ETFs are somehow illiquid due to the fact that ‘on-screen’ liquidity at times appears limited (particularly compared to popular shares). Even though we have dealt with this area a number of times in other posts,

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The end of the financial year is a time when many investors take the opportunity to review and assess their portfolios. What’s more, many set about attempting to make some positive adjustments for the financial year ahead.
During this period, based upon the interaction we have with investors and their advisers,

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ETFs have been gaining popularity with Australian investors since they first launched on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) nearly 17 years ago. For many SMSF Trustees, ETFs offer a combination of advantages that align well with many SMSF and retirement planning goals. For a number of SMSFs, ETFs can be a particularly useful investment option and can be used in combination with traditional actively managed funds and individual shares.

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After close to a decade of underperformance there are strong indications that 2018 could finally be the turnaround year for the world’s major energy companies. In this post, I provide some reasons why this could be:
The synchronised global growth currently being seen across developed and emerging markets should provide support for oil demand.

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