The FinSec View

Issue: 3rd September 2021 Next Thursday, the FinSec team head off for our annual offsite. In FinSec terms, this means two constructive days away from the office as a team, workshopping our processes, improving on our client journeys and planning out the year ahead. As our offices back onto the showgrounds, normally, offsite is an escape from the hustle and bustle of show week. But, for a second year running there will be no show and showbags are once [...]

Issue: 20th August 2021U.S. equities traded in a volatile session overnight, as investors assess the Fed’s likely taper later this year, rising cases of COVID-19 and deaths in the U.S. and ongoing pressure on supply chains.Details from the July meeting of the US central bank showed most policymakers judged that it could be appropriate to start reducing the pace of asset purchases this year, although there was some division over when to start and how quickly to dial back the [...]

Issue: 6th August 2021 It's a good time to be in the Australian share market! Despite all the lockdowns, the end of July saw the ASX notch up its 10th consecutive month of gains (a little over 1% in July), equalling its record, and is tipped to deliver a buoyant August earnings season. The most recent time investors enjoyed a run of this length was in 2006 to 2007. However, it was a different story in other parts of [...]

We started these fortnightly missives to help keep our community informed during last year's lockdown. So much has happened in the 18 months since. Both the economy and markets have staged remarkable recoveries, but here we are faced with a lockdown once again. As we contemplate what to do with ourselves over the coming days (our thoughts are with all those in Victoria and NSW who must endure much longer), at least we can be thankful to have the [...]

Issue: 9th July 2021 The 2021 Intergenerational Report is in. The 2021 Intergenerational Report (IGR) was released on the 28th June revealing the treasurers educated guess at what Australia will look like in 2060. It is a five-yearly reminder that, without action, an ageing population, and other issues will leave public finances looking ugly. To use Treasurer Frydenberg's own word, the latest IGR was "sobering" on two main fronts. The population is growing slower and ageing faster than expected. [...]

Issue: 11th June 2021 Market Update May was a month where every asset class worldwide seemed to be up around 1'ish'% (shares, bonds, commodities etc.). Not the radical gains experienced after the US election and early this year, but an expected pause as markets begin their re-balancing. Historically, when markets travel as fast as they have over the last 12 months, they tend to collapse a little under their own weight. Very similar to the GFC when we had [...]

Issue: Friday 28th May 2021 It has been a choppy month for equity markets in May. The broad Australian and US indices are on track to finish higher by about 1% and 0.6% respectively after recovering from mid-month lows induced by a sell-off in high valuation tech companies. The tech-heavy Nasdaq has not completely recovered and looks as though it will end the month slightly down. In the past week, there has been a resurgence in GameStop and AMC [...]

Issue: Friday 14th May 2021 The days directly after Budget are arguably more important than Budget day itself. With the Budget announcement out of the way, there is more space to digest and to consider the commitments (particularly their context) - As always, the opinions are partisan, polarising and prolific!! One Australian who seems very happy is Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. Two years ago, the Budget was Back in Black, now it's Simply Red, and the politics are working well [...]

April has been another excellent month for equity markets. The US hit new highs again last night with the S&P500 up 0.7% and similar advances for the Dow Jones. The Nasdaq underwhelmed slightly but still rose 0.2%. The three drivers: Positive economic data - GDP rose by 6.4%, and the number of people filing for unemployment benefits hit the lowest level since before the pandemic; Good profit results from some of the larger companies in the US - Over [...]