Markets have experienced a sharp pullback this year resulting in asset allocations across portfolios drifting away from their intended values. We believe that it would be appropriate to rebalance portfolios back to their strategic weights.
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F&A is expanding! It gives me great satisfaction to finally welcome Branden and his team to the F&A table! Branden and I share a deep sense of purpose when it comes to caring for and making a difference in people’s lives. Amongst other qualities, his sense of duty is one of the main reasons I asked Branded to join me on my journey of building a world class, professional advice practice.
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We are all aware of how difficult current conditions are. Inflation has kicked globally, Russia/Ukraine continues, energy supply is undermined, and costs continue to rise. Naturally, markets have reacted in a risk-off fashion, which has impacted returns. Seems we are paying in 2022 for some big calls made in 2020 when the world was trying to come to terms with Covid. So what do we do about this?
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Time for another monthly update! As always, we've put together a snapshot of market insights from PortfolioMetrix to bring you an overview of where your investments are headed. Here's your August 2022 update!
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Life, and investing, is never truly risk free. Without risk, we cannot grow, but risk and growth don’t always feel good. In fact, it can sometimes feel pretty rotten. When you take on risk, you take on uncertainty, and this brings with it a range of possible outcomes - both to the upside, and the down.
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The second quarter saw poor performance across most asset classes with some exceptions. Our portfolios are designed to take this volatility with many of our solutions pulling back only a handful of percent (circa -6%) in comparison to market (-20%). As unsettling as the negative numbers may be, please remember we design our strategies knowing full well that risk is an ever constant in investing.
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Markets are under pressure. Periods of uncertainty create doubt even when we know the discipline and process that's required to show positive long-term results. Being able to weather these uncomfortable periods allows our specialists the time and trust to pick and choose positions which will be rewarding in the long-term.
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May saw us enjoy a somewhat more normal month in SA. On the positive side, Covid numbers have completely disconnected from an infection/death perspective. Regulations around mask wearing and more desperately need to be dropped. From a markets perspective, with inflation on the move and central banks raising rates, it seems we have entered a more volatile period.
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2022 is proving to be a testing year so far for investors. As you hopefully know by now, we exclusively build long-term investments, in the full knowledge that uncertainty and volatility will present from time to time. These events are not ifs, but when’s and are an expected and even common occurrence on investment journeys…
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Hoping everyone is well during this odd, rain disrupted, Easter and holiday-filled April! We are hard at work and have some very exciting news coming your way in the next couple of months, so please look out for that. In the meantime, grab a cuppa ☕️ and tuck in to our commentary to read our reflections on local & global markets for the first quarter of 2022.
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It sure is difficult to comprehend the consistency with which KZN has been hit by unreal events. Us Durbanites were already tough cookies, so these events can only make us stronger! The markets continue to be jittery, especially with the uncertainty around Russia / Ukraine as well as energy prices worldwide. Brendan shares more in this piece. Enjoy!
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Our view is to protect each of our clients’ livelihoods here in SA, without losing options due to unique SA risks. For South Africans, this is notably exposure to SA markets, alongside the Rand. This is not to say there is no opportunity in SA, but rather to say there is also risk in SA, as well as opportunities elsewhere.
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I had the most amazing chat with a Russian over a Chess app (Nerd alert 🤓). Each player has their national flag next to their name, and when I saw the Russian flag, I typed "Say no to war" in the chat section, to which he replied "F#*k Putin".
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A full report and analysis from F&A & Brandon Zietsman (PortfolioMetrix) on the evolving situation in Ukraine.
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No doubt many of us are following the news flow around Russia and Ukraine. It’s a fool’s game to assume one has the ability and foresight to time such events and adjust portfolios accordingly. You can rest assured knowing that our portfolios are designed to handle impact, and that our specialist teams are closely monitoring every element of your portfolio.
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What is the likelihood one can call important events with any degree of timing and accuracy, to the extent it could meaningfully move one’s investment portfolio? A difficult pursuit, no doubt! In my view, this is not the actual challenge. You see, very little can be done to sway these external tides. Too much is outside of our control. So, what is in our control?
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Portfolios ran beautifully for nearly 21 months right through to the end of 2021! They have come back slightly, specifically during the month of Jan. This is something we expect all portfolios to repeatedly do and so our strategies cater for these events specifically. Grab a cuppa ☕️and tuck in to our detailed report from Brendan covering our analysis of the fourth and final quarter of 2021!
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Running wealth management strategies means we spend a good chunk of time discussing money and what it does for us. And the what it does for us is the crux. This tool called money needs to be managed in a way that compliments and empowers us. And so it sits with us to understand our habits and our routines. Therein lies our opportunity!
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Our last Monthly for the year! Difficult to believe it is nearly Christmas, but still, what a wonderful time of the year. Wishing you a safe and restful Christmas period, and a wonderful start to 2022. More great content from Brendan, below.
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It is interesting to consider how many times plans change or adjust. Not that they change wholly, but rather that you cannot predict how everything will play out, alongside not being able to control everything. I like to build plans that can adapt, that gives many options and outs, without total risk of failure.
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