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Discover the secrets to financial success as we delve into the nine key habits practiced by prosperous individuals. From continuous learning and strategic investment to smart spending and insurance protection, this article offers invaluable insights to empower you on your journey towards financial freedom.

Investors have been debating for decades the merits of active or passive (index) investing, and no doubt this will continue into future decades as both sides have some good points. Rather than take an extreme view one way or the other, we have used the best of both approaches to complement each other within client portfolios. We call this a hybrid approach.

5G stands for the fifth-generation wireless network. It is the latest iteration of cellular technology, engineered to greatly increase the speed and responsiveness of wireless networks and the amount of data transmitted. 5G is reaching speeds of 20 to 100 times faster than the current 4G network, (depending on which 4G service you are referring to).

This month marks the 12th anniversary of KiwiSaver. Over that time, we have seen many changes, but the greatest achievement is that almost 3 million Kiwis so far have enjoyed the benefits of what KiwiSaver offers.

It is an age-old question: What are interest rates going to do? The answer to this question influences decisions for investors and borrowers alike. The chart below shows NZ and US official cash rates (OCR) as set by their respective central banks. After staying the same for two and a half years, the NZ OCR has now fallen to a new record low of 1.5%, as the Reserve Bank has responded to weakening global economic growth prospects and inflation pressures appearing to have eased off for now.

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.

KiwiSaver is a long-term investment scheme that the government has put in place to help Kiwis save for retirement. Joining KiwiSaver is voluntary and currently, more than 2.7 million Kiwis belong to the scheme.

Albert Einstein famously said, “compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world, those who understand this, earn it… those that don’t, pay it.”  The simple truth of compounding returns is the most important thing that matters for the long-term investor. Yet in today’s world we are consistently bombarded with distractions, become pre-occupied with other things, and we forget this simple truth.

Lifetime is truly up and running post its 2018 merger and now rolling out new and improved advice and investment training program for our advisers and administration staff. 

There are several drivers of returns from investing in companies. The main two are from a company growing their earnings over time and from paying dividends to shareholders. But recently in New Zealand we have seen instances of another driver of returns - takeovers. 

Happy New Year to all and I hope that you all had a wonderful and peaceful holiday season. As I noted in my recent quarterly performance report, we remain optimistic about the markets over the long-term but have a cautious short-term outlook as we expect volatility to remain with us for the foreseeable future.

Those who have been following share markets will know that returns during 2018 have been more variable (both up and down) than in the few years prior, which were unusually smooth.

In the past, we have written how volatility can be a friend to the long-term investor, by providing the opportunity to add to investments when prices are lower. October has provided an interesting test to this point, with global share markets finishing October down 6.5% on average (albeit only partly offsetting a 16% rise over the previous 12 months).

It is a changing world, one that is moving very quickly. Moore’s Law is a quoted observation that states computing power double every 2 years or so. With this rapid increase is computing power, ‘Big Business’ is putting this new technology to work (and making a profit).

Humans are irrational by nature – we’re afraid of mice, we play the lottery, and we perceive things to be superior if they have a higher price. For years both economic and finance theory ignored this fact and instead assumed everyone acted rationally when making financial decisions. But recently there has been a new train of thought – human emotion can have an impact on financial markets as much as any other aspect of life.

One of the benefits of being a long-term investor is that time is on your side! Long-term investors can skip over the short-term noise and just focus on achieving their long-term goals, (i.e. retirement savings). Short-term volatility is usually just a distraction.

If you’re keen to get the best out of your KiwiSaver Investment take heed of these expert tips from financial adviser Ian Stewart.

It is the Custodian’s job to safeguard your assets and hold them in bare trust for your benefit. This means that if there are any financial problems with the Fund Manager, your investments are ring-fenced in a separate legal entity.

The first seven months of 2017 have seen global markets continue to go up at a surprisingly consistent rate. However, most investors, particularly those in growth or high growth investments, will be aware that equity markets rarely experience such blissful performance without some form of volatility.

One of the fundamentals of investing is the time value of money. If you make an investment with your capital, you need to be compensated for the use of your money. Generally speaking, the longer the investment term the higher the return.

For most investors, lower interest rates have been a key feature of the past 10 years, thanks to the extraordinary policies adopted by the world’s central banks. This has particularly reduced income returns on fixed interest investments, raising the question of how best to deliver the “income” part of Farming portfolio returns in the years ahead.

Global share markets added another 1% in May, amidst a background of solid economic growth spiced up with news of political instability in Italy.

In psychology (the science of mind and behaviour) and decision theory, loss aversion refers to people’s tendency to prefer avoiding losses rather than acquiring equivalent gains. Some studies have suggested that loss aversion is twice as powerful, psychologically, as gains.

Booster has always considered itself ‘responsible’ when looking after other people’s money! We also follow the six Principles of Responsible Investing (PRI) set in motion in 2005 by Kofi Annan of the UN. However, investors are increasingly looking for responsible investment to be clearer across the investment world.

History can help answer these questions and show us the way, but only for those who are willing to look.

As has been widely reported in the news, global share markets have fallen over the past few days, giving back 6% of recent gains. While this has been quicker than the usual decline, the size of the pullback is actually within the “normal” bounds of market behaviour, even when share markets are generally rising.

A common question that comes up when setting up a new investment account for clients is which form of ownership should they adopt, (‘client type’ on some application forms). Should they use ‘tenants in common’ or ‘joint tenancy’?

In today’s busy and complicated world, there are not too many free lunches available but if you look carefully, you may be able to find one!

As a trader, I was proud of my ability to handle ‘complexity’. To be a successful financial adviser, I realised I would have to simplify investing for my clients.

Well, 10 years on and KiwiSaver is still here! Not only is it here, but it is in a strong position. KiwiSaver now has over $40 billion funds under management with over 2.5 million investors. $40,000,000,000 looks and sounds impressive, right?

Bitcoin is the latest ‘hot’ trend but is it worth investing in? With any investment opportunity, it is important to make the distinction between investing and speculating.