Market & Portfolio Update - April 2022

9 May 2022 by Lifetime in Market Update

Market & Portfolio Update - April 2022

Global share markets continued their choppy start to 2022 during April. For New Zealand-based investors, a fall in the NZ dollar played an important role in helping offset the volatility global share markets experienced. The NZ dollar fell against most major currencies supporting the returns of unhedged overseas assets (assets that are free to move with exchange rates). As a result, ‘unhedged’ overseas investments fell by only 1.8% for NZ based investors.

The latest data shows New Zealand’s annual inflation rate reached 6.9% in March – up from 5.9% in December. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand responded by raising the Official Cash Rate 0.5%. The OCR now sits at 1.5%, and is expected to continue to rise. However, it's important to note that market expectations have already adjusted so that a rise to 3.5% by the end of the year is already baked into asset prices. This means the actual impact from here of future increases at this rate should reflect their not being a ’surprise’ for investment markets.

preview image - Lifetime Book Club: Mind Over Money by Claudia Hammond

Lifetime Book Club: Mind Over Money by Claudia Hammond

Welcome to the Lifetime Book Club - this month, we’re exploring the fascinating connection between money and psychology with Mind Over Money by Claudia Hammond. If you’ve ever wondered why you make certain financial decisions - or found yourself repeating money habits you wish you could change - this book is an eye-opener.

27 March 2025 by Lifetime
preview image - The Art of Weathering Market Turbulence

The Art of Weathering Market Turbulence

As seasoned investors know, share prices can move up and down a lot. It’s what investment professionals refer to as ‘volatility’. Sometimes price volatility may be relatively low, but over the last 3-4 weeks volatility has spiked and global shares, especially those in the US, have fallen rather sharply.

27 March 2025 by Lifetime in Investments