Market & Portfolio Update - June 2018
June was a fairly quiet month for world share markets, with most investment funds relatively flat – although this capped off a solid overall first half of the year. Our own NZ share market was the stand-out, helping to offset the effect of a further 3% rise in the NZ Dollar on the value of overseas share investments.
The NZ Dollar’s rise was in tandem with higher long-term market interest rates, as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi acknowledged that the European economy has been growing well – this was seen as hinting at official interest rate hikes moving closer.
More generally, a number of risk factors facing markets have not turned out as badly as initially feared over the past two years. Together with good economic fundamentals, this has supported funds slightly increasing their global share investments during June.
We also added shares in Swiss company Givaudan, a well-entrenched provider of fragrances and food products around the world. The change was funded by selling some shares in Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, locking in strong gains over the past year.
Disclaimer: This article has been prepared for the purpose of providing general information, without taking into consideration any particular investor’s objectives, financial situation or needs. Any opinions contained in it are held as at the report date and are subject to change without notice.
This week the Government announced a suite of new policy with the intent to assist first home buyers into the market. This included tax changes for investors, bright-line extensions and increases to the cap on First Home Loans and First Home Grants.
The Fixed Interest investments (or bonds) in portfolios typically perform well during market stress, as investors favour low-risk assets that generate income. Last year was no exception.