While there’s always a chance of catastrophe, the odds of an all-out financial Apocalypse are pretty long, according to Jurrien Timmer, director of global macro research and portfolio co-manager of the Fidelity Tactical Strategies Fund. In a recent webcast, he explained why he’s overweight equities and precious metals at the expense of investment grade bonds. […]
Should investors chisel their portfolios onto granite and wait them out for the long haul, regardless of what happens in the markets on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis? Or should money managers take a more flexible approach to the way they slice up their clients’ asset class percentages? Two top portfolio managers answer this question by explaining the difference between strategic and tactical asset allocation, and how and when to employ the latter.
Faltering global equity markets largely erased fixed income advances within pension funds during the June quarter, according to a survey just released by RBC Dexia Investor Services. Within the $340 billion RBC Dexia universe, Canadian pension assets rose 0.2% in the three months ending June 2011, nudging year-to-date performance to 2.2%. “Concerns over the resilience […]
The risk of America technically defaulting on its debt is increasing rapidly, with the odds of such an event rising to 1 in 5 as a result of political bickering south of the border. That’s the view of Jack Ablin, chief investment officer of BMO Harris Bank in the U.S., who said the risk was […]
Gold on a record-breaking roll! Gold hits record high! Gold Keeps Climbing! Newspapers around the world are running screaming headlines as the fickle yellow metal continues its longest winning streak in modern memory. The timing, therefore, couldn’t be better for some sobering advice to bedazzled gold bugs. Somewhere lost in the rush for gold is […]
Alternative investments will increasingly become part of institutional and high net worth (HNW) portfolios. In fact, they are likely to blend right in to the traditional portfolio, supplanting long-held notions of what the portfolio core should look like. “Alternatives, at least for the next few years, are increasingly going to be part of our portfolios—certainly […]
The U.S. economy should sustain its recovery, despite the expiry of the Federal Reserve’s second round of quantitative easing, according to a survey of Canadian investment managers. In fact, the latest Russell Investments Investment Manager Outlook found that the American stock market is seen as holding the most promise. Sixty-two percent of respondents were bullish […]
In a world where volatility is the new normal, getting the right asset mix and sector-rotation can make the difference between capital gain and loss. “You have got to be an active manager,” said John Zechner, chair and CEO of J. Zechner Associates Inc., speaking at the CIFPs 9th Annual National Conference-2011, in Ottawa. “Markets […]
Equity risk and concerns about the outlook for Europe and China received top billing from Geoff Stein, portfolio manager and co-lead manager of the Fidelity Canadian Asset Allocation Fund, during the fund company’s recent ‘Straight Talk on the Markets’ webcast. Stein explains that when he and co-lead manager Derek Young took over the fund in […]
The balance between return and risk is often equated with the trade-off between health and exercise. While all investors have an appetite for greater wealth (being healthy), they also have a limited tolerance for risk (exercise). Unfortunately, risk is a difficult, often abstract, concept for investors — especially when it comes to investment selection. As a result, risk is usually ignored altogether.