Welcome to the August Newsletter

What a busy year its been so far. Locally, we have our Federal Government in disarray over the parliamentarian’s nationality issue. CBA has failed to report cash transactions to AUSTRAC and has been virtually charged with money laundering. Telstra has changed its dividend policy and paid the price with its share price diving by 9%. Amazon has upset Australian retailers with their proposed Melbourne warehouse delivery model. The Sydney property market has plateaued and interest rates will be on hold until the end of 2018.

Globally, we now have Donald Trump and his nuclear sabre rattling with North Korea. Global stock markets are wobbly. The tech stocks FAANG’s (Facebook Apple Amazon Netflix Google) have had a dream run this year with Jeff Bezos becoming the richest man in the universe. Artificial Intelligence and robotics are the hot topics for the foreseeable future. Change is here and it's happening fast.

This month we are off to Asia with a number of articles from some of the fund managers looking at this key market. We look at smart credit card usage, how long should you own your car, is it risky to be safe? And for those who have their own self-managed superannuation fund it may be time to review your investment strategy. 

We hope you enjoy this month's edition. Winter is almost gone!

Have a great month.

 

Kind Regards

Michael