This note looks at the resurgence in the Australian dollar, which has now recovered almost half of its global financial crisis driven slump. The key points are as follows: – The rebound in the $A reflect a combination of renewed $US weakness, stronger commodity prices and the relative strength of the Australian economy. – Notwithstanding…
The ATO have recently issued a final ruling (SGR 2008/2) that updates their interpretation of both ordinary time earnings (OTE) and salary and wages for Superannuation Guarantee (SG) purposes. This ruling comes into effect for payments made to employees in the quarter beginning on 1 July 2009 and all later quarters. It replaces previous rulings…
Brian Parker, MLC’s Investment Strategist and Dr Susan Gosling, Head of MLC Capital Markets Research, provide insights into current issues confronting investment markets, latest market events and current economic events. The key points are as follows: – The bad news. – The better news. – What does all this mean for investors. Read More
This note looks at the lessons for investors in managing risk and diversification flowing from the global financial crisis. The key points are as follows: – The global financial crisis highlight that quantitative measures of the riskiness of assets and the correlations between them are highly unstable. – There is certainly a role for alternative…
Every year, many thousands of Australians try to come to terms with a surprisingly common financial setback – the loss of money through personal fraud. Losing money is hard enough at any time – perhaps after making a poor but legitimate investment – but losing money to crooks must be particularly hard to take. The…
In a recent decision, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) partially disallowed rental deductions on the grounds that the property was purchased for use as a residence and not as a rental property The applicant owned a rental property in Sydney for which he claimed rental deductions totalling over $400,000 between 2001-2003. All of these deductions…
When Rupert Murdoch was quizzed about his alleged interference with the editors of his newspapers, he responded: “I read their balance sheets, not their editorials.” Sophisticated investors contemplating an investment in a particular listed company will usually want to study its latest annual report. If their time is limited there are five key aspects that…
The relationship between the real world and the stockmarket can sometimes seem tenuous. The rout on financial markets is inescapable yet people are still going to work earning money, going to the supermarket or the pub to spend it, buying fridges, TVs and even luxury cars. Spring is in the air and football finals fever…