In the face of volatile global equity markets and structural economic challenges, there is much debate around what investors can expect going forward. At times like these, it is worth remembering that investment has always been about taking risk in...
Geoff Blount, CEO of Cannon Asset Managers, looks deeper into the performance of the JSE in 2013. How do you explain to your children that, in spite of an overall drop in earnings per share on the JSE of 6.4% in 2013, prices rose by 17.8%?...
Geoff Blount, CEO of Cannon Asset Managers, explains the different valuations of South Africa’s super sectors and presents a view on whether the time is right to invest offshore. With the JSE FTSE All Share Index hovering near record levels,...
Santhiran Naidoo,investment analyst at Glacier by Sanlam, explains what the possible US government shutdown is all about, and takes a look at how the current uncertainty in the US may affect us here in South Africa. For the past few weeks we have...
The South African market is in a "Perfect Break" situation at the moment, according to market analysts Craig Aitchison and Trevor Abromowitz. During the last 10 years, we have often heard the phrase, “the Perfect Storm” applied to periods when both...
We’ve all had a bad customer experience, but how many of us actually take it further? Under the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), you may be entitled to compensation. Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO), Adv. Neville Melville points out five...
When moving in together, your household insurance policy may be the last thing on your mind – until you need to claim. In this day and age, it is quite common for couples to choose to live together either before or as an alternative to marriage....
When starting your own business you don’t always need to be the expert, but you need to know how to run a business. When Bulelwa Tengwa decided to open her first hair salon she knew very little about how to style hair but what she did know was that...
As part of ongoing attempts to encourage South Africans to trade on the exchange, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) has launched the first JSE Virtual Trading Game, an online trading competition which simulates a real trading environment and...
The sharp decline in the Rand against many major currencies, paired with the frequency of severe claims over the past year, is expected to have a significant impact on the personal lines short-term insurance industry, resulting in increased...
The Consumer Protection Act provides significant protection for consumers; the Act does not, however, remove the obligations of consumers when undertaking an agreement. “A small business hired a hall for an event scheduled for 7pm on a Saturday night. The event was a...
Choosing to save for your child’s education ahead of your own retirement plan may be a risky strategy but it is understandable given the rising costs of education. According to the Old Mutual Savings and Investment Monitor, 54% of South Africans believe that saving...
A reader wants advice on where to save towards buying a property. “My mother, sister and myself would like to open a savings or investment plan whereby together we would contribute R900 monthly and increasing it by R300 yearly or bi-annually for five years. We want to...
Free internet connectivity provides an opportunity for fraudster. Free internet services are the hunting grounds of fraudsters who use remote devices to log keystrokes on your laptop when you transact online, says Henk Vermeulen, card fraud specialist at FNB. “Free...
How two groups of professional women have used an investment club to build their own wealth If you have an existing savings club with a group of friends that you want to take to a new level, starting an investment club to build wealth is a great strategy. This week we...
ABSA’s empowerment deal, Batho Bonke (BB), is unwinding at a very interesting time for investment markets. All local asset classes apart from cash have delivered excellent returns over the past year, the stock market is at all time highs, and currency depreciation has...
Over the last ten years mortgage originators such as ooba and BetterBond have played a significant role in increasing the competitiveness of home loans. By assisting customers to shop around for the best rates bond originators forced the banks into a price war which...
Old Mutual’s On The Money financial management programme, which targets mainly lower-end to middle income earners, helped me understand that the secret to being financially independent does not lie in earning a lot of money, but rather in learning to manage the money...
A study by international fund rating agency Morningstar showed that the best indicator of outperformance by a fund was low costs. It is however often the cost of accessing that investment rather than the actual management fees that really hurts long term performance....
This month some households will experience a financial boost with either a bonus or a tax-rebate. Many South Africans have become used to having bonuses and tax refunds as an expected additional income instead of an ‘unexpected extra’, and subsequently include it in...