Brian's Brainstorm The perils of D-I-Y investing.. The debacle of the Woodford Equity Income fund is a harsh lesson for d-i-y private investors who buy funds on reputation and follow platform recommendations. When Neil Woodford quit Invesco Perpetual and set up his own fund, investors flocked to his new venture on the basis [...]
Brian's Brainstorm The ethical investment minefield Ethical and green investing has an increasingly high profile in the financial media ; but it may surprise you that ethical funds account for just over 1 per cent of money invested in funds overall. But this small percentage is rising and in response there are more [...]
Brian's Brainstorm Why Financial Advice is Vital Last month was the tenth anniversary of the start of the regime of ultra low interest rates when the Bank of England cut the base rate from 1.0% to 0.5% in March 2009. Since then the wisdom of leaving a large proportion of your assets [...]
Brian's Brainstorm Political Turmoil and Gold The British establishment have made a pig’s ear of the Brexit negotiating process. It is impossible to second guess the next move because the political elites can’t stand up to Brussels and get neurotic about speculation of trucks backed up miles at Dover We can’t predict what [...]
Martin's Memo Tax Year End 2018/19 The end of any tax year sparks a flurry of activity in the financial services industry and Concerva is no different. As we close in on 5th April this activity will increase and so we would recommend that any action is taken in good time to avoid [...]
Brian's Brainstorm The reality behind forecasts As we approach the New Year, strategists at investment banks and some fund managers produce their forecasts for the performance of the stock market in the year ahead. The question is: Should we take any notice? An analysis of stock [...]
Brian's Brainstorm Why watching TV can cost you more than your licence fee The only honest answer we can give to the question: What will be the outcome of the Brexit negotiations?, is we don’t know. Anything is possible: No deal, second referendum, Canada plus, BRINO (Brexit in name only), you name it. [...]
Brian's Brainstorm The Real Reason the Markets Move If you read or listen to the financial media, more often than not either Brexit or Trump is to blame for market moves. But this superficial analysis will not help you grasp the main theme affecting your wealth in 2018. The most important economic [...]
Brian's Brainstorm Benefits of Long Term Investing Buy and hold may sound like an old fashioned way of investing in equity markets but it makes sense nonetheless. In today’s hyperactive world where 24/7 financial news channels witter on endlessly about threats to the world economy, there is a heightened temptation to tinker [...]
Brian's Brainstorm The changing face of emerging markets It was generally agreed that the World Cup in Russia was run very efficiently, yet you may recall that the 2010 World Cup in South Africa was comparatively shambolic. This topical example demonstrates the changing face of emerging markets as an investment theme. The image [...]