Investing has rules and they can be confusing for new investors. In this article we will look at five rules of investing every beginner investor should pay attention to.

Start Early

The effect of compounding on your investments over a period of time is significant and should not be ignored.

Starting early will allow your investments a longer time to grow and compound. (Let it cook now!). 

It isn’t all smooth sailing as a glance at the past twenty years (not that long) shows there has been at least significant two recessions.

Recessions get a lot of attention and similar to negative headlines, fear is the overwhelming feeling people are presented with. This is not unusual since bad news seems to grab our attention more.

Data from any of the main indices such as the S&P 500 or NASDAQ for example reveals how much return investors who were in the market have enjoyed. 

Starting early and staying in the market is key. Remember, it is not just about you. You can start early for your children, nephew, nieces and other family members.

In a future article we will explore how best you can go about doing this.

Diversify

By diversifying, you are not putting all your eggs in one basket but what exactly does this mean? Since you are investing as a beginner, it is not smart to invest all your money in one stock such as Apple, Vodafone or your favourite company. 

As you gain more exposure, it is not smart to invest all your money in one asset class either. Inflation, recessions and other economic events can cause a total wipe out in the value of some asset classes. Think of the Great Financial Crisis and the impact on the Real Estate market.

The idea here is if that company you invest all your money in under performs or even goes bust, you do not lose all of your money.

Think back to the stratospheric performance of the ‘pandemic stocks’ such as Zoom and Carvana and where the stock prices are now. Had you invested all your money on one or two of those companies, you could have lost a huge portion of your portfolio.

The same principle of diversifying can apply to Real Estate investing but for now we will stick with stocks.

Looking at what the wealthy do, they do not always appear to follow this advice – if anything, it looks like they invest a lot of their money in a few companies. 

The temptation exists to follow the wealthy in this instance but stop and consider the access to information they have and the financial situation they are in.

They can afford to take those risks while many of us cannot – at least at the early stage. Until you get to that point where you can take some more risks, diversify your investments.

One way to diversify your investments in the stock market is by investing in Mutual Funds or Exchange Traded Funds.

Pay close attention to the costs

Investing can be expensive although it does not have to be. As a budding investor, how do you determine the costs associated with investing? We will cover this in more detail in future but here are a things to keep in mind.

Your style of investing has an impact on the costs associated with your investment. If you adopt an Active Investment style, the costs are higher for the following reasons.

1: With an active fund, the fund manager aims to beat a benchmark and as a result, they make decisions to buy or sell securities in order to meet that goal. The fund manager relies on data from analysts to make this decision and there is an associated cost for this research information.

2: When the fund manager buy or sells any securities, there are transactions costs associated with each sale and purchase.

3: Many of these fund managers fail to beat the market (the benchmark they set out to outperform) so in the end, you could have kept more of your money by investing Passively.

A passive investment style is cheaper and there are different ‘shades of cheap’ so simply adopting a passive approach does not mean you are getting the best value for money. 

With a passive approach, you invest in an index fund and wait. That is it – the shares are not added to the fund or sold because inflation is high or for some other reason. The key is to stay in the game longterm.

The Expense Ratio is an important metric you will come across and it is generally higher for actively managed funds compared with Index or Passive Funds.

You can read more on Active and Passive Investing strategies here.

Set your Goals

Goals keep you focused and disciplined and investing is no different. Your goals are important for a few reasons.

1: They allow you to track your growth in your investing journey.

2: They allow you to have something to look forward by stretching you.

3: Goals present an opportunity for you to be accountable and improve.

There are a number of ways you can set an investing goal and here are a few examples of what the goal could look like.

Your goal may be to simply begin investing and this may entail choosing your investment style, finding the asset class and a broker to open your account and start investing. 

Quite a few steps were skipped in the comments above and as you become more familiar with our articles, you will understand who a broker is, the different account types you can open and the role the broker plays.

Here are examples of simpler goals you may want to consider as you begin your investing journey.

Example 1: Invest at least 30% of your monthly income in a Low Cost Index Fund

Example 2: Earn Passive income in the form of dividends from your portfolio

Example 3: Gain exposure to Fixed Income assets 

Example 4: Add Real Estate to your portfolio 

Keep Learning

Change is the only constant and once again, investing is no exemption. To save on costs and diversify, it is necessary to invest in a low cost index funds and hold for a long time.

The question is, how many Low Cost Index Funds are out there? How do they compare between providers? Should you buy the S&P 500 or an index that tracks the total market?

Should you get exposure to Asia, Africa, Europe and other markets? And if the answer is yes, what is the best way to go about it?

You can search for answers on the Internet regarding those questions and you can read books on those topics.

As a beginner investor, learning in a fundamental aspect of investing. You should not leave everything to the ‘gurus’ out there.

It may seem daunting at first but having your goals and coming up with a low cost way to invest will keep you from many of the dangers out there.

How to Invest £5,000 Right Now

There are different options when it comes to investing and in this article we explore the best way to invest £5,000.

Key Takeaways

• The best way to invest will depend on your personal goals.
• Diversification and investing at a low cost should be the goal.
• A passive approach to investing can help you better understand this.
• An ETF tracks an Index at a low cost and provides diversification.
• ETF providers such as Fidelity, Blackrock and Vanguard have ETFs that track different Indices.

A passive approach to investing has been shown to produce better results than active investing in the long run.

Diversification coupled with lower costs provided by some asset classes, can allow you to achieve better returns when compared with Active Investing or buying an individual stock.

The best way to invest any sum of money is to place it in an Index Fund or an ETF that tracks an Index.

That is the general principle as a start and you may choose to be a bit more specific by investing in Sector ETFs or any other Investment Themes while using ETFs as the asset class.

Now let us explore how we got here.

Things to consider before you proceed

There are a number of things to consider before investing £5,000 in our example.

• Since different people invest for different reasons the best way to invest will depend on their short, medium and long term goals.

• This article does not cover any aspects of paying off high interest debts or putting money aside for emergencies. It is important to have a rainy day fund, pay off high interest debt and save some money – basically budgeting.

• There are a number of asset classes to consider when investing such as Property, Collectibles, Commodities and Forex but that is beyond the scope of this article.

A better way to phrase this will be how to invest £5,000 in the stock market. 

How to Invest in the Stock Market

If you are looking to invest in the Financial Market, especially as a beginner, there are a number of important things to bear in mind.

Adopting a passive approach to investing as opposed to an Active approach will save you time and money. It is tempting to thing you can beat the market over time but studies have shown many Fund managers with more resources have not managed to. You can read more about these investing styles.

In simpler terms, if you are Fund Manager with access to Investment Research and all the trading tools, over a period of time, data has shown that your performance will not surpass a benchmark such as the S&P500, NASDAQ100.

Your aim should be Diversification and Low Cost. This means your money is invested in an asset class that allows you to benefit from the performance of a large number of stocks, at a low cost.

Time in the market is more important than timing the market so it is wise to have a medium to a long term approach. Investing any sum of money with the intention of selling your position in a few months means you have not allowed your investments to grow and compound and this is an important aspect of investing.

Bringing it together, we have narrowed down what we are looking to accomplish so it is easier to decide what asset class to purchase. 

We are looking to invest in an asset class that provides the opportunity to benefit from the performance of a wide number of stocks, at a low cost. And we are keeping this money for at least three to five years.

What are the different ways to Invest

Here are the different ways you can invest £5,000 from a range of sources on the Internet. 

• Bonds
• Cryptocurrency
• Index Funds and ETFs
• Sector ETFs
• Individual Stocks
• Use a Robo advisor

Considering these options and looking at the cost of buying each of these, you will see the money may not stretch long enough. How many blue-chip individual stocks can you purchase for £5,000 and what are the risks if that company fails?

Based on that fact that we want diversification at a low cost, the options we now have can be narrowed down to the Index Funds and ETFs and in the rest of this article we will look into what they are and how they can be purchased.

What is an Index Fund

When you purchase an Index Fund, you are purchasing an asset class (portfolio) that has been put together to match the performance of a financial benchmark. This could be a Mutual Fund or an Exchange Traded Fund. 

An Index fund that tracks the FTSE100 for example will purchase shares in all of the companies in the FTSE100. The obvious benefit here is that by owning a certain amount of all the shares in the Index, you are not missing out on performance.

There are many Index Fund providers with Vanguard and Blackrock being the most recognisable.

Remember there are many indices around the world so you can have an Index Fund that tracks the DAX40, FTSE100, S&P500, Russell 2000 and CAC40 to name a few.

What is an Exchange Traded Fund – ETF

An ETF is an Exchange traded fund and it accomplishes the same purpose as an Index Fund where the creator of the ETF purchases shares in all the companies in the given benchmark. 

To expand this a bit further, a provider like Blackrock or Vanguard will purchase the individual shares of the stocks in the Index and provide a financial product which is the ETF. 

The main difference when compared to an Index Fund is that you can trade an ETF and know the value of the fund through the day as opposed to a Mutual Fund that trades once a day.

Sector ETFs are ETFs in an Index that are more focused on a sector. For example, the S&P500 Index has companies in a wide range of sectors and there are ETFs that can track specific sectors within that S&P500 rather than the whole Index.

XLY, XLK, XLE and XLB are examples of sector ETFs that are on the S&P500 and here are a few examples from State Street.

One of the reasons you may consider purchasing Sector ETFs is to concentrate your portfolio or if you are investing in a Theme. More on Thematic Investing later.

How do you buy an ETF or Invest in an Index Fund?

There are two main ways to consider. The first method is through a Robo Advisor. A Robo Advisor for a small fee, invests your money in a financial product such as an ETF or an Index Fund.

I suggest to read more about Robo Advisors to better understand if a Robo Advisor is more suitable to your investment style.

The other way to consider is by doing yourself – yes and Google is your friend. A good place to start is by finding the different indices, and the ETFs that track them.

There are some terms you will come across as you embark on this new discovery of ETFs – terms such as Expense Ratio, ETF Replication Methods, Inflows and Outflows. These are all part of the learning process.

Here is an example of some indices and the and ETFs that track them. Some of these name you may not recognise but that is all part of the learning process.

For the S&P500, here are some of the ETFs that track that Index. IVV or SPY are examples of ETFs that track this Index.

For the FTSE 100, here are some of the ETFs that are applicable. ISF and CUKX are examples of ETFs that track this Index.

Finally, for the NASDAQ, these are the ETFs you can purchase that track this Index.

Which ETF Provider should you Use

The next thing is to find out where you can purchase these ETFs. From your research you will see Vanguard, State Street, Blackrock and Fidelity do not all have the same ETFs but ideally they do the same – they provide an asset class that tracks an Index.

For example, if you want to track the S&P500, there are a number of providers that have asset classes that will allow you to purchase these. Vanguard have a product for this which you can buy on their platform.

Blackrock has a product for this as well but you cannot buy it from their platform – you can purchase it from Brokers such as Trading212 or IG Index for example.

A better way to approach this section is to narrow down the ETFs you wish you purchase, get the ticker symbol and see which platforms allow you to purchase it.

In Europe, there are some restrictions on the ETFs available to you (for a number of reasons) and what you will find is that Vanguard has a smaller offering of ETFs.

Here are some ETFs you can purchase from iShares – which is Blackrock. Amundi is another provider in Europe and here are their ETFs.

Remember, this is not financial advice and you should always seek expert opinion. You can contact WealthSigma on Instagram or TikTok and leave a message in the DM.

In some ways, 2024 will be a continuation of the emerging patterns we have seen in 2023 across many industries. It can potentially be a year of two halves where we see the effects of high inflation and interest rates waning as many central banks take measures to increase growth. 

Lets explore the some of the main themes for the year ahead.

Recession: Will There be a Recession

Talks of a recession do not seem too far from us and wherever you look, there are signs of slowing growth. Different aspect of the economy at different times have indicated slowing growth but to determine with some certainty if there will be a recession, we need to look at the factors that may determine this.

The experts are saying there is a high possibility of a recession or at least significant economic slow down. When it comes to the possibility of a recession, the question is how deep and how long will it last.

Inflation and Interest Rates

The Inflation and Interest Rates are potentially key to determine if there will be a recession and if a recession happens, the decisions taken be the Central Bank to manage it will also depends on these values at least.

To fight high inflation, the Central Bank raises Interest Rates and when that happens, business and individuals struggle in many ways.

As Inflation falls, the Central Banks may cut Interest Rates and as that happens, the expectation is that there will be economic growth as a result of the cost of borrowing falling. 

Businesses can borrow (at a much lower cost) for reasons that suit them and individuals can borrow for consumption or buying assets – as we recommend.

The last twelve months have been quite interesting as we have seen the fight against inflation. Some countries have done better than others as we can see the Fed in the States have managed to get inflation closer to their target.

There is an expectation Interest Rates will be cut by the Fed at some point in the first half of next year – promising indeed. Real question is what asset classes or sectors should we pay attention to?

In Europe, Core Inflation (which is the change in the cost of good and services, excluding those from Energy and Food) has been a bit more challenging to deal with but there is progress in the right direction.

In the UK inflation is slowing but the BOE are yet to confirm if rates will be cut in 2024. 

The main takeaway here is to seek out opportunities a high inflation environment provides, the impact of the Central Bank cutting rates to boost growth and the opportunities that will come from that. The opportunities that existed when inflation was high will change as inflation 

The Housing Market

2024 is an election year and this has the ability to shape expectations for the coming year. A drop in inflation and possibly Interest Rates are a signal that things are heading in the right direction. That being said, a reduction in interest rates does not necessarily mean it is cheap enough to borrow.

A number different factors will determine what will happen to house prices in certain areas. Fundamentally if it is not cheap to obtain credit, then spending will be reduced in the economy to a large extent.

Across the UK there is a housing shortage and politicians have promised to do something about it. Studies have shown that the minimum number of homes that need to be built each year are not met. Read more the report here.

A reduction of Interest Rates will make buying and building homes more appealing since a large aspect of that process requires borrowing money.

Home sellers may be in a tough spot since millions of homes may come on to the market as fixed interest rates come to an end and the owners may choose to sell rather than refinance at a much higher rate.

More homes on the market present opportunities for first time buyers and investors however, Lenders are more strict with affordability and valuation values so this not a guarantee that homes will be bought or sold in a reasonable time frame.

Renters will continue to bear the brunt as there is a shortage of homes and if borrowing costs stay high, there will be little incentive to make homes available for rent.

The Broader Financial Market

With changes to Inflation and Interest rates, there will be ‘movement’ in the Stock and Bond market.

The actions taken by the Fed will have an impact on Bond yields and includes Government, Corporate and other bonds.

It is an election year after all and the policies of the potential candidate will have an effect on the that market. Are they going to raise taxes? Will they take a different approach when dealing with Trade Partners?

There are a number of things to consider when you think of how the market may perform and it is worth noting inflation and interest rates are not the only factors.

Geopolitical Issues: New Emerging Order

The conflict in Ukraine has not ceased and in the last year has intensified somewhat. New conflicts such as the Israel-Hamas war, the instability around the Red Sea has created a murky picture.

What we can deduce is that some conflicts have a much bigger impact on the market than others. Attacks in the Middle East around the Red Sea may have an impact on the price of Oil and could lead to more instability in the area.

The export of grains and crops produced in Ukraine has been impacted by the conflict and the impact continues. The conflict introduced volatility in the Energy and Commodity markets.

On the political side, emerging powers have seized these conflicts as a opportunity to be mediators. On one hand it can be seen as the waning of the current power on the other hand, other countries a rising up are a looking to wield influence in the geopolitical sphere.

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence has gained traction this year and is set to continue in the years ahead. In different aspects of this space, investment is increasing along with interests and the risks that come with new technological advancement,.

Nvidia stock performance is testament in a way to how enabling AI and the different ways it is applied is creating more opportunities for growth. There are some strong performers in the Semi Conductor space – check these names out.

The AI battle among the big tech companies is taking shape with each of them having their version or application of Large Language Model (LLM) i.e ChatGPT, Bard, etc.

Cyber security concerns introduced by AI especially in an election year will come to the fore. While disinformation is not a new tactic, using AI tools, one can spread more lies, much quicker than they can be verified and this can have interesting implications.

A new year is upon us and it is time to bring out the crystal ball and predict what exactly will happen this year and how we can make loads of money. Aah, if only it were that simple.

The real challenge in many ways is not the lack of information as you will see by reading the last bit of this article, there are many opinions out there. Diverging perspectives and differing views further add to the challenge of not knowing what exactly to do with your hard earned cash. 

It is worth noting these views are broad and may not apply to every type of investor at the same time.

The main thing here is to think about the Event, Opportunity and Asset class that will allow you to benefit from what happens during the year. As always, we are not providing financial advice in anyway so do seek expert advice – and share some of it with us.

In this article we share details of the trends that will take focus this year and any possible opportunities this will create.

China

There are several aspects of this so we will break it down.

New Covid Variants

In the last few weeks of 2022 reports came to light that the Chinese authorities have been dealing with a surge in covid cases. Initially, the government had a zero covid policy which led to large swathes of the populations in cities to be locked down with strict rules applied.

Well, that did not go according to plan and the impact to the economy could not be ignored. Protests occurred in a number of cities too. The authorities have since relaxed these rules however, covid cases are rising rapidly and a number of countries have taken steps to check inbound flights from China for negative Covid results.

Prior to these checks being introduced, it is very likely that passengers from China coming into Europe and other parts of the world, may well have been infected with this new strain of Covid.

Is this cause for alarm? The actual details are beyond the scope of this article because there are many factors to consider and it can get messy.

Main takeaway here is that the world may be dealing with a cocktail of covid variants and depending on the impact it has and what governments choose to do, there will be impact (on the Economy and Businesses) that range from little to severe.

On the severe side of things, a lockdown will ensue across the board, flights will be cancelled and we could see a 2020 playbook where demand for oil slumps, airline and hospitality sectors suffer, biotech stocks gaining more ground and ‘covid stocks’ such as Netflix, Disney, Zoom, Peloton and any other may see growth in their share prices – but this is an extreme example.

What is more likely to happen is that the situation is closely monitored and if the impact to the healthcare infrastructure increases, then action will be taken accordingly that may result in some temporary lockdowns and travel restrictions.

Countries are increasingly imposing stricter travel requirements on passengers from China and this is only set to ‘get worse’ as Covid cases rise across different countries.

Sectors and companies to watch here include airline, biotech, hospitality and travel. A simple google search can reveal these sectors and stocks. ETFs are also worth considering in this case.

Increased Demand for Resources

China’s end of the zero covid policy in may ways meant the Chinese economy is open without any interruptions for business and this is positive news (barring the issue with an explosion of covid cases) from an economic standpoint since it means demand for commodities, metals and other resources China is a major consumer of, increases.

As a side note, the Chinese government has put money aside to bail out troubled real estate companies which is also a positive sign as this will settle nerves and renew interests in that market especially since the Evergrande and the contagion from it.

These are some of the Chinese ETFs to watch; the opportunities will be more apparent as the year transpires.  

Chinese Companies Listed on US Exchanges

The 200 plus Chinese companies that would have been removed from the US Stock Exchange, will no longer be removed since US Auditors have been granted access to the books of these companies and have not found any issues.

This decision marks an important turning point and an end to the longstanding conflict between Beijing and Washington. There are a number of guidelines and rules a company will need to adhere to in order to be listed in the US.

Increased confidence in these companies from an audit stand point of view is positive news since many buy side clients and other investors that would otherwise be hesitant to invest, will consider doing so.

Companies such as Baidu, Alibaba and other blue chip Chinese companies listed in the US would have been impacted by this. There is potential upside for increased demand in these companies shares.

These are the Chinese companies listed in the US can be found here and there are a number of ETFs that have exposure to these companies. ETFs are good as they provide diversification and are low cost.

Geopolitical Issues

Unless you have lived under a rock (which to be fair, may be a safe place considering what is going on in the world right now), you will be aware of the main conflict in Europe.

The ongoing conflict in Ukraine and Russia means we are paying even more for energy and some soft commodities. While this conflict is not entirely to blame for the inflation in these goods, it is a factor that cannot be ignored. 

One potential opportunity from this is that more investments will pour into renewable and other sources of energy in an attempt to wean us off from Russian gas. These developments are still in the early stage but it is an area to closely watch.

We are going to be paying more for energy regardless of what happens. This conflict will last longer than experts may come to expect (we are dealing with egos and hidden agendas after all) and while this continues as we have seen, energy companies have made a killing in their profits. 

As I alluded to earlier, this was not all due to the conflict in Ukraine; as we can see, energy prices have been going up since 2021. This graph shows the Sectors and ETFs that are in the Energy Sector and you can see the performance.

Looking closer at the constituents of the ETFs, you can see individual companies and see how many of them have increased dividends due to how much money they have made.

Blue chip energy stocks with big balance sheets can navigate this energy crisis and benefit from it. Definitely a good idea to watch them closer. 

There are other potential geopolitical flashpoint such as China and Taiwan and the decoupling of these economies, North Korea testing even more missiles and Japan investing more in its military. Europe is closest to home and the impact of the conflict is felt more readily hence our focus on it.

Cost of Living Crisis

One pain point from this conflict is the cost of living and how we are paying more to heat our homes and businesses. Now some people have argued energy companies are opportunistic in their pricing and using the conflict as a reason to hike prices.

Whatever the case may be, the prospect and reality of spending a larger portion of your pay check on staying warm and just being able to live is something the population is struggling to understand and the strikes we have seen in the UK with the different Unions is a reflection of this frustrations.

Inflation

We have written a bit about inflation and how it affects us. Sadly enough inflation is not going away any time soon and while this persists, the Central Banks will continue to do what they can to bring it under control without crashing the economy – some would argue we are already seeing a slow down that will get worse.

The question on peoples minds here is if inflation has peaked. Some experts suggest this will be in cycles so as far as this cycle is concerned, we are seeing inflation peak. It is important to understand how inflation is measured to see what items influence the calculation.

As we exist winter, there is (should be) lower demand for energy and this has the effect of reducing inflation from energy. Gas companies may choose to obtain more gas and shore up their storage in the meantime.

Getting into winter 2023, we may well see inflation from energy rise and a new cycle return.

The monetary policy of the Central Banks post covid contributed is a factor in causing inflation in many ways since the availability of easy money meant investors were borrowing hands over fist and buying whatever they pleased (including Cryptocurrencies and NFTs).

Now, money printers no longer goes ‘brrrrrr’ (check the meme) as Central Banks have increased interest rates in an attempt to combat inflation – so far it appears to be working. A reversal or change in the central bank policy has the aim of reducing inflation and there are promising results but the main danger is not to crash the economy in the process.

Recessions Fears

Muttering and whispers of a recession have been around since he last quarter of 2022 and these whispers have grown louder. Looking at the economic numbers it is hard to debate that we are in a recession in the UK, in Europe and many major economies.

The IMF has revised its growth forecast for world economic growth. There are opportunities to invest in the right type of companies and the right companies in this economic climate are those that are:

• Cheap: Trading at a discount to their value. There are metrics such as PE and other ratios that can reveal this. Here is a quick breakdown of some of the ratios.
• Staple and Consumer Groups: There are companies in this sectors we cannot do without recession or not.
• Large Balance Sheets: Companies that are large enough to weather the economic storm of inflation and recession. Just bear in mind no there are unforeseen events that can potentially impact these companies.

Artificial Intelligence: The Rise of the Machines – Again

ChatGpt3 by OpenAI is a game changer in the making and the recent developments they have made is cause for excitement.

Artificial Intelligence is set to replace many jobs and while it may not be apparent which jobs will cease to exist, the opportunity is there to invest in the future.

The thought process here is to look for companies that fit one or more of these criteria:

1. Companies that invest in Open AI directly or partnering with them. Microsoft is a candidate for that.
2. Companies that are using the technology to further reduce costs and streamline operations or create more innovative solutions.
3. Startups that are heavily use A.I to create innovative products and capture market share.

Any companies that fit that profile are potentially good candidates to look further into and invest in, all other things considered. 

Final Words and Input from the Real Experts

2023 is expected to be a challenging year in many ways carrying on from what we have seen in 2022 but there are opportunities. These opportunities may not be apparent at the beginning of the year and will require investors to look closer to find value and to be dynamic in their approach.

This suggests simply putting your money in a passive fund may not give you superior returns – just a thought.

As Warren B says, it is only when the tide goes out we can see who has been swimming naked (yikes). Challenges present a chance to grow and that is how we see 2023. 

Side note, India has overtaken the UK (go India!) in GDP terms and is looking promising going into the year. India is one country to watch in the coming years and there are a number of ETFs that are India-focused should you look to benefit from the potential growth of the Indian economy.

Another honourable mention is Cryptocurrencies and at this stage it seems like there is drama each year (sigh). The latest and ongoing FTX Scandal for lack of a better word has shown and continues to reveal what can happen without due diligence or regulatory framework.

The price of Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies have slumped in the last 12 months and may have hit a bottom but it is unclear. 

Two things we see coming out of this is that if some sort of regulatory framework is put together to protect investors in Cryptocurrencies, that can renew investor confidence.

Investors can also focus on other applications of the Blockchain and not merely cryptocurrencies. The Blockchain technology is useful and has a lot more application so rather than focus on only one aspect of it (cryptos), perhaps it is better to find other applications of this technology and seek ways to benefit from it.

Expert’s 2023 Forecast

Some of the heavy hitters in the industry with their army of research analysts have put their thoughts on the coming year and I have put them together for your reading pleasure.

Worth remembering some of these experts did not foresee the impact of covid, high inflation and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. So read what they say but decide for yourself.

In no particular order, here they are. Happy reading and all the best in the new year.

Goldman Sachs: https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/pages/gs-research/macro-outlook-2023-this-cycle-is-different/report.pdf

J.P Morgan: https://am.jpmorgan.com/content/dam/jpm-am-aem/global/en/insights/market-insights/mi-investment-outlook-ce-en.pdf

Morgan Stanley: https://www.morganstanley.com/im/publication/insights/articles/article_2023investmentoutlook_enin.pdf 

Bank of America: https://about.bankofamerica.com/en/making-an-impact/outlook-2023-webcast 

Schroders: https://www.schroders.com/en/insights/economics/outlook-2023-cio-and-multi-asset-its-all-about-valuations/

Blackrock: https://www.blackrock.com/corporate/literature/whitepaper/bii-global-outlook-2023.pdf 

Societe Generale: https://insight-public.sgmarkets.com/insights/multi-asset-portfolio-outlook-2023 

Allianz: https://www.allianz.com/en/economic_research/publications/specials_fmo/global-economy-outlook.html 

HSBC: https://www.privatebanking.hsbc.com/content/dam/privatebanking/gpb/wealth-insights/investment-insights/house-views/2023/brochure/Q1%202023%20Investment%20Outlook%20-%20Looking%20for%20the%20Silver%20Lining%20-%20Brochure.pdf

Barclays: https://www.cib.barclays/our-insights/3-point-perspective/q1-2023-global-outlook.html#:~:text=2023%20may%20well%20be%20one,3.2%25%20growth%20expected%20for%202022

Natwest: https://www.natwest.com/corporates/insights/markets/the-year-ahead-2023.html 

Citigroup: https://www.privatebank.citibank.com/newcpb-media/media/documents/outlook/outlookwealthreport2023.pdf

UBS: https://www.ubs.com/global/en/assetmanagement/insights/investment-outlook/panorama/panorama-end-year-2022/articles/calm-waters.html 

Franklin Templeton: https://www.franklintempleton.lu/articles/brandywine-global/outlook-for-2023-complicated-fragmented-macro-road-map 

TSLombard: https://blogs.tslombard.com/things-that-wont-happen-in-2023 

PGIM: https://www.pgim.com/investments/getpidoc?file=DF1B2252A93C42328E3C0AF5BC12455E 

Nordea: https://docs.nordeamarkets.com/nordea-economic-outlook/economic-outlook-2022/eo-en-03-2022/ 

Capital Group: https://www.capitalgroup.com/advisor/insights/categories/outlook.html 

Vanguard: https://investor.vanguard.com/investor-resources-education/news/vanguard-economic-and-market-outlook-for-2023-global-summary

S&P Global: https://www.spglobal.com/ratings/en/research-insights/topics/outlook-2023 

Moodys: https://www.moodys.com/newsandevents/topics/2023-Outlooks-00705F 

AXA Investment Managers: https://www.axa-im.com/investment-institute/outlook-2023 

Invesco: https://www.invesco.com/middle-east/en/insights/investment-outlooks.html 

Macquarie: https://www.macquarie.com/us/en/about/company/macquarie-asset-management/outlook-2023.html?creative=637442313013&keyword=economic+outlook&matchtype=b&network=g&device=c&adgroupid=150691169984#:~:text=Download%20the%20magazine%20(PDF) 

Amundi: https://www.amundi.com/usinvestors/Local-Content/News/Investment-Outlook-2023-Some-Light-for-Investors-After-the-Storm 

DWS: https://www.dws.com/en-es/our-profile/media/media-releases/dws-market-outlook-2023/ 

T.Rowe Price: https://www.troweprice.com/financial-intermediary/uk/en/lp/global-market-outlook.html 

Lazard: https://www.lazardassetmanagement.com/uk/en_uk 

Fidelity: https://professionals.fidelity.co.uk/static/master/media/pdf/outlook/annual_outlook_2023.pdf 

BNY Mellon: https://www.bnymellonwealth.com/content/dam/bnymellonwealth/pdf-library/articles/Final_BNYM2023OutlookMaster12_20_22.pdf 

Wells Fargo: https://www08.wellsfargomedia.com/assets/pdf/personal/investing/investment-institute/2023-outlook-report_ADA.pdf 

State Street: https://www.ssga.com/library-content/pdfs/gmo-2023-navigating-a-bumpy-landing.pdf 

ING: https://think.ing.com/uploads/reports/ING_global_outlook_2023_Dec_2022_OT.pdf

Deutsche: https://www.deutschewealth.com/content/dam/deutschewealth/cio-perspectives/cio-insights-assets/q1-2023/CIO-Insights-Outlook-2023-Resilience-versus-recession.pdf