When you start an investment, journey counts. Given that most people aggressively start investing around market peaks, their starting point is not ideal. Most investors tend to scale up their equity investing around market peaks. While this has become a way of life, the subsequent behavioral responses matter for their…
Investment Strategy: As we move into a rising interest rate scenario, the focus shifts to high-quality low-volatility investments. Our strategy has been to construct a layered portfolio by locking into high-quality investments at different yields. At this juncture, short-term AAA investments make the most sense. Contact us if you would…
Recency bias hurts the most when a bull market ends. We tend to buy investment ideas which did very well in the recent past. This happens across the board. The stocks in favour remain the ones which hit recent highs and gained the most in the past year. We tend…
Podcast Transcript Every portfolio often needs validation. Our ideas are constructed in a particular context and we find that soon thereafter the market context changes dramatically. My own experience from previous bull runs is what comes to mind. When we come out of a bull market, we tend to think…
What would you ideally need to retire? A steady flow of income, a sizable corpus, and a sense of financial security. Imagine you saved consistently but invested predominantly in real estate. Upon retirement, you would find that while you were still well off you might be strapped for cash. Today,…
“Prophecy is a good line of business, but it is full of risks.” ~Mark Twain These words ring a bell as we approach the end of a decade after Lehman. Predicting almost never brings glory to the person doing it. Even if, by the twist of fate,…
Podcast Transcript: I met a friend after long years. He had been around the world, worked in many countries, and seen the best and worst of the oil booms. In fact, he worked in that sector and was slowly getting ready to retire. We go a long way…
Investors are always so busy celebrating market highs that they miss the peak out moment. So, most investors tend to wake up long after the market corrects. The only way to ensure one is alert to the market highs is to follow an active-passive approach that is dynamic. This requires…
Podcast Transcript The markets are hitting new highs. But my advisor says, “Think long term”. I asked him if we need to book some profits. He says “Do nothing, just let the investments stay.” Friends, keep bringing up these conversations more frequently these days. The problem with…
Opinions are very different from judgements. Investment is a field where we carry both and apply them constantly. Opinions are lighter, presumptive, and easy going. We can like or dislike a personality, a business leader, an industry, or a business. Opinions formed on the basis of instinct rather than inquiry…
In good years, defensive investors have to be content with the KNOWLEDGE that their gains, although perhaps less than maximal, were achieved with risk protection in place, even though it turned out to be not needed. – Howard Marks Every investor scrutinizes the relationship between risk and…
The purpose of monetary policy is to manage inflation, facilitate growth, and regulate credit in the economy. The RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has a clear mandate to target inflation and maintain it around 4%. In terms of bond markets, 2017 and 2018 are like chalk and cheese. 2017 witnessed…