Both our Australian and NZ Model portfolios performed strongly, up +10.2% and +13.6% respectively over the 2016 calendar year. A strong month for equity markets in December saw the Australian market (ASX 200) end the year with a 7% annual gain for 2016. While the NZ market (NZX 50) has pulled back from its high in September, it still made a healthy 9% gain in 2016. While equity markets have moved higher, in other asset classes the trends continue, as bonds have sold-off further, and the US dollar has also moved to fresh highs.
The late-year rally fuelled by the U.S. election has pushed stocks to peaks, which has seen more investors expressing caution that the market could be primed for a spill to start 2017. As we mentioned in our last update, given the strong move higher in markets, we would be hesitant in broadly buying stocks at the current juncture and would not be surprised to see some consolidation in markets. In saying that, we continue to recommend investors hold a &ld...
Stock Markets, Simplified.