Trading winds: ETFs are a-blowing
ETFs are increasingly popular among SMSFs, but they are not all built the same.James Brooks reports.
While lingering global economic uncertainty continues to curb the collective enthusiasm for many of the investment options on offer in the local superannuation marketplace, exchange-traded funds or ETFs are going against the tide.READ MORE

A twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity
As share markets decline, remain volatile and produce poor historical returns compared to other asset classes, it will be easy to be swayed by the latest investment trend – to move out of equities.
And the move away is gathering pace as large investment management companies continue to hug indices that are populated by large but mediocre companies. As a result, a growing number of Australians have made the move from managed funds to the SMSF.READ MORE

The FX markets: achieving the best results
A trend has become apparent In the four years following the GFC: most super funds have returned either negative or, at best, very small yields. This fact, however, did not prevent these super funds from charging their clients high commissions for their portfolio management.
Establishing an SMSF allows the investor to choose their preferred investment portfolio and can, therefore, allow the investor to properly diversify their investment risk, have control over their funds and save a big piece of the return that was paid as commission. One investment option, fast growing in popularity, is the foreign exchange (FX) market.READ MORE