If you want to invest on the stock market, but you don't have a clue which stocks to pick, there's a simple solution to your problem.
Invest in unit trusts.
Unit trusts take all the stock picking decisions out of your hands, because you give your money to a professional fund manager to do it for you.
But what exactly are unit trusts? What types of unit trusts are there? And how can you go... ››› more
Unit trusts are an easy way of adding some diversification to your portfolio. And you can invest from a small monthly amount.
So how do you go about picking a unit trust to invest in from the hundreds available?
You should ask yourself these three questions…
Question #1: Do I like the asset class the unit trust invests in?
There are unit trusts available on a number of different a... ››› more
When inflation is high, like it is now, it can be difficult to get returns to beat it.
If you've got money in a savings account, chances are you're losing money as the interest rate you receive doesn't even offset the effects of inflation.
So what can you do? You could look to inflation-linked government bonds. And you can invest in these bonds through an exchange traded fund (ETF).
Read... ››› more
At the end of last week, the Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM) announced it plans to launch an exchange traded fund (ETF) tracking the 40 largest companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). Let's take a closer look at the move by the SEM…
The Stock Exchange of Mauritius is expanding
The SEM is trying to boost the investment options available to investors, says Africa Money. And part ... ››› more
Picking a unit trust is no easy task. There are hundreds of them out there.
When you buy into a unit trust, you want to find a fund that will perform even once you take fees and costs into account. This means yielding a return that outperforms the market. Otherwise your cash is better off in a tracker fund.
You need to find a unit trust with a good fund manager at the helm. So what should y... ››› more
The one thing that worries many investors about actively managed unit trust funds is the costs involved. They are significant. And these costs eat into your potential return.
Have a glance at a fund's fact sheet and you might think all costs are included in the total expense ratio (TER), but you'd be wrong. TER doesn't include one-off costs, such as the fund's trading costs. And the more the f... ››› more
With the pressure heavily on fund managers to perform, there appears to be a growing trend in closet indexing. Closet indexing is when an actively managed unit trust fund starts to replicate its benchmark index. The result is you're paying more for a performance you could have got from investing in a tracker fund. Let's take a closer look at what's going on and what you can do about it…
The e... ››› more
The unit trust market is South Africa is massive. There are literally hundreds of funds out there waiting for your investment rand. But there is a chance that some of them aren't what they first appear to be. Invest in one of these funds and you could be wasting money paying for the expertise of a fund manager for nothing. So what is this all about? Read on to find out what you need to know…
... ››› more
There are many advantages to trading ETFs. ETFs are cost efficient, transparent and easy to buy and sell instruments. And by trading ETFs on indexes, there are even more benefits. Let's take a closer look at what these benefits are…
Benefit #1: Protect your portfolio against a volatile rand
It’s easy to see why many South Africans become obsessed with the rand and how it’s doing against ... ››› more
If you want to invest in physical gold, you have a couple of different options. You could buy Kruger rands for example. You'd just have to find somewhere safe and secure to keep them. Or you could opt to invest in a gold-backed exchange traded fund (ETF). This has all the advantages of holding gold, but without the hassle. Let's take a closer look…
The importance of physical gold backing
... ››› more
If you're looking for exposure to commodities in your portfolio, you can use exchange traded funds (ETFs). You can either invest in an index-based ETF or you can opt for a commodity-backed ETF. So what's the difference? And how can you invest in them? Let's take a closer look…
Commodities ETFs option one
Your first option in commodities ETFs is to buy an index-based ETF that invests in diffe... ››› more
If you want to invest on the stock market without buying individual company shares, one option open to you is to invest in exchange traded funds (ETFs). ETFs are baskets of shares that trade on the stock market just like shares. ETFs hold assets such as shares, bonds, futures and commodities. You can buy and sell ETFs through your stockbroker. Read on to uncover the benefits of buying ETFs…
R... ››› more
If you're looking to build up a portfolio of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange's best dividend payers without all the hassle of picking and investing in the shares individually, here's one way you can do it. You could invest in an exchange traded fund which does this for you. Let's take a closer look at how this works…
What is an ETF?
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are index funds listed on the... ››› more
Unit trusts are a great way to invest. You can make money on your investment. And you gain instant diversification, something that investing in individual shares will take you a lot of time and money to replicate. But, of course, there are risks. But what are they? Let's take a closer look at the main risks of putting your money into unit trusts… Investing in unit trusts carries risk
When you... ››› more
If you're as sick as taxes as most South Africans are, you'll love that unit trusts give you the chance to make money from this. How? By investing in the right unit trust of course. And in this case, it all comes down to something called a bond fund unit trust…
What is a bond fund unit trust?
As The South African Investor’s Leon Kok explains: Bond funds are fixed interest funds tailored... ››› more
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