Market & Portfolio Update - April 2022
Global share markets continued their choppy start to 2022 during April. For New Zealand-based investors, a fall in the NZ dollar played an important role in helping offset the volatility global share markets experienced. The NZ dollar fell against most major currencies supporting the returns of unhedged overseas assets (assets that are free to move with exchange rates). As a result, ‘unhedged’ overseas investments fell by only 1.8% for NZ based investors.
The latest data shows New Zealand’s annual inflation rate reached 6.9% in March – up from 5.9% in December. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand responded by raising the Official Cash Rate 0.5%. The OCR now sits at 1.5%, and is expected to continue to rise. However, it's important to note that market expectations have already adjusted so that a rise to 3.5% by the end of the year is already baked into asset prices. This means the actual impact from here of future increases at this rate should reflect their not being a ’surprise’ for investment markets.
Lifetime Book Club: Stolen Focus by Johann Hari
"The truth is, we are not losing our ability to focus because we are lazy or undisciplined. We are losing it because our attention has been stolen."
That is the central idea of Stolen Focus. This is not a typical productivity guide filled with tips to switch off notifications. It is a thoughtful, well-researched investigation into why so many of us are struggling to concentrate and what can be done about it.
Market & Portfolio Update - October 2025
The global share market (represented by the MSCI World Gross Index) was up +3.5% in NZ dollar terms in October. The relatively strong month was underpinned by signs of easing trade tensions between the US and China and another solid US corporate earnings season.