What will share markets return in the next 6 months? What about 12 months? They’ve been largely going up for some years now. Can that continue? Personally, I don’t know. Does anyone, really? There are some risks. But there often are. And markets carry on upward anyway. And conversely there can be something unexpected that triggers them to fall. Followed by the task of predicting how deep the fall will be and how long it will last. And then the steps forward and back with no clear direction as markets seek to recover. But, over the longer term the market advances. Research suggests that simply taking a longer-term view, being well diversified and staying invested is more profitable that trying to time one’s way in and out of markets. Some people believe that the future of investment markets can be seen with accuracy. Perhaps they just want to believe. Or they get paid to believe. But in reality, consistent, accurate prediction is impossible. The world is just too complex. Conside...

In last month’s column, I discussed the impact that falling markets can have on those clients who are in the saving phase of their lives. I concluded, somewhat surprisingly, that for clients who are disciplined and invest in a certain way, negative markets can help build wealth. Although this conclusion is valid for half of the population (i.e. those in the wealth accumulation phase of their lives), what about those clients who are retired and looking to receive a sustainable level of drawings to help fund their living costs? The simple answer is that for retired people, a falling market environment has to be endured rather than benefited from. It is a time when the way a portfolio is ‘engineered’ will become a critical determinant of whether the strategy will be able to sustain the same level of drawings when markets turn negative. Don’t cut down half-grown trees. For retired clients, the way in which the portfolio is constructed has a lot in common with a diversified farming...

NZ Funds offers a free comprehensive UK pension transfer service that helps clients every step of the way until their pension is re-located to New Zealand. NZ Funds began offering a transfer service in 2017 when our Qualified Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme was registered with Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs. Since then we have transferred over $30 million of UK pensions. Below are our top tips for those considering whether to transfer their pension from the UK to New Zealand. Can my pension be transferred? Generally, most pensions are transferable, irrespective of the amount. However, there are a few exceptions to this. If you do not fall into one of the following categories your pension should be transferable! The UK State Pension, which is the equivalent of New Zealand’s NZ Super – paid for by the Governments of both countries – is not available for transfer. However, if you have relocated to New Zealand you may be eligible to receive NZ Super payments. Some rul...