If you happened to blink, you would have missed the sharp fall and subsequent spike in equity and bond prices over the past few weeks. It is clear now that the panic caused by the Japanese carry trade on August 5th was a fantastic buying opportunity for those investors who are not fully invested yet. Not only are equities in the USA performing well, but here in our sunny SA the markets are also up and even the rand has dropped to below R18 against the dollar.
If we take a closer look at the market performance year to date, we see that the SA shares have risen around 9% and US markets closer to 17%. It is almost certain that we will see the first interest rate cuts in September, which will support these good share performances. Bonds are also doing well and we will continue to see them perform as interest rates fall. Looking at precious metals, we see Gold and Silver both up around 21% for the year but, unfortunately for our miners, commodities like Palladium and Platinum are still in negative territory.
Here at home on the West Coast the wild flowers are out and after the abundant rains we have had, they are stunning. Very few things in life are free, but this display of colour is, so just take a drive and enjoy.
