Press Releases
-
HCI
01 May 2013 - Alistair LeaThe year 2003 was significant in the life of Cape-based investment holding company, Hosken Consolidated Investments (‘HCI’). Its major asset, a 5% stake in the unlisted Vodacom group, was sold for R1.5 billion (having been valued at R90 million at the time of acquisition). Interest in the company waned following this, as many shareholders held HCI shares to gain exposure to Vodacom...
-
Stuck in the mud
01 May 2013 - Chantal ValentineThere’s a nasty little feedback loop in South Africa at the moment: The wide current account deficit (partly due to local factors and partly due to external ones) is keeping the rand weak, which is fostering inflation; while domestic growth seems to be struggling, which is also partly reflective of lower export demand hitting the manufacturing sector. The mining strikes have also...
-
The active versus passive debate
01 May 2013 - Kirshni TotaramThe debate between active and passive investing has once again taken centre stage in much of the financial press. While the take-up of passive investing in South Africa is still relatively low, it is curious to see that the majority of the data presented is in favour of passive, with very little being said in support of active investing. Both investment approaches have merit and...
-
Equity market update May 2013
01 May 2013 - Quinton IvanGlobal equity markets rallied in the first quarter of 2013, with the MSCI World Index up 7.9% in US dollars. This is despite concerns over Europe’s recession and sovereign debt crisis, fears of a pronounced economic slowdown in China, and political shenanigans over the US’s fiscal position. It is clear in their actions to-date, that governments are determined to avoid the globe...
-
Retirement reform
01 May 2013 - Pieter Koekemoer‘If choice architecture is thoughtfully established, it can nudge us in beneficial directions without restricting freedom of choice’ – Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein National Treasury released an updated paper on South Africa’s proposed retirement system at the time of the 2013 national budget announcement. The document summarises the current state of the retirement reform process...
-
Bond outlook
01 May 2013 - Mark le RouxSouth African bonds were reasonably resilient over the quarter, despite the high level of news impacting the bond market. Continued foreign inflows provided the major support, while local fundamentals presented a backdrop of overall negative newsflow. Inflation-linked bonds (ILBs) returned 1.84% for the quarter and the All Bond Index (ALBI) eked out a 1% return, lagging cash at 1.3%...
-
Raging Bull champion Coronation strengthens its lead
29 April 2013 - Laura du PreezCoronation Fund Managers, the winner of the Raging Bull Award for the Domestic Management Company of the Year for 2012, has strengthen its leading position this past quarter with a near-perfect score in the PlexCrown Ratings survey of unit trust management companies...
-
Listed property still outshines other asset classes
25 April 2013 - Ingé LamprechtPerformance expected to remain volatile. JOHANNESBURG – Listed property was the star pupil of asset classes during 2012 with a total annual return on investment of around 36%, but most analysts warned that the sector would not be able to continue its dominance going forward. However, it seems that listed property has defied the odds – in the short term at least – and has rewarded investors with a...