Investing – Page 4 – TGIF 2 Minutes with Kerrie Debbs, CFP

Risk Off & Risk On

NERD ALERT: This edition of TGIF 2 Minutes will get a big “wonky” but still worth the read. A good number of people reading are familiar with the terms, “risk off” and “risk on,” terms that are used frequently in financial media and by financial industry traders and risk managers.

Even for a business owner or anyone familiar with risk, the term “risk on” or “risk off” may make sense. But for those still wanting clarification on how these terms relate to personal savings and investments – specifically the stock and bond markets – here are a few details.

First, the reason it made sense to highlight this topic is that just this week the US Fed said,“[The US] economy has made progress toward its goals, teeing up bond taper.” *

Think of **“risk ON”** as *increasing* risk and being *comfortable* with taking on more risk; whereas **“risk OFF”** would be *decreasing* risk due to factors that make risk *uncomfortable*.

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Portfolios & Back Pain

Have you ever had back trouble? Boy can it be a pain in the ### (pun intended). Recovery is usually possible by seeking – and taking – proper advice and treatment. Believe it or not, there is a way to relate the recovery process from back pain to the recovery and durability of investment portfolios. Stay with me here!

I will credit my excellent physical therapist, who knows very well my profession as a CFP®, for coming up with the concept. He said to me, “like your advice about my 401k allocation, the physical strength work a person does for years can make recovery from back trouble much swifter and even easier.” Hooray! While the recovery process for a person’s back can take several weeks to several months, the recovery process for properly positioned investment portfolios has been actively taking place for over 12 months and could continue over the life of a portfolio.

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Investment Talk at the Weekend BBQ

With Memorial Day fast approaching…and summer BBQs possibly starting soon… here’s a good one from the Archives of TGIF 2 Minutes….

May 2020:

A popular topic that inevitably comes up over holiday weekends and even at socially distant BBQs is “the latest hot investment” or the brilliant neighbor who made a killing in “Fund A” or “Investment B.” But did you ever notice that rarely does the conversation highlight the losing investments?

The person who starts talking about Asset Allocation and patient investing over the long-haul is the lonely person at the cocktail party or BBQ.

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Quick 401k Tax Tip Video

From the January 2021 archives of TGIF 2 Minutes – a relevant 401k tax tip video. Remember, the 2020 tax filing deadline was delayed until MAY 17^TH, 2021. Considering this extra time, it is never too late to plan for the rest of 2021 and beyond. Enjoy this quick video.

Click the PLAY button above.

Thank you for watching, stay safe and TGIF!

*The 401k Trap: Contact me for a copy at kdebbs@msfsolutions.com*

Last Year’s Paycheck

Believe it or not, lots of people do not know how much they get paid. That is, in terms of total compensation. Of course, there are that handful of people who know exactly what they make – and most people know precisely their “net pay” that gets deposited into their bank account periodically. But in my years of discussing total compensation with my clients (who typically make a fair amount of money) a great deal of the time they do not know accurately enough how much they made in a given year.

January is an ideal time to take a closer look at a print-out of last year’s year-end pay stub to learn valuable details and information. Why is this important?

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The SoftBank “Secret”

By now, most investors know that in late February of this year through mid-March the stock markets kind of crashed. It was a matter of 31 days from February 20th to March 23rd….not that I had to look that up or anything.

It was swift and ugly. And then, the stock markets both suddenly and slowly recovered, hitting it big in April and then gradually reaching new all-time records by September. Hmmmm… how does that work? Is it “free markets”? More buyers than sellers? Individuals throwing money at stocks?

SoftBank reported **$4 billion of options trades** representing **$50 billion** of underlying value in the same handful of technology stocks in the US.

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A Note on Gold

Gold is a fascinating asset and concept. From Egyptian Pharaohs to Sir Isaac Newton to the “Nixon Shock” in the 1970’s, gold has been part of the story. Oh, and by the way, its price has risen over 35% so far in 2020.

Over the years there have been reasons (and not) for an investor to buy gold. One of the “catches” is that gold can be an extremely volatile asset, depending on the global economic cycle, level of interest rates and expectations for inflation. Another catch is that there are multiple ways for an investor to buy gold. Among these ways is to purchase gold in its physical form and insure and store it (expensive) or to purchase gold jewelry or gold wristwatches (also expensive but much simpler). OR, gold can be purchased in a non-physical form through gold futures contracts or via an exchange traded fund, or ETF, like the super-widely held SPDR Gold Trust whose trade symbol is GLD. The GLD trades like a stock and may be the closest way to own gold without having actual possession of the gold bars or coins.

bullion gold gold bars golden — Gold as an investment is not always as glittery and beautiful as the pure form.

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YTD Market Performance Broken Down

After talking with a number of clients and friends in the past couple of weeks it became apparent that a breakdown of YTD stock market performance would be informative. There are major pronounced differences currently in the various stock categories. An explanation of these differences could illuminate why certain portfolios have gone up (or down) more than others.

Please note that this discussion is not meant to minimize the importance of performance. Performance is critical; however, the time frame of performance evaluation and the concept of progress toward achieving goals are even more critical to successful investing.

business charts commerce computer — Performance is critical; however, the **time frame** of performance evaluation and the **concept of progress toward achieving goals** are even more critical to successful investing.

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Women, Men, Long Lives & Money

Married, Single, Divorced or Widowed – women tend to live longer than men. There are also new statistics of how mentally sharp and physically fit women stay longer into life. Why is this important? If you guessed that these facts mean that women need to save and invest more then you guessed right. Men AND women, please keep reading!

joyful adult daughter greeting happy surprised senior mother in garden — Women need to build an awareness of saving both on their own (married or not) and together with a spouse if married.

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“Hanging In There” in Tough Markets

How many times in the past going on 10 weeks has someone said to you, “Hang in there”? How many times have YOU perhaps said to someone you care about, “Hang in there”?

Hanging in there is often all we can do – and a brave thing to do at that. When it comes to tough markets like the ones we are currently experiencing, “hanging in there” translates to discipline in the midst of bravery. Discipline and bravery are two of the ultimate challenges in life.

KWD Chart

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