Entries for October, 2008

Share Market Wrap 24th October 2008

Monday, October 27th, 2008

While technology has enhanced our lives making it easier to access information, when it comes to the share market I believe the more information we obtain the more microscopic our views become, which is detrimental to being a successful investor. Everyday we wake up to news about whether world markets are rising or falling and during the day we can chose to be bombarded with information while the market is trading. But you have to ask is this much information really good for us or is it just too much for people to manage?

In my opinion it is the latter as history repeatedly demonstrates that investors react emotionally to market moves rather than practicing sound investment techniques. Furthermore, while most investors buy for the long term, I believe to much information leads to poor investment decisions, lower returns and in turn increased stress. Remember, investing is about building a portfolio overtime to create a lifestyle, yet the information overload leads many investors to make it their lifestyle. There is an age old adage that less is more and in regards to the share market this certainly rings true.

So what can we expect in the market?

While the market traded up strongly early in the week, the gains were wiped out during Wednesday and Thursday as the market traded back down to close at 3939.3 which is only 0.1 point short of the close last Friday. As I indicated last week, the market is likely to trade higher for short periods of time in false moves, therefore right now I encourage all investors to remain cautious as I believe there is still a high probability that the market will rise for one more week before falling away to between 3400 and 3500 points.

Given the impact that the bear market is having on the mass market psychology I believe it is better to be patient and to wait for confirmation that the fall is over, rather than entering the market only to get burnt. If history repeats itself there will be plenty of time to profit as I expect we will see a 30% to 50% rise in the All Ordinaries over the next year.

Dale Gillham
Chief Analyst
Wealth Within

Dale Gillham, ‘one of the country’s most respected analysts’ (Wealth Creator Magazine, Nov/Dec 2004), sought after key note speaker and author of the best selling book ‘How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20%’, has assisted thousands of traders and investors to become confident and profitable in their direct share investments. Tired of an industry saturated by quick fix gimmicks and expensive short-courses, Dale co-founded Wealth Within to provide ‘ real education and ongoing personalised support’, as well as independent investment advice to traders and investors who have become disillusioned by the market for one reason or another. As testament to this, Wealth Within launched Australia’s first and only nationally accredited Diploma and Advanced Diploma of Share Trading and Investment.

For more information please visit www.wealthwithin.com.au

Share Market Wrap 17th October 2008

Monday, October 20th, 2008

I have said before that a week can be a long time in the share market, and I am sure that many investors are wishing that the events of the past week or so were over. Last Friday, billions of dollars were wiped off the Australian market as it plunged 352 points or 8.2 per cent in one of the biggest one day falls in history. On Monday and Tuesday of this week the market rallied strongly, clawing back part of the losses from the previous week, which we now know was a false rally given the market fell heavily again yesterday.

False rallies are common in bear markets and when they occur they trick the uneducated into thinking the market is rising, only for it to fall away again. The golden rule is to never attempt to pick the market bottom or buy into a share just because you think it is cheap, because you never know, it could become cheaper. For regular readers of my report, you will know that I strongly recommend waiting for confirmation before making a decision, and in this market that means a rally over several weeks not days. I suspect we may see a few more false rallies before the market finally bottoms, which I believe will occur very soon.

So what can we expect in the market?

In my previous report I indicated that the All Ordinaries was likely to continue down to around 4000 points by 4 November. However, last week the market fell for five consecutive days to trade just below this level to 3939 points. This move represents the largest decline we have seen in a single week since the crash in 1987.

An important point to note is that neither the All Ordinaries nor the Dow has ever fallen by more than 50% of its all time high (which for the All Ordinaries is around 3400) without rebounding strongly. Despite the recent falls I believe the market is likely to move up over the next few weeks to around 4300 points, before it falls away to retest last week’s low. That said it is possible that the market could fall to between 3500 and 3400 points, which if it does will most likely occur around 4 November. Given this, we need to continue to be patient and wait for confirmation that the market has bottomed before making any decisions to enter.

Dale Gillham
Chief Analyst
Wealth Within

Dale Gillham, ‘one of the country’s most respected analysts’ (Wealth Creator Magazine, Nov/Dec 2004), sought after key note speaker and author of the best selling book ‘How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20%’, has assisted thousands of traders and investors to become confident and profitable in their direct share investments. Tired of an industry saturated by quick fix gimmicks and expensive short-courses, Dale co-founded Wealth Within to provide ‘ real education and ongoing personalised support’, as well as independent investment advice to traders and investors who have become disillusioned by the market for one reason or another. As testament to this, Wealth Within launched Australia’s first and only nationally accredited Diploma and Advanced Diploma of Share Trading and Investment.

For more information please visit www.wealthwithin.com.au

Share Market Wrap 10th October 2008

Monday, October 13th, 2008

I believe the one per cent interest rate cut by the reserve bank announced this week was a positive move as it will underpin the longer-term stability of the Australian economy. The decision by the major banks to pass on the majority of the rate cut to home lenders is also likely to relieve the mortgage stress experienced by many Australian in the short term. However, unless Australians cut back on the increased debt that the country is accumulating, I believe the financial relief will be short lived.

As a country we are now firmly in a negative savings pattern given that we borrow more than we earn. And with Christmas fast approaching it is highly likely that credit card debt will skyrocket, as many Australians use the surplus cash to squander on the festive season, which will further compound the problem. In my opinion, unless Australians begin to curtail their debt in the coming years, we may well find ourselves in a similar situation to that currently being experienced in the US.

So what can we expect in the market?

The All Ordinaries Index has continued its decline moving down to 4249 points before rising slightly to close just below my expected support level of 4300 points yesterday. Despite the fact the sentiment in the market is quite bearish I am confident that the market is searching for the bottom right now. Once it is confirmed, I believe the market will rise strongly to at least 5500 points over the coming months although it is possible it will rise to around 5800 points.

That said, we need to be cautious right now as it is possible the market could rally for two to three weeks before falling into a short term low around 4 November which may result in the market trading to a low of around 4000 points. Remember the US election occurs on 4 November, and leading up to this event we may experience uncertainty in the US market, which will most likely impact global markets. Irrespective, I believe we will see a change in the US government, which I believe will be a positive move and spur the US market back into positive territory.

Dale Gillham
Chief Analyst
Wealth Within

Dale Gillham, ‘one of the country’s most respected analysts’ (Wealth Creator Magazine, Nov/Dec 2004), sought after key note speaker and author of the best selling book ‘How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20%’, has assisted thousands of traders and investors to become confident and profitable in their direct share investments. Tired of an industry saturated by quick fix gimmicks and expensive short-courses, Dale co-founded Wealth Within to provide ‘ real education and ongoing personalised support’, as well as independent investment advice to traders and investors who have become disillusioned by the market for one reason or another. As testament to this, Wealth Within launched Australia’s first and only nationally accredited Diploma and Advanced Diploma of Share Trading and Investment.

For more information please visit www.wealthwithin.com.au

Share Market Wrap 3rd October 2008

Monday, October 6th, 2008

I have revisited a number of major events that have occurred on our market over the past decade including the tech wreck, the Asia crisis and Sep 11 to name a few. Interestingly, the headlines in the newspapers during these periods are no different to what is being published today. Take for example the article published in the Herald Sun on 21 July 2002, where the headline read “ Wall street plunges as panic replaces fear”. The content of the article could almost replicate the current events in the market today.

Why do I mention this?

Because all markets are cyclical and every 4 to 5 years markets will fall by at least 20%. The unfortunate side to this is that while ‘headlines’ sell papers, the uneducated investor is spooked by such movements in the market rather than understanding that these moves are to be expected as they are simply a normal process of market cycles. It is for this reason why I strongly recommend investors educate themselves to understand how markets unfold so they can be better prepared in the future.

So what can we expect in the market?

Over the past week the All Ordinaries Index has fallen heavily again following the rejection by the House of Representative in the US for the $700bn rescue package. While the rescue package is being reviewed again this week, and is expected to pass through the House, I strongly believe the US government is simply putting a bandaid on the titanic. In my opinion more needs to done to ensure that economic stability is restored in the US.

It is with uncanny regularity that when the worst news surfaces the market inevitably bottoms, and the news on Monday was certainly unpleasant. Given this, I am now more certain, than ever, that we are near the bottom of the cycle. That said if the rescue package is not passed in the House of Representatives this week, we may see one last move down to my second target of 4300 points. Following this I believe the market will rise to between 5500 and 5800 points over the next 4 to 6 months.

Dale Gillham
Chief Analyst
Wealth Within

Dale Gillham, ‘one of the country’s most respected analysts’ (Wealth Creator Magazine, Nov/Dec 2004), sought after key note speaker and author of the best selling book ‘How to Beat the Managed Funds by 20%’, has assisted thousands of traders and investors to become confident and profitable in their direct share investments. Tired of an industry saturated by quick fix gimmicks and expensive short-courses, Dale co-founded Wealth Within to provide ‘ real education and ongoing personalised support’, as well as independent investment advice to traders and investors who have become disillusioned by the market for one reason or another. As testament to this, Wealth Within launched Australia’s first and only nationally accredited Diploma and Advanced Diploma of Share Trading and Investment.

For more information please visit www.wealthwithin.com.au