PortfolioConstruction Forum Academy Winter Seminar 2015 featured four sessions. This Resources Kit contains the materials for preparing for the Seminar, as well as the presentation slides.

New this week - Jonathan Pain argues reflation is underway & Dom McCormick says "No property bubble" case lacks substance, plus more from GaveKal, Keith Goddard and BCA Research.

New this week - Jonathan Pain argues reflation is underway & Dom McCormick says "No property bubble" case lacks substance, plus more from GaveKal, Keith Goddard and BCA Research.

Symposium 2015 featured 20+ leading investment professionals arguing their best, high conviction ideas about the markets, strategies and investing.

This week's Fodder features contrasting views on smart beta with Michael Furey, Michael Edesess and Neuberger Berman

This week's Fodder features contrasting views on smart beta with Michael Furey, Michael Edesess and Neuberger Berman

Dr David Lazenby is Chief Finology Officer, PortfolioConstruction Forum. His brief is to oversee PortfolioConstruction Forum’s finology curriculum.

New this week - Jonathan Pain talks secular reflation while Bob Gay says there's little chance the ECB's QE will work

New this week - Jonathan Pain talks secular reflation while Bob Gay says there's little chance the ECB's QE will work

The surprising result of a recent study is that the "conventional" view that earnings rise steadily (above inflation) throughout our careers is not accurate. Good spending habits established early on can make an astounding difference to wealth over a lifetime.

This week, Portugal's sovereign bonds traded on negative yield - flying in the face of any sensible assessment of credit risk. There seems to be little chance that the ECB's belated and oversized QE program will end gracefully. Policy blunders never do.

Divergences in global economic and policy outcomes have important implications for markets around the world. This policy divergence has directly influenced asset prices across the globe with implications for stocks, bonds and currency markets.

China now has to deal with a massive excess supply of property… This is unlikely to be “just another property cycle” in China. The bursting of China’s property bubble poses a major risk to both the country’s stability and the global economy.

If you have a DIMS license, you are required to stress test portfolios. Here are two practical approaches to stress testing, and the strengths and weaknesses of each to help you build your approach to portfolio stress testing.

Portfolio construction should focus on three risk buckets – beta, smart beta, and alpha. If not, you run the risk of creating a poorly diversified (that is, over diversified) portfolio – and, worse, a portfolio that costs far more than it should.

Each of our Symposium 2015 DDF presenters gave a 2-minute overview of their high conviction portfolio construction strategy idea.

Rather than large, liquid companies with significant global revenue bases which dominate benchmark allocations, investors should seek exposure to India’s surging local demand…

When combining managers together to form a multi-manager global equity portfolio, investors should still aim to keep active share relatively high.

uilding NZ fixed interest portfolios is harder than it has ever been… Portfolios need to be constructed for the specific needs of clients, which will typically be a combination of liquidity, income, quality, and diversification

At the coal face, engagement between company boards and institutional shareholders can achieve meaningful improvements for all investors. Perseverance and commitment are essential.