Western equity markets have been in a secular bear market since the year 2000. Are we close to or indeed at the end?

Challenging a strong home bias to Australian equities in portfolios.

The mechanics of solving Europe's crisis are in place. The US's fiscal position is considerably worse and holds greater uncertainty...

The Japanese house price experience of the past two decades remains a real possibility for many countries including Australia...

Last week, I visited Shanghai and Beijing. The most intriguing insight relates to the longer term sustainability of China’s economic growth model.

The 2012-2014 outlook for the global commodities market versus cash, the risks and opportunities, and portfolio construction implications...

Will the Euro exist in ten years? Why doesn't Germany leave the EMU? How will Euro confidence improve? What structural changes must occur in Australia? Do free markets work? Will QE3 actually help? Has the world reached the limits of GDP growth?

There are three key reasons why it is prudent to reduce commodities allocations and redistribute some of that allocation into equities - and in particular, western equities...

Fueling fears of a China bubble is the rapid rise in prices of its residential property market in many of its key cities. Structurally, however, while residential house prices may be vulnerable near term, over the long term, the uptrend would appear to be underpinned...

The question of whether China is a bubble is critical for strategic asset allocation, for the outlook for emerging markets, for the future strength of global economic growth, and in determining how much longer the commodity super cycle is likely to continue...