Know your numbers first: budgeting discipline in a higher-rate world
A higher cash rate raises the cost of a shortfall and the reward for a buffer. Budgeting discipline matters more either way.
After the September hike: when inflation and unemployment rise together
The RBA hiked to 4.60 per cent as inflation and unemployment both rose. A harder trade-off than August's hold suggested.
A fractured market: what September revealed about diversification
The S&P 500 was nearly flat in September. The typical stock inside it fell almost 6 per cent. The gap is the story.
After the 11 August hold: what the RBA's shift in language actually signals
The RBA held at 4.35 per cent on 11 August and narrowed its hike trigger from "if needed" to "if upside risks materialise." The rate did not move; the base case has.
After Jackson Hole: what Warsh's Fed told markets on his 100th day
On his 100th day as US Fed Chair, Kevin Warsh used his first Jackson Hole keynote to sharpen the Fed's inflation warning. The direction of monetary thinking has hardened, again.
Cost and tax discipline: why fees, taxes, and portfolio drift are the certainties investors control
Markets are uncertain. Fees, taxes, and portfolio drift are not. The discipline is to know what each cost is paying for, rather than to minimise every cost.
The investor's chief problem: temperament, discipline, and the returns that behaviour destroys
Over the decade to 31 December 2024, the average dollar invested in US mutual funds and exchange-traded funds earned 1.2 per cent per year less than the funds themselves returned. The investments performed; the investors, on average, did not. The gap is the returns that behaviour destroys.
The 11 August decision: what the RBA is weighing
The Reserve Bank meets on 11 August. All four major domestic banks expect a hold at 4.35 per cent; most surveyed economists expect a further hike. The data that has arrived since the June meeting is mixed — enough to sustain a case for either action or restraint.
The return of tightening: what the shift in central-bank thinking means for portfolios
Six months ago, the developed world's central banks were expected to spend 2026 cutting rates. Today, they are contemplating whether to raise them further. The shift in institutional thinking has been quiet and unmistakable — and it matters more than the marginal moves themselves.
What the first half of 2026 showed about genuine diversification
The 2026 crisis produced one of the widest divergences in global market returns in recent memory. The lesson is not that an investor should have picked the winning market. It is that no investor can — which is precisely why genuine diversification matters.
The long-term case for equities: why patience is rewarded
Long-horizon wealth is built by owning productive assets. Equities are volatile, unpredictable, and at times uncomfortable to hold. They remain the only mechanism through which an investor participates directly in productive enterprise at scale.
Three hikes, back to the peak: what 4.35% means for Australian investors
With its May increase, the RBA has now delivered three consecutive hikes in 2026 — lifting the cash rate to 4.35 per cent and erasing every cut it made in 2025. The rate cycle has come full circle. The implications for portfolios and borrowers are worth working through carefully.
Personal insurance: what each type covers and why it belongs in a financial plan
Life, TPD, Trauma, and Income Protection insurance are four distinct products that address four distinct risks. Most Australians hold at least one in default form without knowing what it covers. The differences matter.
Inflation at 4.6%, rates at 4.10%: what the current RBA cycle means for your portfolio
The RBA raised the cash rate to 4.10 per cent in March — a split decision, in a cycle that was supposed to be easing. With Australian inflation back at 4.6 per cent and the May meeting underway, the implications for portfolios and debt are worth working through carefully.
When markets rally on hope: what the Iran ceasefire tells us about portfolio discipline
The US-Iran ceasefire on 7 April sent equity markets sharply higher. Within days, the Strait of Hormuz closed again and those gains reversed. The pattern is instructive — and not for the first time.
Saving and investing: understanding the difference and why it matters
Saving and investing are used interchangeably. They mean different things — and the distinction shapes every decision about time horizon, risk, and the role of compounding in building a financial future.
Division 296: the new tax on large superannuation balances takes effect 1 July 2026
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Act 2026 passed both houses of Parliament in early March 2026. Division 296 — the new tax on superannuation balances above $3 million — takes effect on 1 July 2026.
Diversification and geopolitical shock: what the Iran conflict tells us about portfolio construction
On 28 February 2026, the United States and Israel launched coordinated airstrikes on Iran. Within hours, the Strait of Hormuz was effectively closed. What followed was not a geopolitical surprise — it was a portfolio test.
Household costs in a sustained inflation environment
Inflation erodes purchasing power quietly and consistently. Understanding how it moves through a household budget — and where the practical adjustments lie — is the first step toward managing it deliberately rather than absorbing it passively.
The annual financial audit: a structured approach
Most people have a reasonable sense of their financial position. Fewer have examined it with the kind of structured attention that reveals where the gaps are and what to do about them. A systematic review of your financial affairs — done properly, once a year — is one of the most useful things you can do.