Most major economies are slowing but stock markets are showing resilience this year. Why is this – and what might it mean for investors?
Each investor has a different story, and we are steadfast partners to our clients in the UK because we listen to every one of them. Our full range of funds is one way we’re helping more investors build solid financial futures.
When you invest in an equity, you buy a share in a company and become a shareholder. Equities are typically best for long-term investing – for those who are able to ride out the highs and lows of the market in search of higher rewards.
Fixed income securities, or bonds, are issued by companies and governments as a way of raising money. They’re basically an ‘I.O.U’ – designed to provide a regular stream of income (which is normally a fixed amount) over a specified period of time.
While traditional assets like stocks and bonds are traded on the public markets, alternative investment strategies such as real estate, infrastructure, and private credit are less sensitive to the movements of global markets.
If you're looking for better rates of return on deposits than you’d get in an ordinary bank account, cash funds may be a great option. They often invest in very short-term bonds known as ‘money market instruments’, which are essentially banks lending money to each other.
Fifty years of indexing have proven investing doesn’t need to be expensive, or complex. There’s quite literally an index fund for every market exposure and investment strategy you could possibly need, which means more opportunities for more investors.
A multi-asset strategy combines different types of assets – stocks, bonds, real estate, or cash for example – to create a more nimble and broadly diversified portfolio. Fund managers will balance asset classes to achieve particular investment objectives.
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“It is our job to help clients make informed choices, to bring our best thinking as a global firm to bear on clients’ specific problems, and then to execute their decisions.”
Mark Wiedman
Head of Global Client Business
Sustainable Investing | BlackRock
Let’s flashback to driving a car 15 years ago. Drivers would use rear and wing mirrors to merge, reverse, and park. Today, thanks for advancements in technology, we have cars with cameras, collision warnings, and parking sensors. These involved safety features give drivers a more complete view of their surroundings helping them make better decisions. The same thing is happening with investing, raw traditional financial analysis still anchors investment decisions, the greater availability of sustainable data today gives investors and more holistic view of the companies they invest in. Sustainable investing uncovers environmental, social, and governance or ESG related risk and opportunities that traditional security analysis may overlook. By giving investors a more complete view, sustainable investing can help identify companies that may be better positioned to manage sustainability related risks. Let’s zoom in.
Environmental risks increasingly threaten company profitability through extreme weather, rising sea levels or pollution and waste. Companies exposed to frequent extreme weather events near the water or in a wildfire zone may face disruptions to their operations and threaten their long-term performance. Product liability health and safety and data privacy are all examples of social risks to a company. Companies that overlook data security may be susceptible to hackers or data breaches that can quickly drive down and stock price. Broad quality and diversity, fair CEO pay, and accounting practices are all governance risks. Companies with a diverse and independent board of directors can help reduce the risk of oversight, fraud, and bribery. Sustainable investing doesn’t replace traditional financial analysis, it supplements and enhances it. BlackRock empowers investors to assess ESG risks in their portfolio construction process and makes it easy to get started with solutions across both iShares ETFs and BlackRock active mutual funds. Regardless of your views on the future long-term success is one goal that unifies all investors. BlackRock believes that investments that consider ESG metrics can help you pursue long term success of your portfolio and contribute to a more sustainable world.
BlackRock
Investors need a partner to help them distil a large volume of complex information. BlackRock is here to listen to investors’ sustainability objectives, share insights, and offer them investment choices across a wide range of solutions.
Our global team of investment experts work around the clock to generate proprietary research and insights on the global economy, markets, geopolitics, and long-term asset allocation – all to help you navigate the financial markets, whether you’re a professional investor or just beginning.
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