Dear Warwick Wealth Clients, As we get fully into the swing of this momentous year, it is with great pleasure […] The post A Warm February Welcome From The Warwick Managing Director, Marc Wiese appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

As we get fully into the swing of this momentous year, it is with great pleasure that I extend a warm welcome to the latest edition of your Warwick Wealth Matters. With each passing month, our journey at Warwick unfolds with remarkable drive, fueled by our collective dedication to excellence, innovation and exceptional client care. In this edition, we celebrate the achievements of January 2024 and highlight the path ahead as we navigate the intricate landscape of wealth management and financial prosperity. The post Warwick Wealth Matters appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

2023 was characterised by turbulent markets, elevated interest rates, higher for longer inflation and a risk-laden political environment. Our hope for 2024 is that these disruptive features will ease, and that the year ahead will be somewhat smoother. The post Optimum – Orion Quarterly Review appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Cadiz Asset Management Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer , Sidney McKinnon, takes us through the fixed income environment for the new year. The key driver of international fixed income markets in December was the US FederalReserve’s (Fed) projection of a total of 75 basis points (bps) cut in the Fed Funds rate by theend of 2024. This translates to three 25 bps cuts over the period. In contrast, financial marketsstarted pricing in nearly six cuts, implying a difference of 50 bps between market expectations and the Fed’s projection. This caused the US 10-year bond yield to decline by 45 bps in December, ending the year flat. Looking at Europe, Germany’s 10-year bond yield declined by 42 bps in December, while the French and the UK’s 10-year bond yields declined by 46 bps and 64 bps respectively. The yield curve remains inverted in the US, Germany and the UK. Locally, headline inflation for November slowed to 5.5% from the 5.9% YoY measurement inOctober 2023. Core inflation remains sticky, though, edging up to 4.5% YoY as at the end ofNovember. Despite the moderation in inflation and an improvement in global risk appetite, foreign investors remained net sellers of our local bonds […] The post Fixed Income appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Managing Director, Marc Wiese. As we launch into 2024, it gives me great pleasure to write to you, our valued clients, to wish you well for the new year, express my gratitude for your continued support and share some exciting updates from Warwick Wealth. May this year bring you success, good health, and moments of joy with your loved ones. In the spirit of continuous improvement, I am pleased to announce that Warwick Wealth is committed to enhancing our services and offerings to you in 2024. Our dedicated team has been hard at work, exploring innovative investment ideas, refining our strategies and solidifying several investment advisor partnerships, with the goal of staying ahead of market trends to ensure that we continue to meet and exceed your expectations. As we look forward to 2024, the global expectation is for several important economies to startlowering interest rates, as inflation is brought under control by the actions of the relevant central banks and monetary policy committees. Notably too, when interest rates are on a downward trend, it often has significant implicationsfor equity markets. Here is a brief overview of what we could expect and the underlying reasons: Equity Market Rally Falling interest rates […] The post Discussing prospects for the year ahead appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Dear Warwick Wealth Clients, As we bid farewell to November, it is with great pleasure that I bring you the latest updates and insights from Warwick Wealth. This month has been marked by growth, resilience and a spirit of gratitude. We are grateful for the trust you place in us as your wealth management partner and we are committed to delivering excellence in every aspect of our service. November brought about a more dynamic and optimistic market environment, with opportunities emerging across various sectors. Despite global uncertainties, we witnessed notable performances in key investment areas, reinforcing our confidence in the diversified strategies we employ on your behalf. Over the past few weeks, optimism has crept back into equity markets as many global investors and asset managers now believe we are getting closer to the peak of interest rates in the developing world. As inflation rates in several countries head downwards, the probability of lower interest rates has become more likely in 2024. As with most monetary policy levers, such as interest rates set by the monetary policy committees, there is always a significant delay between the new policy being set and the full economic effect being felt. We, therefore, expect […] The post Sound Reasons for Cautious Optimism appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

It’s not goodbye, but rather WELCOME to the latest Alumni of Spirit Education Foundation. Exams are done and celebrating the completion of their secondary schooling, SEF and our outgoing Grade 12’s, took to Food Jamming and had a blast! The exciting wait for final results is here in anticipation of what the future holds. We are proud to say that most of our scholars are looking forward to starting university in 2024. The post Farewell to the Spirit Education Alumni appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

The Annual Spirit Education Foundation Registration Day and Award Ceremony was held on the 2 December 2023 at Wynberg Girls High School. The purpose of the ceremony is to acknowledge the achievements of our scholars. Awards were presented to students who demonstrated outstanding performance, dedication to their studies, and a commitment to excellence. The ceremony served as a platform to celebrate their hard work and accomplishments. It is also an important starting point for new scholars to be welcomed into the organisation in 2024. Beyond academic success, the ceremony also recognised students for their contributions to extracurricular activities, community service and leadership. We believe in nurturing well-rounded individuals who will not only excel academically, but also make meaningful contributions to society. It is an event for the scholars, their families and the community to come together and celebrate. The atmosphere was filled with pride and a sense of unity, creating lasting memories for everyone involved. An award that everyone looks out for is the ambassador and Chairmans award. It is awarded to scholars who have shown exceptional growth, leadership development, have overcome challenges and gone above the normal call of duty to be an ambassador for the organisation. The ambassador […] The post Spirit Education Foundation Registration Day appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Dear Reader,“Quality in a service or product is not what you put into it. It is what the client or customer gets out of it.”  As 2023 draws to a close, I am reminded of the above quote by Peter Drucker that captures the essence of our commitment to you, our valued client. This year has been a particularly testing time in our country and this has meant that Appleton has made an extraordinary effort to keep our clients, families and heirs updated on all relevant issues relating to their Wills and estates.   In addition to investing significantly in systems, staff and correspondent services throughout the country, we have engaged with the Ministry of Justice, Parliament, the Masters’ Offices and the Fiduciary Institute of South Africa to improve the service provided to clients. Indeed, we are seeing some green shoots of improvement in the service provided by some Masters’ Offices.  Irrespective of these challenges, the one constant you can rely on is Appleton’s complete commitment to you, our client. With this in mind, all that remains is for me to wish you and your loved ones a peaceful, safe, healthy, and joyous festive season and I look forward to […] The post Appleton Times appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Dear valued reader,I am particularly pleased to bring to you the December and final edition of the Warwick Wealth Matters for 2023. This is our opportunity to update you on important information regarding the enhanced services we deliver to our valued clients and professional network, review the latest news on financial markets and the fixed income arena and to provide you with vital information regarding your Will and estate planning. But most of all, it is our opportunity to thank you sincerely for all your support throughout the tumultuous year that was 2023 and wish you all a happy festive season. And please remember, when things get a little tough in our country, “We’ll always have Paris!” The post Warwick Wealth Matters – December appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

CADIZ BCI MONEY MARKET FUND The Cadiz Money Market Fund performed well during the month of November, delivering on its mandate to consistently provide cash-beating returns with minimal volatility over time.  Trading activity was primarily prompted by the deployment of cash and managing maturities. The fund continues to be managed within the prescribed mandate constraints, with the objective of outperforming the benchmark, while ensuring substantial liquidity and low variation of return. The persistence of the current high interest rate environment allows the fund to exploit lucrative opportunities to invest with minimal downside risk.  CADIZ BCI ENHANCED INCOME FUND The Cadiz BCI Enhanced Income Fund benefited from its exposure to nominal bonds and inflation-linked bonds in November as these two asset classes performed well. The fund remains well diversified across a variety of floating rate notes, upholding the long-standing track-record of delivering low volatility returns and focusing on growing wealth while limiting downside risks. The trading activities implemented during the month were driven by cash flows and reinvestment strategies, aligning with the fund’s objective of prudent portfolio management.  CADIZ BCI ABSOLUTE YIELD FUND The Cadiz BCI Absolute Yield Fund performed well during the month of November, taking full advantage of its […] The post Fund News appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Warwick Wealth Eastern Cape Regional Manager, Rudi Oosthuizen examinesthese two financial animals. Investment behaviour is based on two main drivers, fear and greed. In this article we will focus on the first, namely, fear and specifically why it is important to fight the urge to sell out when the market nosedives. By definition, a bull market is one that is on the rise and where the economy is sound. By contrast, a bear market exists in an economy that is receding, and most stocks are declining in value. In recent times, we have experienced several bull and bear markets. The 2008 global financial crisis and Covid- 19 pandemic in 2020 are two major events in the last 20 years that had investors panicking and wanting to run for the hills. But for perspective, let’s look at the JSE All Share Index during the 2020 Covid Pandemic: On Monday 17 February 2020, the All-Share Index stood at 57 794.57. On Monday 16 March the Index fell to 39 783.94. This meant that seven years’ worth of growth was wiped out in the space of a single month. Many investors felt like the like the end of the world had come and […] The post The Bulls and The Bears appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Dear valued clients, The annual Medium-Term Budget Policy Speech serves to adjust the main budget delivered inFebruary each year. This is sensible and allows the government, and we the public, to take stock of the country’s income and expenditure and to adjust both, in order to meet changing or unforeseen circumstances. But the MTBPS delivered by Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana, on 1 November was of a different order in a number of key respects. Firstly, it was a week late as a result of the need to significantly revise the forecast numbers and because of organisational and management inefficiencies within Treasury itself. This does not instil confidence. Secondly, the numbers produced in the February budget were missed so widely as to necessitate what was, in fact, an entirely new budget, rather than a revision. Thirdly, it was politically imperative for the government to get as much of the bad news into the public domain in the MTBPS now, rather than delivering a higher debt, higher deficit, higher taxes and austerity driven budget in the run-up to the 2024 election. It is well known that the ruling party is currently polling below the key 50% electoral support level, which, if translated […] The post The Annual Medium-Term Budget Policy Speech appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Locally, we followed our international counter parts lower, with the ALSI falling 3.8% in October.The industrial sector ended the month lower by 4.7%, followed by property, down by 4.4%, resources by 4.3% and financials 3.1%. Prosus traded lower by 5.9%, Naspers by 3.8% Glencore by almost 9%, BHP by 2%, whereas ANB InBev rose by 1.2%. On the economics front, September headline inflation rose to 5.4% YoY on the back of higher energy, food and non-alcoholic beverages prices, all registering higher annual rates in September. Core CPI, excluding food and energy printed at 4.5% YoY in September vs the previous reading of 4.8% YoY in August. Retail sales fell by 0.5%, on the back of downwardly revised 1% YoY drop in July as South African consumers remain under pressure. We looking forward to providing you with an overview of the 2023 markets in the December edition of the Warwick Wealth Matters. The post Local Market Review appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Orion Investment Managers Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer, Adrian Meager, writes on International markets. World markets trended softer for the second month in a row, with concerns resurfaced around the outlook for global economies amidst continued high interest rates, which dented optimism. Markets in the US were blighted by two major concerns, namely, a selloff in treasuries which saw a spike in yields, as well as concerns regarding a potential government shutdown. The threatened shutdown was averted as the Senate voted on a last-minute spending bill to allow government to operate for another 45 days. With recession fears still weighing on the US economy, the Dow closed down 3.5% for the month, the Nasdaq lower by almost 6%, and the S&P 500 almost 5% lower. On the economic front, headline inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), increased by 3.7% for August contrasted with a slowing to 3.2% in July, while core CPI, which excludes the highly erratic food and energy components, printed at 4.3% in August, vs the July print of 4.7%. Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE), which also excludes foodand energy, printed below consensus estimates of 3.9% for August, versus the revised 4.3% number of July. […] The post International Markets Review appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Warwick invited our Merger Partner in East London, Gerrie Hattingh, to draft this important article providing invaluable advice to clients regarding their Will. As we have just gone through National Wills week, I thought it pertinent to remind our clients and their family and friends why this important document needs to be in place and drafted correctly. Most of us know that having a last Will and testament helps those that remain to handle your personal responsibilities and wishes in the ways you would have wanted. Without an up to date Will, or a correctly drafted Will, you run the risk of having your estate being administered in terms of the Intestate Succession Act which could result in your assets not being distributed exactly as you would have intended them to. Here are some reasons why having a valid Will in place is important: Save time, money and stress for your loved ones – When you don’t have a Will, the court process — known as intestate administration — can become especially complicated. Without a Will, the Master of the High Court must name an executor to administer your estate. This can be time-consuming, expensive, and even contentious for your […] The post Why is it important to ensure that your last Will is in place? appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

Warwick clients are the core of our business and we are absolutely fixated on providing the highest quality of client care, wealth management and service to you all, now and in the future. Here are the latest developments. The post Warwick Wealth Matters – October 2023 appeared first on Ian Kilbride.

For this edition of Full Circle, we celebrate the growth of SEF. As previously shared, SEF was our first venture into philanthropic giving over 29 years ago. The demand for scholarships and participation in our mentorship programme provides us with continued motivation to make a difference in every scholar’s life. Below we share some of the highlights of our first part of the year. VOICE At the beginning of this year, Spirit Education Foundation welcomed to our programme 140 scholars in total across all grades. Our new scholarships increased by 18 above our normal intake of 20 scholars per year. In 2023, the mentorship programme theme follows the curated acronym VOICE, which stands for Values, Opportunities, Inclusivity, Choice, and Excellence. Throughout the year, all mentorship moments will reflect on scholars’ voices, what they use them for, how they use them and how they can facilitate inclusion through listening to other voices. Each school visit, milkshake moment and individual tutoring session evaluates at least one of the five letters elevating the voices of our scholars through connection and relationship building. Alumni In 2023 we said goodbye to 22 Grade 12 students who received their NSC results and we are proud that […] The post Full Circle: Spirit Education Foundation appeared first on Ian Kilbride.