Unit Trust Funds to Remain Resilient

KUALA LUMPUR: Unit trust funds’ net asset value (NAV) has fallen significantly due to the equity market downturn and volatility, though the industry will remain resilient, said fund experts.

When contacted, Fundsupermart told The Edge Financial Daily that local funds had been affected although they did not have a direct exposure to the United States’ financial crisis.

“Almost all equity funds were down while the returns for fixed income fund were also lower than over the last six months. Based on the 70 funds we sold, equity funds were down 11.9% on average over the last six months, with the majority of them falling in a range of 7% to 17%,” the online unit trust portal said in an email reply.

It said balanced funds dropped on average 7.3% over the last six months, while fixed income funds fared the best, with a declining average of 1.7% with a few managing to turn in a positive return of under 1%.

Fundsupermart said the resilience of fixed-income funds tended to be stronger during such times as investors took “flight to safety” as an option to stay out of equities.

The online portal added that apart from the US turmoil, rising inflation and slowing economic growth had also affected the market. Political instability was also a short-term worry for the Malaysian market.

It noted that volatility was likely to continue, and it was very difficult to time the market bottom but it believed that it was a good opportunity to start accumulating cheap securities by going through the fund investment route.

“Markets will not keep on dropping indefinitely. They will eventually recover. It is better to position for the recovery now in two to three years’ time, as there are attractive bargains to be had now.

“The industry will remain resilient even to market changes such as those we saw over the last two weeks. In fact, it should come out stronger when the worst is over and the dust has settled,” it added.

Fundsupermart said unit trusts would be appreciated as investors would realise the importance of diversification to access global markets and sophisticated sectors or asset classes, rather than risking putting their money into just one investment or stock in light of the vulnerabilities exposed by the fall of Lehman Brothers and AIG.

“With the fall of giants such as AIG and Lehman Brothers, it has shown that no company, no matter how large, is entirely safe. This means that diversifying your holdings is now even more important. Markets will eventually recover, but the casualties from this financial turmoil, however, will not,” it said.

From a purely research point of view though, the online portal felt that equities generally looked more attractive at the moment as they had been sold down severely.

It likes Asian equities in particular due to their current low valuations, with forward price-earnings ratio (PE) of about 11 to 12 times, which is close to levels during the SARS outbreak in 2003.

It is not aware of any large withdrawals from the unit trust industry despite the battered investor confidence and bearish mood.

Meanwhile, HwangDBS Investment Management Bhd chief investment officer David Ng expects near-term volatility to continue in the global equity and fixed-income markets.

He said the fund management house would continue to hold a defensive posture with relatively high cash buffer and may re-deploy assets to work in Malaysia when local politics stabilised.

He added that the local market, particularly involving funds which had exposure in the equity market, was likely to underperform any global recovery unless there was a decisive resolution to the current political impasse.

Citing Bloomberg, Ng said global equity funds in general had fallen by 4.3% in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

“For the more aggressive investors, the coming quarter should present excellent opportunities to invest in equity funds. Meanwhile, the fixed-income fund is suitable for the conservative investor,” Ng said.

Kumpulan Sentiasa Cemerlang (KSC) Sdn Bhd director Choong Khuat Hock said some investors had redeemed their unit trust funds and switched to safer money market investments.

source : The Edge Daily dot com - http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_87e4d2c6-cb73c03a-1f195fc0-56229035

Bursa Akhiri Jualan Habis-habisan

KUALA LUMPUR 14 Sept. -Harga-harga saham di Bursa Malaysia dijangka bergerak dalam jajaran kecil minggu depan dengan para pelabur kekal mengambil sikap berhati-hati terhadap persekitaran politik tempatan serta ketidaktentuan kelembapan ekonomi seluruh dunia, kata para penganalisis.

Mereka menambah yang pengukuhan dolar juga telah menyaksikan aliran keluar dana dari kedua-kedua pasaran baru muncul dan Asia serta aliran masuk dana ke Amerika Syarikat.

Sementara itu, Ketua Penyelidikan Jupiter Securities Sdn. Bhd., Pong Teng Siew berkata, aliran menurun pada masa ini di Bursa Malaysia boleh dilihat sebagai "peringkat akhir jualan habis-habisan di pasaran", dan menjangkakan momentum akan kembali pulih dalam tempoh tiga bulan ini.

Bagaimanapun, beliau berkata masih lagi terdapat gambaran yang kurang jelas mengenai kemungkinan kemelesetan sejagat untuk menentukan sama ada pasaran telahpun mencecah ke paras dasar sebelum memperlihatkan lantunan semula.

Pada Jumaat, harga-harga saham di Bursa Malaysia ditutup bercampur-campur menjelang hujung minggu dengan Indeks Komposit Kuala Lumpur (IKKL) meningkat 2.96 mata kepada 1,044.03.

Untuk minggu baru berakhir, pasaran memulakan urus niaga pada nada yang positif selepas kegiatan pengambilan untung minggu sebelumnya.

Tetapi pasaran terus mempamerkan aliran menurun selepas itu apabila saham-saham berkaitan minyak sawit mentah yang merupakan antara kaunter permodalan tinggi, merudum berikutan kejatuhan harga-harga minyak mentah.

Menjelang hari Jumaat, pasaran bergerak kembali ke zon positif susulan daripada pengumuman kerajaan yang ia telah memansuhkan levi keuntungan luar biasa terhadap penjana tenaga bebas (IPP) dan menangguhkan rundingan semula dengan mereka mengenai perjanjian pembelian tenaga (PPA).

Berita itu memberi tenaga kepada saham berkaitan IPP dan telah membantu merangsangkan pasaran. Tetapi, keputusan kerajaan turut "mengecewakan" kaunter Tenaga Nasional dan kerugian besarnya mengekang keuntungan yang diraih hari itu.

Berdasarkan perbandingan Jumaat-Jumaat, IKKL merosot 26.51 mata daripada 1,070.54 Jumaat lepas.

Azizah pernah ‘cuci rambut’ kawan untuk cari duit poket

MukadimahSEBAHAGIAN daripada kita mungkin pernah dilanda rasa bosan dengan pekerjaan yang dilakukan. Berpuluh tahun melakukan rutin sama sehingga kadangkala bagaikan ‘mengheret’ kaki ke pejabat setiap pagi.

Terikat dengan pelbagai komitmen, keinginan untuk berubah kerjaya kerap terbantut apatah lagi apabila gagal mencari kerjaya lain yang sesuai.

Begitupun, bak kata Pengurus Agensi Kumpulan (GAM) Public Mutual, Azizah Saad, 39, kalau tidak dipecahkan ruyung manakan dapat sagunya. Setiap perubahan yang ingin dilakukan pasti ada risiko, terpulang kepada kemahuan dan keazaman untuk menjayakannya.
Ini juga adalah antara kunci kejayaan ibu tunggal kepada tiga cahaya mata, Sharifah Aisyah Akmal Syed Ahmad Akmal, 14, Syed Aiman Akmal, 12, dan Syed Aniq Akmal, sehingga meraih gelaran sebagai perunding unit amanah nombor satu bagi bumiputera dan ke dua terbaik bagi keseluruhan di Public Mutual.

Ikuti temu bual bersama wartawan, Siti Zaleha Jorimai dan jurugambar, Halim Khalid bersama wanita cemerlang ini.

Keluarga: Apakah sebenarnya unit amanah?

Azizah: Unit amanah ialah skim pelaburan kolektif yang diurus secara profesional dengan mengumpulkan wang seorang individu dan ribuan pelabur lain. Pengurus pelaburan yang pakar kemudian akan melaburkan wang tersebut bagi pihak pelanggan untuk mencapai sasaran yang ditetapkan mengikut matlamat pelaburan dana tersebut
Apa pula peranan perunding unit amanah (UTC) seperti anda?
Secara profesionalnya, kami bolehlah dikatakan perunding perancang kewangan. Kami membantu individu merancang simpanan mereka dalam tempoh sederhana (tiga tahun) dan jangka panjang (lebih lima tahun).

Setiap orang mempunyai matlamat berbeza. Di sinilah peranan kami bermula, dengan memberi pelan perancangan simpanan yang bersesuaian dengan individu tersebut.

Kami sekadar memberi panduan. Pilihan dan bentuk simpanan masih terpulang kepada individu berkenaan. Memanglah pelaburan yang dibuat ada turun naik mengikut harga pasaran, tetapi risikonya amatlah rendah dan kita boleh mengendalikan risikonya dengan baik.

UTC yang komited dan terlatih akan membantu pelanggan mencapai matlamat pelaburan tersebut.

Mungkin anda ada panduan dalam memilih unit amanah yang terbaik?

Pertamanya, individu tersebut perlu memahami objektif simpanan tersebut sama ada untuk pendidikan, pembelian harta, simpanan untuk hari tua dan sebagainya. Seterusnya, mereka mesti bijak mencari syarikat pengendali unit amanah yang konsisten dalam memberi pulangan dan keuntungan.

Komitmen seorang UTC juga penting bagi individu tersebut mendapat khidmat nasihat yang terbaik terhadap pelaburan mereka.

Bagaimana mahu dari segi membina kerjaya sebagai UTC berjaya?

Kerjaya ini menjanjikan pendapatan mengikut seberapa banyak anda mahu. Apa yang penting kesungguhan dan kesanggupan untuk berkerja keras kerana kerjaya ini adalah perniagaan anda dengan modal serendah RM247.50 (yuran peperiksaan Persekutuan Pengurusan Unit Amanah Malaysia sebagai lesen menjadi UTC).

Dalam pada masa sama, pastikan syarikat yang disertai mempunyai catatan rekod yang cemerlang dan konsisten dalam memberi keuntungan kepada perunding dan pelabur.

Bagi saya ada tiga kunci utama untuk berjaya dalam bidang ini iaitu komitmen, boleh menerima tunjuk ajar dan keinginan atau kemahuan yang tinggi. Dengan ketiga-tiga ciri ini sesiapa pun boleh buat tidak kira lepasan universiti atau lulus sekadar lulus Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (kelayakan minimum).

Boleh ceritakan perjalanan anda dalam mencapai kejayaan seperti sekarang?

Selepas tamat kursus kesetiausahan di Institut Teknologi Mara (sekarang UiTM) pada 1989 saya sempat bekerja sebagai setiausaha di bank. Sekian lama bekerja di situ, saya sedar kerja makan gaji tidak membawa saya ke mana-mana.
Saya kuat percaya untuk kaya hanya dengan berniaga. Dalam Islam sendiri menyebut sembilan daripada 10 rezeki melalui perniagaan.
Sebenarnya, dari zaman sekolah lagi saya sudah pandai cari duit sendiri. Saya bekerja di restoran dengan umpah RM4. Keluarga saya orang susah, bapa kerja nelayan dan emak pula suri rumah. Abang dan kakak saya tidak berpeluang bersekolah tinggi semata-mata untuk memberi laluan kepada adik-adiknya mendapat pendidikan yang lebih baik.

Ketika ditawarkan masuk ITM, berdikit-dikit ayah kumpul duit untuk bayar yuran dengan dibantu abang. Masa di kolej juga saya cuba cari duit sendiri. Saya ‘ambil upah' mencuci rambut kawan-kawan, dapat 50 sen seorang, lepaslah duit makan. Saya pernah juga beli nasi lemak di luar kemudian saya jual balik pada kawan-kawan di kolej dengan mengambil untung sedikit.

Walaupun apa yang saya lakukan nampak kecil, sebenarnya ia memberi pengalaman dan pengajaran berguna pada saya terutama dalam memahami dunia perniagaan.

Sebelum menyertai unit amanah, segala bentuk perniagaan saya buat daripada jualan langsung hingga kepada menjadi agen insurans. Ketika itu walaupun tidak mempunyai ramai kenalan di Kuala Lumpur, saya beranikan diri menegur dan menghubungi sesiapa saja yang berpotensi menjadi pelanggan saya. Cubaan menjadi agen insurans berhasil sehingga meraih pendapatan sekurang-kurangnya RM5,000 sebulan. Ketika itu saya mengambil keputusan berhenti kerja tetap kerana tidak mampu mengimbangi dua pekerjaan sekali gus.

Ketika situasi insurans kurang memberangsangkan disebabkan kejatuhan ekonomi pada 1998, pendapatan saya merosot sehingga ke RM1,500. Saya nanik, tetapi bernasib baik mendapat peluang menjadi UTC selepas diperkenalkan oleh seorang rakan.

Apakah cabaran yang dihadapi selepas menyertai unit amanah?

Saya menyertai bidang ini dengan pengetahuan yang kosong dan tak tahu apa yang saya jual. Namun, saya punya keinginan yang kuat dan berusaha mendalami setiap aspek perniagaan ini.

Selepas melalui saat jatuh bangun, Alhamdulillah, berkat kerja keras dan kesungguhan akhirnya berhasil. Pada tahun lepas saja jualan kumpulan saya mencecah RM122 juta. Saya mempunyai seramai 200 UTC dan seorang GAM terus di bawah saya.
Saya menyimpan cita-cita untuk menghasilkan 50 GAM dalam tempoh 10 tahun lagi. Saya yakin ia mampu dicapai jika ada kesungguhan dan keazaman.

Apa resipi kejayaan anda sehingga ke tahap sekarang?

Sebagai UTC , pertama sekali sanggup berhadapan dan menerima risiko ditolak. Saya selalu ingatkan kepada anak-anak didik saya bahawa penolakan bukanlah sesuatu yang peribadi sehingga boleh menyebabkan kita jatuh. Sebaliknya, dijadikan pendorong untuk terus berusaha.

Keduanya, saya memilih orang yang tepat untuk saya rekrut. Memilih orang yang tepat tidak bermakna yang berpendidikan tinggi saja sebaliknya, mereka yang menunjukkan kesanggupan untuk berusaha. Kalau diletakkan sasaran dia akan memastikan sasaran itu dapat dicapai. Sebagai ketua yang baik saya juga perlu bijak untuk memberi motivasi kepada orang di bawah saya untuk terus bersemangat.

http://utusan.com.my/utusan/arkib.asp?y=2007&dt=0312&pub=utusan_malaysia&sec=keluarga&pg=ke_01.htm&arc=hive

Fahami Sebab Ketidaktentuan Pasaran Saham

Oleh Jauhari Dahalan

Minggu-minggu dalam bulan July-August lalu menyaksikan henyakkan teruk ke atas pasaran saham tempatan - Bursa Malaysia, yang mengakibatkan penyusutan harga agak ketara. Berjuta-juta ringgit kerugian dicatatkan kali ini. Penyusutan harga lebih ketara ke atas saham-saham berharga rendah, begitu pun saham-saham mewah juga tidak terkecuali daripada henyakkan kali ini.

Kebanyakan pelabur ketika ini mengambil sikap berhati-hati, meminggirkan diri di tepian pasaran tatkala menantikan petunjuk yang baru yang lebih meyakinkan sebelum kembali ke pasaran.

Apa yang diperlihatkan kepada kita adalah bagaimana pasaran saham negara terus menghadapi tekanan jualan terutamanya daripada pelabur-pelabur institusi dan sindiket yang mencairkan posisi pelaburan mereka menyebabkan pasaran terus kelesuan.

Bukan setakat itu sahaja, para pelabur juga mencairkan posisi mereka dalam pelaburan amanah saham yang menyebabkan berlakunya tekanan jualan ke atas saham-saham mewah.

Pelbagai alasan diberikan bagi menjelaskan kemelut pasaran saham sekarang. Ada pihak menyatakan keengganan institusi kewangan dan firma broker saham memberi kemudahan kredit atau pengurangan jumlah pembiayaan pelaburan margin adalah penyebab wujudnya tekanan jualan di pasaran secara besar-besaran.

Sejauh mana kebenaran ini ia masih lagi diperdebatkan. Walaupun hal ini sudah dinafikan oleh pihak institusi kewangan, ia masih lagi tidak dapat memulihkan kemurungan pasaran saham walaupun wujud petanda yang positif akan keredaannya.

Jika pun ada kebenaran di atas tindakan institusi kewangan ini, kita mestilah sedia maklum tindakan tersebut. Sebagaimana perniagaan lain, institusi kewangan juga mengambil sikap berhati-hati dalam setiap urus niaganya.

Jika kedapatan petanda ke arah kemungkinan wujudnya pendedahan kepada risiko, mereka akan mengambil langkah-langkah keselamatan dengan menghentikan urus niaga tersebut atau mengurangkannya.

Kemudahan kredit bagi pembiayaan pelaburan margin adalah bersandar kepada cagaran saham-saham kepunyaan pelanggan.

Turun naik harga saham di pasaran mendedahkan institusi kewangan kepada risiko. Pendedahan kepada risiko adalah lebih tinggi dalam keadaan pasaran yang tidak menentu.

Jika saham-saham tersebut bukanlah terdiri daripada saham yang boleh menguntungkan atau saham-saham teguh maka kebiasaannya institusi kewangan enggan menawarkan kemudahan kredit atau jumlah kredit yang dibenarkan adalah kecil.

Keadaan ini pastinya mengekang aktiviti para pelabur untuk aktif di pasaran. Kesannya, ramai pelabur yang terpaksa menjualkan saham-saham pegangan mereka bagi memantapkan kecairan mereka.

Spekulator

Analisis lain yang menyatakan kemelut pasaran ketika ini adalah gara-gara permainan pelabur sindiket dan spekulator pasaran saham di mana menyaksikan tekanan jualan terutamanya ke atas saham-saham barisan kedua dan ketiga yang menyebabkan harga saham-saham ini terjejas dengan begitu teruk.

Tindakan para pelabur ini juga dikatakan ada kaitannya dengan tindakan institusi kewangan mengurangkan atau menarik balik kemudahan kredit pembiayaan.

Persoalannya bagaimana mungkin kita dapat mengekangkan aktiviti sesetengah sindiket atau spekulator ini yang boleh mengucar-ngacirkan pasaran di atas tindakan mereka.

Walaupun begitu adakalanya para pelabur jenis ini jugalah yang menggerakkan pasaran saham ke arah peningkatan urus niaga pasaran saham.

Alasan lain yang dikaitkan dengan kejatuhan di pasaran saham adalah diakibatkan oleh timbul keraguan ke atas pencapaian atau prestasi syarikat-syarikat bagi saham-saham barisan kedua dan ketiga. Keraguan ini timbul apabila syarikat-syarikat ini membuat pengubahan di atas penyata kewangan yang berkaitan pencapaian atau keuntungan yang dijangkakan yang berlainan daripada apa yang diuar-uarkan semasa membuat terbitan awal awam.

Maka timbul isu ketelitian dan kredibiliti akauntan yang memperakukan penyata kewangan tersebut dan bagaimana perkara sebegini boleh dibiarkan berlaku. Keraguan ke atas saham-saham bagi syarikat-syarikat yang dikaitkan telah mewujudkan tekanan jualan yang mengakibatkan penyusutan harga saham-saham berkenaan.

Pelaporan penyata kewangan yang tidak tepat ini tidak seharusnya berlaku jika penyediaan dan penyemakan dilakukan dengan teliti dan berhemah.

Volatiliti pasaran saham negara ketika ini juga dipengaruh oleh faktor-faktor luaran. Kenaikan harga minyak terutamanya cukup memberi kesan ke atas syarikat-syarikat pengeluar di dunia.

Kenaikan harga minyak ini pastinya meningkatkan kos pengeluaran yang akan disalurkan ke atas pengguna dalam bentuk kenaikan harga barangan.

Pengguna akan mengambil sikap yang lebih berhati-hati dalam pembelanjaan mereka. Sikap ini secara tidak langsung akan mengurangkan permintaan dan pastinya mengurangkan pendapatan syarikat-syarikat pengeluar.

Oleh kerana pasaran pengguna yang terbesar adalah di Amerika Syarikat dan Eropah, tentu pengurangan permintaan di pasaran tersebut memberi kesan kepada pendapatan syarikat.

Pengumuman keuntungan yang lebih rendah oleh syarikat-syarikat yang disenaraikan di pasaran utama dunia seperti Wall Street pastinya mengundang tekanan jualan yang mengakibatkan penurunan kepada petunjuk indeks seperti Indeks Dow Jones.

Prestasi pasaran luar negara ini juga kebiasaannya memberi kesan ke atas prestasi pasaran saham tempatan. Banyak syarikat yang disenaraikan di luar negara mempunyai hubungan niaga dengan syarikat tempatan.

Pengurangan permintaan syarikat tersebut bererti pengurangan ke atas pengeluaran syarikat tempatan, yang seterusnya mengurangkan pendapatan syarikat. Jika syarikat-syarikat ini adalah syarikat yang disenaraikan di pasaran saham tempatan maka ia akan memberi kesan ke atas harga sahamnya di pasaran.

Pertumbuhan ekonomi suku tahun ini yang diumumkan sebanyak 5.7 peratus adalah memberangsangkan. Ia memberikan keyakinan bahawa kemelut pasaran saham ketika ini adalah bersifat sementara.

Walaupun begitu kita seharusnya dapat memanfaatkan kejatuhan harga-harga saham.Ia membuka peluang bagi kita untuk membuat pembelian kerana harga saham cukup rendah. Jika kita ingin mendapat pulangan yang baik bagi tempoh jangka masa panjang maka inilah masa yang baik bagi kita memasuki pasaran.

Banyak yang dijual pada harga yang rendah boleh mendatangkan keuntungan jangka panjang.

Kita mesti bijak dalam membuat pemilihan saham-saham yang hendak dibeli. Kejatuhan harga saham bukan bererti semua jenis saham elok dibeli. Penelitian dan kajian mestilah dilakukan dahulu.

Ternyata ramai para pelabur mengharapkan keadaan pasaran kembali sebagai mana di tahun-tahun sebelum krisis kewangan 1997-98.

Kita tidak hanya boleh mengharap atau menunggu sahaja. Pelabur masa kini haruslah lebih bijak dan melengkapi diri dengan pengetahuan mengenai pelaburan.

- Dr. Jauhari Dahalan ialah pensyarah di Fakulti Ekonomi Universiti Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Kedah.

4 LESSONS FROM THE MARKET

Lesson 1

Markets move in cycles. They go down, but history has shown us that they always recover. (Similarly, markets that rise excessively will eventually come crashing down, so beware of buying into investment bubbles.) The best approach is to accept market volatility, stick to your strategy and don’t panic. By withdrawing from the market you could be robbing yourself of the most valuable gains.

Lesson 2

Diversification reduces risk. Because it’s impossible to predict market movements, one way to manage risk is to maintain a diversified portfolio. Spreading your investments across a range of carefully diversified assets will minimise the risk and smooth your returns. Your financial planner can help you learn about funds that will help to diversify your portfolio.

Lesson 3

‘Time-in’ not ‘timing’. Be patient, especially if you are investing for the long term. When things look bleak it’s important to keep your goals in focus. Getting out of the market could mean you miss the rebound and the returns that go with them.

Lesson 4

Start early, save regularly. The sooner you start investing and the more often you do it, the better. Setting up a regular savings plan takes the guess work out of trying to find the right time to make an investment. Starting now will give your money time to grow through the power of compounding.

The route to LONG-TERM Investment Success

Unit Trust Investors who hold their unit trust investments for the long term will achieve better return than those who engage in timing the market.

They should be focused and keep their emotions from influencing their investment decisions. A disciplined and methodical approach to investing is the key to success. This approach entails holding unit trust investments for the medium to long term period of at least three years with portfolio rebalancing done on a semi-annual or annual basis.

However, there are some investors believe they can achieve superior returns by timing the purchase and redemption of equity funds to profit from the stock market’s short term movement. They are tempted to engage in especially in an environment where equity markets are volatile. They who wish to make quick gains in the stock market by switching from one fund into another fund will often be disappointed.

Market timing strategies that are touted by so –called investment experts usually have not been proven to be successful. This is because stock markets are inherently volatile and are impossible to predict with numerous factors. Both domestic and foreign, affecting short market movements.

The buy-and-hold principle is based on the notion that a good investment will generate reasonably attractive returns over the medium-to-long term. This simply means ignoring short term movements in the market. Professional fund managers usually adopt this strategy. For investors, this strategy can also work by holding on to a well-selected fund over a period of at least 3 years.

On the other hand, market-timing strategies are subject to many risks. In order to profit from the short term’s trends, the investors has to correctly predict the market’s trend and its turning point. Without the appropriate skills to discern signals and time the entries and exits, the market timer may not only miss opportunities, but also potentially suffer the blow of rapid losses. Also with higher frequency of fund switching, investors will have to incur increased transaction costs

The advantage of using the “buy and hold” strategy in unit trust investment is that it is easy to manage your investments once you have made them. Over the time, the upward bias of the market will overcome and outweigh any temporary pullbacks in the value of your portfolio.

Investors who are concerned about market volatility are advised to practise dollar cost averaging as this strategy enables investors to focus on the long-term goals and not worry about the prevailing level of the market. Dollar cost averaging is simply investing a fixed amount of money in a financial asset (such as unit trust fund) on a regular basis regardless of the market cycle. By investing a fixed amount, investors will buy more units when the market is lower and fewer units when the market is higher. It will produce lower average cost of investment than the average market price over any given period.

In addition, investors are also advised to rebalance their portfolios regularly at least once a year to ensure that their portfolio allocation reflects their investment objectives and risk profile. Thus, as a result of an uptrend in stock prices, an investor’s equity exposure has exceeded a level consistent with his risk tolerances, he can trim a portion of the equity funds and switch into bond or money market funds to rebalance the asset allocation accordingly. Maintaining the target assets allocation reduces the risk that the portfolio becomes too much concentrated in a single asset class.

In conclusion, investors should have a disciplined perspective that focuses on achieving medium to long-term investment goals. The practice of dollar cost averaging and regular portfolio rebalancing helps investors to focus on the long-term horizon and keeps them from over reacting to the short-term movements of the stock market.

The Parable of the Pipeline

Introduction:
Once upon a time long long ago there lived two ambitious men called Pablo and Bruno in a small village in central Italy. They were the best of buddies and big dreamers. They used to endlessly talk about how they would become the richest of men in the village. They both were smart & diligent and all that they needed was an opportunity to prove themselves. One day this opportunity knocked their door. They were appointed by the villagers to carry water in buckets from a nearby river to the cistern in the Town Square. Both were overjoyed and started to work immediately. At the end of the day Bruno rejoiced at the opportunity but Pablo was not very sure about this idea. He dreaded to go next day to work and vowed to think of a better way to bring water to the cistern.

Pablo, the Pipeline Man:
The next day Pablo told his friend about his new idea to bring water to the village. Pablo suggested that instead on lunging back and forth to bring water from the river they could build a pipeline from the river to village. Bruno was not very happy with the idea as it sounded new and there were no short term benefits from the idea and he rejected that idea outright and was happy with whatever he was earning (It is very difficult to accept a change in our life isn't it? Everything boils down to handling changes). But Pablo did not give up and worked on building the pipeline. HeJin life worked during the evenings and weekends along with the bucket carrier work. This brought down his productivity and he wasn't able to earn as much as Bruno did. Soon Bruno earned quite a fortune but Pablo did not give up on his pipeline. He still hoped and believed that one day his dream of bringing water to the cistern would come true.

Small Actions equals Big Results:
While Bruno spent his evenings and weekends peacefully, Pablo had to work hard on his pipeline. He kept on reminding himself "Tomorrow's dreams are built on today's sacrifices". "Inch by inch it's an cinch" he kept on saying to himself as he dug every foot in the ground. "Short-term pain equals long-term gains," he repeated to himself as he went to rest in his humble abode after a hard day's work. "Keep your eyes on the prize" he repeated over and over as he drifted to sleep.

The Tables are turned:
Hours turned into days, days turned into months and months turned into years but Pablo did not give up. His big day was coming nearer. His burden of carrying buckets was coming down. He watched his best friend carrying buckets, looking very tired, his shoulders stooped and villagers teased him on his gait. Bruno was doomed and was angry as he was destined to carry buckets day in and day out for the rest of his life. Finally Pablo's big day arrived and all the villagers praised him for his creative idea. Pablo, the pipeline maker came to be known as Pablo, the miracle maker. Politicians and people all over the world lauded him for his efforts.

Recruiting his friend to help:
On watching his friend struggle with the bucket he went and offered his friend an opportunity again to work with him. He told his friend "The pipeline I built isn't the end of a dream. It is only the beginning! I plan to build pipelines all over the world". Bruno finally saw the big picture and shook hands with his old friend.

Pipeline Dreams in a Bucket Carrying world:
A lot of years passed since this incident happened. Bruno and Pablo were retired but still had millions coming in as their income from their pipeline business. During their leisure trips to their village they would meet their childhood friends carrying buckets. They used to suggest the idea of pipelines to their fellow mates. A few of them would jump at the opportunity but most of them would dismiss the pipeline ideas with excuses like "I don't have the time", "My friend tried this and failed", "I've done this all my life and would like to stick on with it", "I know some people who lost money in this, I don't want to take the risk". Bruno and Pablo felt sad for these people who lacked vision.

Who are you "A BUCKET CARRIER" or "A PIPELINE BUILDER"?

Concerns Of Most Prospective Investors

Why Isn't One Investment Plan Right For Everyone?

Before investing, decide what you want your investments to do. Investing is simply using money to make more money. Investment ringgit are not meant to be used for daily living essentials.

You might choose to invest in bank deposits, government bonds, securities, or life insurance. They are all different, and no single investment channel fits the needs of every individual. Neither can a single financial product fulfill all our needs at different stages of our lives.

Since most unit trusts or collective investments limit their investments to securities, let us explore some of the reasons why investors, both institutional and individuals, might want to own a unit trust. Many prefer unit trusts because they are easily bought and sold. They represent variety and flexibility of returns. Unit trusts can be bought at varying prices, from very low to very high, and small amounts can be invested at convenient intervals. Unit trusts can be selected, often with excellent results, by having limited investment background.

When investing in unit trusts, investors can profit in two ways. They may receive distributions. Since the market value of unit trusts fluctuates, investors also profit when selling their unit trusts in the event of substantial or marginal increase in value. However, fluctuation also means the value of your unit trust can go down in value. That is why unit trusts are recommended for medium to long-term investment programme. Regardless of which unit trust is selected, it should meet the investment goals. A basic rule is that it should not be done on impulse.

What About People Who Are Retired Or Have A Family?

Age is a strong consideration in investment decision. Notice how conservatism comes with age. With age, comes the awareness that a serious investment error could jeopardise the security that has taken years to accumulate. The closer the retirement, the fewer the years to rebuild.

Investment risk is quite different from gambling. Weighing risk based on facts is investing. Taking chances based on odds is gambling. The point is, age is an important factor in deciding risk.

Another strong consideration is responsibilities. A young individual beginning a career with the additional responsibility of one or more children must weigh these responsibilities. The most protection for the fewest ringgit should supercede any forced savings that would reduce family protection.

Financial needs change. How they are met should depend on our responsibility.

Why Should I Start Investing Today?

Today's decision should consider tomorrow's needs. There is a direct relationship between the amount of money you need to accumulate and the number of years you have to do it.

For example, if you plan to have a RM120,000 education fund, have 20 years to do it, and expect an annual rate of return of 12%, you have to invest only a little over RM120 a month. Wait 5 years, and with 15 years left you will need over RM240 a month. Procrastinate another 10 years, you will have to take almost RM1,470 each month!

Time can be a real asset when planning for a child's education or our retirement. The more time we have to save, the fewer ringgit we need now. Do not let time slip away.

What Are The Three Rules Of Investing?

There is no simple formula for successful investing. If there were, it would include three basic elements:

1. Understand what we buy
2. Buy value at a reasonable price
3. Be patient

Understanding is so basic, it is often neglected. Too often an investment is made with no total understanding of the transaction. It is vital to understand your investment - the good, the bad, the risks and the rewards. Fully comprehending the objective of any investment will help you be more comfortable.

Value buying demands both research and discipline. A stock may be judged undervalued for various reasons. If an industry is out of favor, the market value of the stocks within the industry might go lower but, if the fundamentals are still positive, it is an opportunity for the investor to buy selectively as it is still a good value stock.

Patience is a vital ingredient of value investing. It could take several years for the value of your investment to materialise. This waiting period demands both patience and confidence. Most successful investors know it takes time for their investment to double, triple, and so forth. Professional managers generally agree that 5 years is reasonable.

Choosing A Professional Fund Manager : Why Can't I Do It Myself?

Put not your trust in money
But put your money in trust

Oliver Wendell Holmes

There are a lot of peolple who like to "do it their way" when it comes to investing. Right or wrong, they want to be captain of their ship. But not eveyone can or likes to be captain of their ship. Being a passenger has advantages. It is usually more comfortable and certainly less time consuming. When your investments are managed by someone else, you sit back and either reap the harvest or suffer the loss.

Bank deposits and insurance are the best known managed investments outside the securities area. They usually have some guarantee of principal or income, and the income is usually low with not much risk.

Where does that leave you if you want your money to not only produce a reasonable income now, but to also grow over the years?

The answer to your question is PROFESSIONAL FUND MANAGEMENT.....If you lack experience, time, financial resources, or courage to personally manage investments, or if you believe others can get better results, this is the way to go.

Selecting The Right Unit Trust - How Do I Find A Unit Trust That Fits My Objective?

It used to be simple selecting a unit trust. Today, there are a multitude of different unit trust funds competing for investment ringgit. Perhaps a simpler way is to first identify your investment objectives. If you want your money to grow a larger sum in the future to pay for an objective and your risk tolerance is higher, you may choose a growth fund to do the job. On the other hand, if you need an ongoing income stream to pay for expenses and your risk tolerance is low, a better choice may be a bond fund. You may have different investment objectives, risk tolerance and time horizons at any one time, which warrants owning a mixture of different unit trust funds for different investment purposes.

Why Do I Have To Spend All That Time Reading A Prospectus?

Before investing in any unit trust, read the prospectus. It's required that you get one, so if it's not offered, ask for it!

A prospectus is your protection contract. It tells you all you need to know about the fund. If you plan to own the fund, you will want to know how your money will be invested.

The prospectus is a blueprint of the fund. It tells what the fund managers can and cannot do with your money. It describes risk and limits, and the amount of risk the fund is allowed to take. It tells you whether the purpose of the fund is to make profit as quickly as possible or to make only reasonable gains while first bringing in income and protecting your principal.

Many investors who are in a hurry to reach their goal, take the shortcut of not reading the prospectus. This could jeopardise your investing decisions. Read the prospectus. Arm yourself with sufficient information to make an 'informed decision'. It prepares you for what lies ahead.

Bright Future Ahead

The domestic unit trust industry accounts for more than 70% of the Malaysian investment management industry.

THE unit trust industry grew further during the first six months, with the launch of new funds, which brought about an increase in the number of units in circulation. Thirty-five new funds were introduced, bringing the total to 530 as at end-June.

Investors continued to view unit trusts as a viable investment instrument, as reflected by the growth in the number of accounts and units in circulation of 14.4% and 10.7%, respectively.

The Islamic unit trust segment continued to grow with the launch of eight new funds to reach 136, while the net asset value (NAV) increased 6.6% to RM18bil as at end-June from RM16.9bil as at end-2007.

The NAV of the overall unit trust industry, however, decreased 5.6% to RM159bil and accounted for 17.7% of the market capitalisation of Bursa Malaysia as at end-June 2008 (end-2007: 15.3%), in line with the decline in the KL Composite Index.

Unit trust fund managers continue to diversify into foreign markets following the liberalisation of the threshold for investments abroad, which was progressively raised to 50% of NAV of resident funds in April 2007.

During the first six months of 2008, 27 new unit trust funds were launched for investment in foreign markets. As at end-June, 11 funds had invested RM401mil in foreign assets, bringing the total number of funds invested in foreign markets to 160 with investments totalling RM13.3bil.

The growth of real estate investment trusts (REITs) and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has gradually gained momentum. While the total number of REITs, including two Islamic REITs, listed on Bursa Malaysia remained at 13, the total asset size rose to RM7.7bil as at end-June (end-2007: RM7bil).

Meanwhile, Asia's first Islamic ETF was listed on Bursa Malaysia in January, bringing the total to three ETFs during the first six months of the year. The market capitalisation of ETFs rose to RM1.2bil as at end-June from RM531.8mil as at end-2007.

The REIT industry is set to grow further following the recent measures announced in August to enhance Bursa Malaysia as a destination for REIT listings as well as to promote a vibrant and competitive REIT industry.

The measures include raising foreign equity in REITs to 70% from 49%, providing greater flexibilities for REIT managers to manage their portfolios, and allowing REIT managers to issue units up to 20% of its fund size without seeking the mandate from unitholders.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/8/30/ecoreport2009/22187401&sec=ecoreport2009

Growing Your Income With Sukuk

In the current environment of global economic uncertainties amidst the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis and elevated inflationary pressures, investors with a conservative risk-reward temperament may wish to settle for more stable, albeit lower returns on their investments. Investing in sukuk and Islamic money market instruments provides investors with a steady stream of income along with the opportunity to take advantage of current attractive fixed-income yields for the medium to long-term period.

Sukuk is a document or certificate evidencing an undivided pro rata ownership of an underlying asset; a capital market financial instrument tradable in the secondary market.

Benefits of Investing in the sukuk market

Rising demand and a growing number of sukuk issuers have resulted in the rapid growth of the Malaysian sukuk market in recent years. This has provided higher liquidity which allows investors easier access to the sukuk market. The primary sukuk market in Malaysia is one of the world’s fastest growing, with an average annual growth of 22%1 per annum recorded in the period between 2001 and 2007.

Sukuk are required under Shariah requirements to be backed by assets supported by underlying cashflows. This provides additional security to the investor and hence, making sukuk relatively safer than conventional bonds that may not have this feature.

Investing in sukuk offers better security to investors’ investment portfolios. Generally, investors should diversify their investment portfolios with a mix of equity, bond and money market securities based on their risk profile and investment objectives. However, given current volatility in global financial markets, investing in high quality sukuk can help reduce the overall risk in an investor’s investment portfolio as sukuk are able to yield stable profit rates throughout their tenures.

Following the government’s cut in petrol and diesel subsidies on 5 June 2008, the domestic inflation rate is expected to accelerate in the second half of 2008, resulting in a projected inflation rate of 5.5%-6.0% for 2008 versus 2.0% for 2007.

Higher expectations of inflation have caused bond market yields to trend higher. The current environment of higher bond market yields presents opportunities for investors to lock-in and earn higher yields on their investments. Furthermore, should inflationary expectations stabilise in 2009, bond yields may decline. Thus, investors may benefit from capital appreciation on their fixed-income investments as bond yields move in opposite direction to bond prices.

The yields on the 3 and 10-year Government Investment Issues (GII) have risen by 30 and 70 basis points to 4.03% and 4.90% respectively for the year-to-date as at 8 August 2008 while 3 and 10-year AAA corporate sukuk yields have risen by 80 and 97 basis points to 4.97% and 5.94% respectively over the same period.

Growth Prospects of the sukuk Market

As the pioneer in the global sukuk market, Malaysia boasts many “world-first” issues in sizeable amounts and innovative structures. Malaysia offers the world’s largest sukuk market with a total issuance size of RM121.3 billion2 in 2007, accounting for more than half3 of the global sukuk market. Rapid growth of the sukuk market has contributed to the growth of the Malaysian Islamic capital market, bringing it up to par with the conventional capital market. Given Malaysia’s leadership and dominance in the development of the Islamic capital market, the sukuk market is envisaged to continue to grow in the years ahead.

source : http://www.publicmutual.com.my

Unit Amanah Sumbang 70 peratus

INDUSTRI unit amanah domestik adalah yang terbesar di Asia Tenggara dengan menyumbang lebih 70 peratus kepada industri pengurusan pelaburan negara.

Industri ini terus berkembang sepanjang tempoh enam bulan pertama 2008 berikutan pelancaran dana baru yang membawa peningkatan bilangan unit dalam edaran.

Penambahan 35 dana baru menjadikan 530 dana diwujudkan pada akhir Jun 2008.

Pelabur melihat unit amanah sebagai instrumen pelaburan berdaya maju seperti yang digambarkan pertumbuhan bilangan akaun dan unit dalam edaran sebanyak 14.4 peratus dan 10.7 peratus.

Segmen unit amanah Islam terus cergas dengan pelancaran lapan dana baru menjadikan keseluruhan 136 dana manakala nilai aset bersih (NAV) meningkat 6.6 peratus kepada RM18 bilion pada akhir Jun 2008.

Bagaimanapun, NAV keseluruhan industri unit amanah menurun 5.6 peratus kepada RM159 bilion, mewakili 17.7 peratus daripada nilai permodalan pasaran Bursa Malaysia pada akhir Jun 2008, sejajar dengan penyusutan Indeks Komposit Kuala Lumpur (KLCI).

Pengurus dana unit amanah terus mempelbagaikan portfolio pelaburan dalam pasaran asing berikutan langkah liberalisasi paras ambang pelaburan luar negara yang dinaikkan secara berperingkat kepada 50 peratus daripada NAV dana pemastautin mulai April 2007.

Enam bulan pertama 2008 menyaksikan 27 unit dana amanah baru dilancar bagi pelaburan pasaran asing manakala pada akhir Jun 2008, 11 dana melabur RM401 juta dalam aset asing, menjadikan 160 dana melabur RM13.3 bilion dalam pasaran asing.

Dana Manah Hartanah (REIT) dan Dana Dagangan Bursa (ETF) pula secara beransur mula mencapai momentum pertumbuhan walaupun jumlah REIT, termasuk dua REIT Islam yang disenarai di Bursa Malaysia kekal pada 13, saiz aset meningkat kepada RM7.7 bilion berbanding RM7 bilion pada 2007.

Suruhanjaya Sekuriti (SC) meluluskan REIT swasta pertama pada Februari 2008 manakala ETF Islam pertama di Asia disenarai di Bursa Malaysia Januari lalu, menambah jumlah ETF kepada tiga dalam tempoh enam bulan pertama 2008.

Nilai permodalan pasaran ETF pada akhir Jun 2008 meningkat kepada RM1.2 bilion berbanding RM531.8 juta akhir tahun lalu.

Industri REIT dijangka berkembang lagi berikutan pengumuman langkah terkini Ogos lalu bagi mempertingkatkan daya tarikan Bursa Malaysia sebagai destinasi penyenaraian REIT selain menggalakkan industri REIT yang cergas dan berdaya saing.

Langkah ini termasuk meningkatkan pegangan ekuiti asing dalam REIT kepada 70 peratus daripada 49 peratus, kelonggaran kepada pengurus REIT menguruskan portfolio mereka dan membenarkan pengurus REIT menerbitkan unit sehingga 20 peratus daripada saiz dana tanpa mendapatkan mandat pemegang unit.

(dipetik dari lawan web berita harian)
http://www.bharian.com.my/klikkhas/bajet/Artikel2009/LaporanEkonomi/20080829162452/Article/