As most people will know, equity markets have been clawing back some of the losses made over the last three years. For the 12 months to the end of September, equity investments performed better than property investments. The FTSE All-Share Index returned 16.7% during the 12 months whereas property rose by 10.3%, according to Investment Property Databank's UK monthly index.
Our View:
This stronger performance from equities should have pleased many people that have seen losses over the past three years. As can be seen, markets move in cycles and when one market is performing well, others are not. This is one of the principles that investors should take into account when deciding when and where to invest. We believe that no one can accurately predict what the markets will do and how they will perform. Much is unknown and related to events other than those connected with the markets, such as wars and political unrest. We believe that investors need to take advice about investment and to minimise risk, investments need to be spread across different companies and different sectors.