March saw my net worth increase by 9.2%, with a large lump sum income adding to cash reserves.
The value of my investment portfolio was broadly flat but paid higher than average dividends. Purchases included the RMB bond ETF and China equities. Whilst there was a lot of volatility during the month, the movements all generally offset each other.
My pension fund unit values fell by around 1%, mainly due to weaker HK equities.
Property rental income was paid in full & on time.
Cash balances increased materially with high income. Expenses were also high with a few personal treats but nothing too extravagant. March income tends to have a distorting impact on year to date performance and i expect my savings rate to drift back down as the year progresses.
Year to date net worth growth: 12.1%
Year to date savings rate: 79%
Monday 31 March 2014
Wednesday 26 March 2014
3139.HK Purchased
Earlier this week i added to my holding of the ishares RMB Bond ETF.
Although the underlying value has been fairly flat & dividend solid at around 4%, the price of the HKD denominated units have fallen around 3% as RMB has depreciated against HKD over the past few weeks.
Whilst there has been a lot of discussion in the media about RMB depreciation, widening of the exchange rate trading band & general confidence around China, my personal view is still to expect currency appreciation & growth albeit with some volatility along the way.
In the meantime i am happy to take a 4% yield on what should in theory be relatively low credit risk. Any additional pick-up from RMB appreciation will be an added bonus.
The additional units were purchased at around HKD43.1, and this has now become the largest individual holding in my investment portfolio.
Although the underlying value has been fairly flat & dividend solid at around 4%, the price of the HKD denominated units have fallen around 3% as RMB has depreciated against HKD over the past few weeks.
Whilst there has been a lot of discussion in the media about RMB depreciation, widening of the exchange rate trading band & general confidence around China, my personal view is still to expect currency appreciation & growth albeit with some volatility along the way.
In the meantime i am happy to take a 4% yield on what should in theory be relatively low credit risk. Any additional pick-up from RMB appreciation will be an added bonus.
The additional units were purchased at around HKD43.1, and this has now become the largest individual holding in my investment portfolio.
Lump sum income
I've been lucky enough to receive a reasonably large cash lump sum from my employment.
Whilst this is always welcome, it does compound my existing issues of a growing cash pile and a lack of risk appetite to invest material amounts in the financial markets given current volatility & valuations.
Whilst i do have a few luxury purchases in mind and have made a couple of initial investments, i am likely to sit on the cash pile for a while until i have a clearer strategy what to do with it.
My overall cash yield remains above 2%, which gives me some comfort that i'm not losing too much to inflation in the meantime.
Whilst this is always welcome, it does compound my existing issues of a growing cash pile and a lack of risk appetite to invest material amounts in the financial markets given current volatility & valuations.
Whilst i do have a few luxury purchases in mind and have made a couple of initial investments, i am likely to sit on the cash pile for a while until i have a clearer strategy what to do with it.
My overall cash yield remains above 2%, which gives me some comfort that i'm not losing too much to inflation in the meantime.
Monday 3 March 2014
3049.HK Purchased
Following a long period of sitting on the sidelines, today i increased my holding of the China CSI300 tracker ETF.
China shares have taken a real beating over the last few weeks, with both declining values coupled with a depreciating currency.
I've been buying this ETF for around 8 months as part of a small but regular monthly investment with an average purchase price of around HKD5.7. Following the recent sharp drop, today I added to this position with the equivalent of around 3 months regular purchases, at an incremental price of HKD4.98.
Whilst there are obvious risks associated with China shares, and in particular the large index weighting to financials, i consider the current valuation sufficiently low to justify additional purchases. I intend to continue the small standard monthly purchase unless there are any developments that warrant a rethink of my China exposure.
China shares have taken a real beating over the last few weeks, with both declining values coupled with a depreciating currency.
I've been buying this ETF for around 8 months as part of a small but regular monthly investment with an average purchase price of around HKD5.7. Following the recent sharp drop, today I added to this position with the equivalent of around 3 months regular purchases, at an incremental price of HKD4.98.
Whilst there are obvious risks associated with China shares, and in particular the large index weighting to financials, i consider the current valuation sufficiently low to justify additional purchases. I intend to continue the small standard monthly purchase unless there are any developments that warrant a rethink of my China exposure.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)