Ease Into the World of Investing (2)

2 A unit trust is a pool of money that is professionally managed in accordance with a specific, long-term management objective. For instance, a unit trust might try to provide a balance between high returns and diversification by investing in well-known businesses all over the world. The fact that unit trusts do not require you to pay brokers’ commissions is the primary benefit.

3 There are numerous types of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs): ETFs that hold or track the performance of a basket of stocks, such as Singapore or emerging economies, are one example. commodity ETFs that hold or track the price of a single commodity or a group of commodities (such as metals and silver); and currency ETFs that track a single major currency or a group of major currencies (like the Euro). There are two main benefits to ETFs: On stock exchanges like the SGX, they trade like shares and typically come with very low management fees.

The primary distinction between ETFs and Unit Trusts is that ETFs are assets that are publicly traded, whereas Unit Trusts are assets that are privately traded, allowing you to buy and sell them at any time during market hours.

4 In this context, “gold” refers to gold savings accounts, certificates of ownership, and gold bullion. However, keep in mind that there are numerous other ways to invest in gold, such as through gold ETFs and Unit Trusts; and shares in companies that mine gold.

With the advent of the Internet and online brokers, there are now so many options for investing that even a novice investor with $5,000 can find several options that meet her goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon.

Basically, diversification is trying to lower risk by investing in a variety of companies, industries, and countries (and, as your financial knowledge and wealth grow, in various “asset classes” like cash, stocks, ETFs, commodities like gold and silver, etc.). Your Investment Portfolio is the name given to this collection of investments.

Diversification is important because similar investments tend to behave similarly during times of crisis. The Singapore stock market crashes of late 2008/early 2009, during the US “Subprime” crisis, and the “Asian Financial Crisis” of 1997, when the price of a lot of stocks fell, are two of the best examples from recent history. Investing in a variety of stocks to diversify wouldn’t have been very helpful to you in these circumstances.

Exemplifying compounding’s power and concept is the most effective method. Let’s say we have three investments: the first earns 0.25 percent annually; The second yields 5% annually; and the third pays out 10% annually. We contrast two scenarios for each investment:

The annual interest is taken out of the account without compounding.
The annual interest is left in the account (re-invested) with compounding.
Let’s take a look at the returns on all three investments over the course of 25 years, assuming that we begin with $10,000 in Year 0:

After 25 years, your investment will grow to $10,625 at a annual return of 0.25 percent; With compounding, your investment grows to $10,644 after 25 years.

Your investment will increase to $22,500 after 25 years of compounding at a rate of 5% per year; With compounding, your investment grows to $33,864 after 25 years.

After 25 years, your investment will grow to $35,000 with a return of 10% annually; With compounding, your investment grows to $108,347 after 25 years.
This demonstrates the significant effects of compounding and higher returns: You will receive more than ten times your initial investment if you combine annual returns of 10% with 25 years of compounding. Furthermore, returns of 10% are not at all improbable: Even with some losing years, educated investors who actively manage their portfolios themselves and practice diversification can achieve even higher returns.

To achieve their financial objectives, people of all ages and backgrounds require individualized, practical guidance in developing their financial knowledge and skills. We’ve tried to make it easy for you to understand some of the most crucial ideas and principles throughout this journey in this article.