Moving on....
Moving on....
So, I've decided to stop trading stocks in 2016.
The reason being that trading stocks is a real pain. I mean, not withstanding the need to have iron nerves to withstand sharp dips in your portfolio, you also need to have a good eye on the investments and human sentiments/emotions factor.
In fact, it is the latter that really bothers me the most. Sure, a particular company may have really strong fundamentals, produces products that are in stable and rising demand; but for God knows some obscure or unfounded reason(s), the price of their stocks will move up or down wildly. Those kind of movements are really bad for one's heart, and I should know it well. Throughout the course of the experiment, I've had many days of tension as some stock prices tanked. Now, the psychological and emotional damage is not something to belittle. My portfolio is only worth a few thousand ringgit, so even if I lost the entire sum, it wouldn't hurt me as bad; but what if it were RM10,000 or RM100,000?
So for the year moving forwards, I am going to say no to anymore stock trading. I am willing to invest in the shares of stable blue chip companies, but I am no longer going to trade shares any further.
What then shall I do? Well, I am contemplating other forms in financial instruments, such as REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts); however I am not too familiar with the product at present, so I will need to work on building up my knowledge on this first. All that I know is that it works a little like Unit Trusts, in that a group of investors pool their money together with a trust manager, who will invest this money in real estate properties that will then be rented out to tenants to generate income. Of this, at least 90% of the income generated will be distributed back to the investors, in the form of dividends.
Now, I understand real estate a little better than human emotions, so I know that people will always have a need for housing. I know that people need hospital care (yes, there are even hospitals listed under REITs), and I know that businesses will still need to have an office or warehouse. Also, despite the gloomy economic climate, people still need to go somewhere to unwind, be it on a resort or at the malls. Thus, I think looking into REITs is something well worth an adventure.
Alternatively, I am also looking into high-interest bearing foreign time deposits. Did you know that you could save money in a foreign country's bank, in time deposits (which are similar to Fixed Deposits) which pay 7% - 14% interest on your money? The catch though, is that you have to make the deposits in local currency, and not an international currency such as the USD or Euro. What this means is that there are specific currency risks involved, which may be quite high, depending on the country involved (example of some countries with high-interest bearing time deposits include Indonesia, Vietnam, Ukraine, Venezuela etc.).
Will keep on updating, as and when I am free.
References:
Malaysia REITs
Deposits.org
The reason being that trading stocks is a real pain. I mean, not withstanding the need to have iron nerves to withstand sharp dips in your portfolio, you also need to have a good eye on the investments and human sentiments/emotions factor.
In fact, it is the latter that really bothers me the most. Sure, a particular company may have really strong fundamentals, produces products that are in stable and rising demand; but for God knows some obscure or unfounded reason(s), the price of their stocks will move up or down wildly. Those kind of movements are really bad for one's heart, and I should know it well. Throughout the course of the experiment, I've had many days of tension as some stock prices tanked. Now, the psychological and emotional damage is not something to belittle. My portfolio is only worth a few thousand ringgit, so even if I lost the entire sum, it wouldn't hurt me as bad; but what if it were RM10,000 or RM100,000?
So for the year moving forwards, I am going to say no to anymore stock trading. I am willing to invest in the shares of stable blue chip companies, but I am no longer going to trade shares any further.
What then shall I do? Well, I am contemplating other forms in financial instruments, such as REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts); however I am not too familiar with the product at present, so I will need to work on building up my knowledge on this first. All that I know is that it works a little like Unit Trusts, in that a group of investors pool their money together with a trust manager, who will invest this money in real estate properties that will then be rented out to tenants to generate income. Of this, at least 90% of the income generated will be distributed back to the investors, in the form of dividends.
Now, I understand real estate a little better than human emotions, so I know that people will always have a need for housing. I know that people need hospital care (yes, there are even hospitals listed under REITs), and I know that businesses will still need to have an office or warehouse. Also, despite the gloomy economic climate, people still need to go somewhere to unwind, be it on a resort or at the malls. Thus, I think looking into REITs is something well worth an adventure.
Alternatively, I am also looking into high-interest bearing foreign time deposits. Did you know that you could save money in a foreign country's bank, in time deposits (which are similar to Fixed Deposits) which pay 7% - 14% interest on your money? The catch though, is that you have to make the deposits in local currency, and not an international currency such as the USD or Euro. What this means is that there are specific currency risks involved, which may be quite high, depending on the country involved (example of some countries with high-interest bearing time deposits include Indonesia, Vietnam, Ukraine, Venezuela etc.).
Will keep on updating, as and when I am free.
References:
Malaysia REITs
Deposits.org
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