There’s a consistent view of the consumer emerging from Australia’s Financial year 2026 (FY26) retail reporting season.

Households haven’t stopped spending, but they’ve become more selective, more value-conscious and increasingly willing to postpone discretionary purchases or wait for promotions and sales.

The pressure is most evident in big-ticket categories like furniture, appliances, and homewares. Nick Scali (ASX:NCK) noted a significant decline in store traffic late in the year; JB Hi-Fi (ASX:JBH) mentioned that customers are focusing their purchases around major sales; and Temple & Webster (ASX:TPW) said that while browsing continues, customers are delaying their buying decisions. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, Consumer discretionary, Economics, Editor's Pick, Manufacturing, Market commentary, Market Valuation.

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I joined Jess Maguire on ABC Statewide Drive to discuss why traditional approaches to diversification may no longer offer investors the same protection they once did. We explored how persistent inflation has changed the relationship between shares and bonds, the growing concentration of global share markets in a handful of artificial intelligence (AI) linked companies, and why investors may need to diversify beyond traditional asset classes and markets by considering a broader range of investment strategies.

Listen to the full segment from 1:46:20 – ABC Statewide Drive Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Insightful Insights, Investing Education, Market commentary, Market Valuation, Radio.

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I joined Juliette Saly on Ausbiz to discuss why traditional approaches to diversification may no longer provide the same protection for investors. We explored persistent inflation, growing concentration in equity markets, the risks emerging around AI and hyperscaler spending, and why investors may need to look beyond the traditional 60/40 portfolio towards alternative strategies, including private credit.

Watch the full episode on Ausbiz here: Why Roger thinks 60/40 diversification is dead Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Aura Group, Economics, Investing Education, Market commentary, TV Appearances.

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As I have written many times, Australia’s Household Debt to Disposable Income Ratio has jumped more than fourfold to around 180 per cent over the past 50 years, making us one of the more indebted societies of the 38 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.

Preeminent financial journalist of many decades, Robert Gottliebsen, recently argued a 10 per cent decline in house prices was the equivalent to around three 0.25 per cent interest rate increases for the average Australian consumer. Continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Consumer discretionary, Economics, Editor's Pick, Energy / Resources.

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I speak with Brett Craig, Director of Private Credit at Aura Credit Holdings, about how Aura structures its private credit portfolios with multiple layers of protection aimed at preserving investors’ capital. Brett explains how this begins with selecting quality Australian businesses, rigorous credit assessment and tangible loan security, before adding further protection through lender equity that sits below Aura’s investment in the capital structure.

We also discuss the role of diversification across thousands of underlying loans, short loan durations of typically three to five months, and independent monthly risk assessments by Open Analytics. Together, these measures are designed to manage risk across the portfolio and provide multiple avenues of protection should a borrower experience financial difficulty.

Learn more about private credit. 

Alternatively, you can speak with David Buckland or Rhodri Taylor here at Montgomery on (02) 8046 5000. Continue…

by Scott Phillips Posted in Aura Group, Editor's Pick, Insightful Insights, Investing Education, Video Insights.

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In recent days, we have seen three ASX listed companies receive offers by private equity, and in each case, it appears their ownership will likely head overseas. 

I Squared Capital

New York based “Sophisticated and long-term infrastructure investor”, I Squared Capital has bid $1.70 per share for oOh!media Limited (ASX: OML), thus valuing the company at over $1.0 billion in Enterprise Value (EV), including the $130 million of net debt as at June 2026. Continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Companies, Economics, Global markets, Insightful Insights, Market commentary, Market Valuation.

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While the debate continues over whether the artificial intelligence (AI) thematic is a bubble, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq continue to climb a wall of worry. You’d think this would cause at least some of the AI sceptics to throw in the towel, but if anything, it has reinforced their resolve and reinforced their scepticism.

One of the most vocal is English author and tech columnist Ed Zitron.

In a recent interview with Adam Taggart, Zitron dismantled the core promises of the AI boom, suggesting current Large Language Models (LLMs) are an unsustainable, highly subsidised circular economy that fails to solve basic business problems. He also highlights immediate balance sheet pressures, and extreme market concentration. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Manufacturing, Market commentary, Technology & Telecommunications.

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I speak with Brett Craig, Director of Private Credit at Aura Credit Holdings, about how independent credit analysis can help investors and advisers better understand and compare risk across private credit portfolios.

Brett explains how Aura works with Open Analytics to independently assess its portfolios each month using bank-grade credit risk methodologies. The analysis considers every underlying loan, incorporates changing economic conditions and runs one million Monte Carlo simulations to assess expected credit losses and portfolio resilience. The resulting S&P-equivalent credit ratings provide advisers and investors with an additional, objective tool to support due diligence and understand the underlying risk within Aura’s private credit portfolios.

Learn more about private credit. 

Alternatively, you can speak with David Buckland or Rhodri Taylor here at Montgomery on (02) 8046 5000. Continue…

by Scott Phillips Posted in Aura Group, Editor's Pick, Popular, Video Insights.

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