After the well-documented U.S. money printing spree of 2020-21, something interesting happened in the U.S.: Inflation started picking up in 2021-2022. Just as it takes time for water to fill a bucket, it took time for inflation to emerge, but when it did, annualised inflation averaged 7.7 per cent for 18 months from January 2021 to July 2022 (Figure 1). Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, Global markets, Market commentary.

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Private market data provider Pitchbook recently released their quarterly Emerging Technology Indicator (ETI) insights, revealing the subsectors in which private equity deals, and angel, seed, and early-stage venture capital (VC) fund-raising rounds are being completed. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Market commentary.

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Investors in the Aura High Yield SME Fund (for wholesale investors) have experienced returns of 9.61 per cent per annum, since inception, earning monthly cash income with no negative months nor loss of capital. *

In a world where the interest rate tide has been rising, savvy investors are sailing towards more stable horizons. The Aura High Yield SME Fund, designed for wholesale investors, has emerged as a beacon of consistent returns, offering a compelling case for investors looking to diversify their portfolios away from volatile seas. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Aura Group.

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The latest monthly consumer price index (CPI) read released last week, came in unexpectedly lower than anticipated, at 4.9 per cent in the 12 months to October. This follows the previous read of 5.6 per cent in September. With the 8.4 per cent peak recorded in December, inflation is continuing to follow a downward trend off the back of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) best efforts to raise interest rates in order to achieve a slowdown in inflation. Continue…

by Brett Craig Posted in Aura Group.

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It’ll be a surprise to many but last week, on November 30, was ChatGPT’s first birthday. While many see Artificial Intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLM) as humanlike, AI’s first year has been nothing like the first year of a human’s life. A human child’s first year is mostly consumed with sleeping and feeding. ChatGPT’s first year has been far more dramatic. Continue…

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

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On the day of the Melbourne Cup, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced an increase of the official cash rate to 4.35 per cent. Interestingly, the term deposit rates offered by my friendly bank remained the same as the previous week. This suggested an unwillingness of the bank to increase interest rates on deposits, despite the 13^th RBA official cash rate hike in the past 18 months. Continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Aura Group, Market commentary.

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In my recent interview with Ausbiz, I aimed to provide insights into prevailing economic trends, particularly focusing on the U.S. economy. It’s evident that the market sentiment has transitioned from recession concerns to the possibility of enduring inflation, a shift I believe might stem from potentially overreaching actions by the Federal Reserve to curb economic momentum. Additionally, I discussed the likelihood of the Australian economy already being in a recession and the potential impact on both the broader equity market and small-cap stocks in general. You can watch the full interview here. Ausbiz – A deflationary surprise?

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Economics, Market commentary, TV Appearances.

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In this week’s video insight, David Buckland and I discuss Seven Group Holdings (ASX: SVW), an Australian operating and investment group in the media, mining and construction industry in which the Montgomery Small Companies Fund holds a substantial stake. We spotlight the remarkable alignment between the Stokes family’s leadership and investors’ interests, emphasizing Seven Group’s astute counter-cyclical investment strategy. Additionally, we explore their recent strategic acquisition of Boral (ASX: BLD), shedding light on their concerted efforts to enhance operational efficiencies and bolster margins. Catch the full discussion here. Continue…

by Dominic Rose Posted in Companies, Stocks We Like, Video Insights.

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