Investment opportunities

[Winston001]

Most amusing guys and I agree with most of you.

Smokeu: gold is very high because the $US has devalued massively. I remember when gold was $US350/oz not long ago (ok a few years). Personally I'd steer clear.

Your safest bet is an index fund. There are many of these and the benefit is they have low management fees. A fund like the MOZY.NZ follows the second tier of Australian shares on the rationale that the biggest companies in any sharemarket can't grow much larger. Otherwise they'd own the world and that simply doesn't happen. Currently $5.80 and was $7.80 in 2007.

You can buy world indexes, US indexes, Dow 100 indexes, NZX indexes - whatever takes your fancy. They go up and down like everything else but are as safe and straight forward as you could want.

Unit trusts are actively managed with higher fees so you take a punt on the management. Most fund managers do not beat the index.

But if you want some fun, mining stocks are for you. Lose the lot, make sod all, or the big win. I can sell you some OZ mining shares from 1990 if you like...

Or...buy stuff and sell it on Trademe. I know a guy who does this as a sideline and most of the time makes money. He goes to garage sales, cleans things up, and writes a good description. Seriously, its fun, not much money needed, low level of risk, and chances of success.

[scracha]

ASB charge $25 per transaction for the smaller trades (ie under $50k I think).

$25....is that for real time trading? I think SMOKEU is more interested in saving. Some of the UK banks charge just 2 pounds per transaction for bulk orders (mid-market over-night price or summit). I used to just pick a stock at random and bung 2 hundred quid a month on one. Is there anything like that or low commission share shave schemes over here?

SMOKEU: Ignore folks who say a grand is a waste of time....you've got to start somewhere.

Wouldn't waste your money on managed funds or any of that bollox. They fund managers take a whopping big commission and rarely perform better than the stockmarket average.

Basic rules of investment :
1) Only take advice from those without a vested interest in where you invest your money.
2) Lower your risk as you get older (you're young...have a flutter on the riskier shares on the stock market)
3) Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Have a mix of different types of investment. Bricks and mortar, shares, cash, Bonds, classic motorcycles etc
4) If you lose money, don't be tempted to sell shares (or houses for that matter) quickly. Buy low, sell high.
5) Pay off debt first....start with the highest.
6) Don't gamble what you can't afford to lose.

There's loads more.

[Winston001]

Yep loads more. Japanese candlesticks, moving averages, stop-losses (very important), 50 day tends, 200 day trends, stochastics, Elliot Wave Principle, Fibonacci Trading Strategy...

There are thousands (millions) of people who struggle with this stuff every minute of every day. For most of us though, understanding stop-loss and watching 50 day (or 200 day) trends should be enough. Life is too short to be glued to a computer screen. Get the bike out!!

[IdunBrokdItAgin]

Basic rules of investment :
1) Only take advice from those without a vested interest in where you invest your money.
2) Lower your risk as you get older (you're young...have a flutter on the riskier shares on the stock market)
3) Don't put all your eggs in one basket (taking note of rule 2). Have a mix of different types of investment. Bricks and mortar, shares, cash, Bonds, classic motorcycles etc
4) If you lose money, don't be tempted to sell shares (or houses for that matter) quickly. Buy low, sell high.
5) Pay off debt first....start with the highest.
6) Don't gamble what you can't afford to lose.

There's loads more.

There's not really, what scracha has said (with my one addendum) is about as good advice as you are going to get.

I've worked in the field (worked, not speculated) for nearly 20 years and this is the best advice I have seen in this thread.

$1,000 is not much, in investment terms, but this is why unit trusts (mutual funds) were set up - "to allow lower value investors to invest without incurring direct investment fees".

Above all else remember:
All possible capital investment gain (or loss) is versus the risk of your initial capital investment. Choose your "risk" and "accept" your capital gain (or loss). Income is, generally, guaranteed - but at far lower returns.

If you struggle to understand that last paragraph then you may want to seek expert advice.

[tri boy]

One way ticket to west Oz.
Will set you up for a comfortable life.
You'll have to work though.

[Brett]

$25....is that for real time trading? I think SMOKEU is more interested in saving. Some of the UK banks charge just 2 pounds per transaction for bulk orders (mid-market over-night price or summit). I used to just pick a stock at random and bung 2 hundred quid a month on one. Is there anything like that or low commission share shave schemes over here?

Yep, that is real time share buying and selling, although it takes up to 2 days or so for the funds to make their way back into your account after selling a stock. This is the cheapest commission rate that I have come across here.

[avgas]

Oh and someone has not mentioned yet.
DO NO BUY OPTIONS!

Yes they can make good money.....but when you think about it you are buying something completely imaginary.

Shares you own a part of a company. Options you are placing a bet on if someone decides something.
Imagine placing a bet on if you will have beer or not? How much money would you invest on that?

I had one friend who bought a mixture of short and long options. He lost it all when the company didn't play ball with what the market said it would. He lost out and the options became dust. Scary shit. Note the company still exists - but because he didn't actually buy shares he didn't have a claim to anything.

[Hoon]

$1000 isn't much...take a risk - Bitcoins. They were US$1 a month ago...now up to US$7

Grrr wish I took my own advice. Bitcoins now at US$156. In 2009 people were paying 10,000 bitcoins for a couple pizzas. Thats US$1.5M today.

[SMOKEU]

Grrr wish I took my own advice. Bitcoins now at US$156. In 2009 people were paying 10,000 bitcoins for a couple pizzas. Thats US$1.5M today.

I've got about 15 BTC saved up in my wallet that I mined myself. I regret not buying any when they were cheap.

[doc]

it's NZ$1907/oz right now.

I think this is a good example of " The bigger fool theory ".

[Zedder]

Nah, Mighty River Power shares are the way to go. I mean, would JK have us on?

Oh, and don't worry about the Labour/Green party proposal regarding electricity, nothing but political manoeuvring...

[Brett]

I'm just pissed I missed Xero. I picked it as a winner and never go onboard early enough. Still might have long legs though.

[Edbear]

Nah, Mighty River Power shares are the way to go. I mean, would JK have us on?

Oh, and don't worry about the Labour/Green party proposal regarding electricity, nothing but political manoeuvring...

A cynical move to torpedo the share price and get at the Govt. Might have a short knee-jerk affect.

[mashman]

I've got about 15 BTC saved up in my wallet that I mined myself. I regret not buying any when they were cheap.

How do you mine bitcoins? Does it require human intervention?

[Swoop]

Did anyone mention BONUS BONDS.

A very good investment if you are dealing in meth or a gang member...
Very easy to launder the money and potential returns on your ill-gotten gains, with the added advantage of being cashed in easily!

Commonly called a win-win situation for criminal activity*.





* Can also be used for legal investment purposes.