The impact of COVID-19 on the global economy has been enormous. As the virus lingers, we are not out of the woods. The economic fallout has been staggering. We have entered a technical recession in Australia, the first time since the early 1990s. Australia saw a huge 7% decline in its June quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In the recent federal budget, our budget deficit has ballooned out to around $214 billion to fight the virus in a bid to save the economy.

Sharemarkets have not been immune. There was an initial jolt earlier this year. However, since the near 40% sell-off in late March, sharemarkets have recovered not all, but a large chunk of the losses. The recovery in markets was supported by the billions and billions of dollars governments around the world have injected into the economy. Some of this money is finding its way into investment markets to support asset values.

Many feared the impact on the property market could be dire. While parts of the Melbourne and Sydney market have seen declines, generally speaking, the property market has performed better than first feared.

Turning to fixed income, it is as hard as ever to generate a return on your fixed interest investments with the official Australian cash rate at historically low levels of 0.25%.

What does this all mean for generating investment returns into the future? The current crisis has so many investors asking questions such as – What is the risk of a further market correction? Is now a good time to invest? Will the income from my investments be lower forever?

At Hewison Private Wealth we have been managing portfolios for over 30 years through many cycles. In a recent webinar, my colleague, Travis Schindler, and I discussed in greater detail how our client portfolios are equipped to handle all market conditions. You can watch a recording of the webinar HERE for a more detailed analysis of investing in a post-COVID-19 world.

We have a key focus on protecting the downside and generating reliable income from client portfolios. We diligently rebalance client portfolios according to their long-term asset allocation.

COVID-19 may have changed the world, but it has not changed how we manage investment portfolios. A tried and tested approach that has served our clients well for over 30 years.

In these uncertain times, it can be especially difficult to navigate the financial landscape. If you would like assistance managing your finances in these uncertain times, we welcome the opportunity to discuss this with you today, for your future tomorrow.