What caught my eye this week.
Afternoon everyone, how are you finding the heatwave?
Portent of doom? Chance for a glass of vino in the garden at 8pm with your feet up pretending you’re in the Med?
Maybe a bit of both?
Actually, don’t answer. The usual suspects (or at least their social media bots) have moved on from blaming the EU and Covid denial to calling climate change a hoax. I’d rather they did so elsewhere.
At least shares have been recovering nicely.
The market seems to think it has sniffed out inflation rolling over [1], and in that environment future earnings become more valuable again.
I expected this – alas six months and one invasion ago – so I’m predisposed to agree. But when you look at the energy bills forecast for next year it’s going to take some believing. And another shock (or maybe yet a new variant in the pandemic) would surely set us back again.
Still as the graph below shows, it’s not unprecedented that a disinterested pound-cost averaging passive investor could get to December, do their annual check-in, and assume 2022 was a nothing happening year.
The rewards of passive investing stretch far further than saving a few quid on fees, right?
Have a balmy weekend.
From Monevator
Bear market recovery: how long does it really take? – Monevator [2]
What happens to your credit score when you apply for a credit card – Monevator [3]
From the archive-ator: wealth preservation strategies of the rich – Monevator [4]
News
Note: Some links are Google search results – in PC/desktop view you can click to read the piece without being a paid subscriber. Try privacy/incognito mode to avoid cookies. Consider subscribing if you read them a lot!1 [5]
Drought declared in several parts of England – Sky News [6]
UK economy shrinks as stagflation looms… – Yahoo Finance [7]
…so what would a recession mean for your money? – Which [8]
House prices still rising despite falling demand, says RICS… – Sky News [9]
…with London prime property near top of global league for future gains – ThisIsMoney [10]
‘Crying CEO’ criticised for tearful LinkedIn layoffs doubles down – Independent [11]
[12](Click to enlarge)
A [US] 60/40 was positive for the rest of the year after 9/10 worst first-halves – via Meb Faber [13]
Energy bills mini-special
UK energy bills ‘set to cost two months wages’, ministers warned – Guardian [14]
Bills will top £5,000 next year, says energy consultancy – Yahoo Finance [15]
A quarter of UK hospitality outfits may close due to high energy bills – ThisIsMoney [16]
What is Don’t Pay UK and will it work? – ThisIsMoney [17]
Products and services
Free tool that guesstimates whether it’s worth paying up to remortgage early [Tool] – Nous [18]
Delivery text scammers that go on to pose as your bank – Which [19]
Open a SIPP with Interactive Investor and pay no SIPP fee for six months. Terms apply – Interactive Investor [20]
Freetrade [21] introduces new ‘trading breaks’ feature that prevents buying for 24 hours – Freetrade [22]
Packet fresh US ETF meant to capture overnight anomaly already flunking – Advisor Perspectives [23]
Homes for sale with price drops, in pictures – Guardian [24]
Comment and opinion
What do investors believe they can do but can’t? – Behavioural Investment [25]
Investors need some cosmic insignificance therapy – A Teachable Moment [26]
Six key issues for expats returning to the UK [Search result] – FT [27]
Should you die with zero? – Of Dollars and Data [28]
Looking for light at the end of a very dark tunnel – David Smith [29]
Inflation debates: YoY vs MoM – Pragmatic Capitalism [30]
What’s the bull case? – The Irrelevant Investor [31]
Five heavy-duty finance and investing books for your holiday reading – Humble Dollar [32]
Debt denominator blindness – A Wealth of Common Sense [33]
Treats and rewards – The Escape Artist [34]
Chasing the fad – The Best Interest [35]
Wade Pfau on the risks of retirement today [US but relevant, podcast] – Morningstar [36]
Crypt o’ crypto
The economic limits of Bitcoin [PDF] – SSRN Paper [37] [h/t Abnormal Returns [38]]
Who buys cryptocurrency? [Trigger warning: it ain’t pretty] – TEBI [39]
What NFTs can learn from art and luxury – Uncharted Territories [40]
Naughty corner: Active antics
Selling Telecom Plus after recent share price gains – UK Dividend Stocks [41]
How to own a fraction of a Warhol [Search result] – FT [42]
Value spreads have gone back to tech bubble highs [Graph] – AQR [43]
Kindle book bargains
The Ride of a Lifetime by [long-time Disney CEO] Bob Iger – £0.99 on Kindle [44]
Anthro-Vision: How Anthropology Can Explain Business and Life by Gillian Tett – £0.99 on Kindle [45]
Money: The True Story of a Made-Up Thing by Jacob Goldstein – £1.19 on Kindle [46]
Simple Savings Hacks for a Happy Life by Holly Smith – £0.99 on Kindle [47]
Environmental factors
Britain’s notoriously wet and cold climate is changing, and you won’t like it – The Conversation [48]
Rainwater globally now considered too toxic for consumption, study finds – Vice [49]
You can’t reverse the ESG trend anymore – Joachim Klement [50]
Off our beat
Rare skills – Morgan Housel [51]
Siestas: the pleasurable secret to dealing with extreme heat – Slate [52]
Quiet quitting: why doing the bare minimum has gone global – Guardian [53]
Beach vacationers are doing it wrong – The Atlantic [54]
Remote work and the rise of the side startup – Vox [55]
What is Elon Musk? – New York Mag [56]
Brexit stage left: British band tells of farcical barriers encountered on EU tour – Guardian [57]
Stop ghosting and start saying no – HBR [58]
Mentor – Indeedably [59]
Humans have always been wrong about humans [A few weeks old] – Wired [60]
And finally…
“The big picture, on proper examination, is actually a vast mosaic of microscope scenarios, all intense and urgent for those lonely millions who struggle to inhabit them.”
– Frederick Taylor, The Downfall of Money: Germany’s Hyperinflation and the Destruction of the Middle Class [61]
Like these links? Subscribe [62] to get them every Friday! Note this article includes affiliate links, such as from Amazon [63] and Interactive Investor [64]. We may be compensated if you pursue these offers, but that will not affect the price you pay.
- Note some articles can only be accessed through the search results if you’re using PC/desktop view (from mobile/tablet view they bring up the firewall/subscription page). To circumvent, switch your mobile browser to use the desktop view. On Chrome for Android: press the menu button followed by “Request Desktop Site”. [↩ [69]]