Shaun T. Dy's Business & Economics Perspective Blog

I do have the nasty habit of checking my portfolio on a daily basis. It's sort of me choosing between buying more units of participation or is it the time to sell here? When I mean time to tell, it's not about panic-selling but selling it because I want some cash. Last year, I wrote about why I'm also investing in ATRAM's Global Technology Feeder Fund . I've noticed that the NAVPU has increased and it may reach up to PHP 270.00 or even up to PHP 300.00. I'm still invested in the ATRAM Global Consumer Trends Feeder Fund and the Philippine Equity Smart Index Fund. It's sort of like not putting all my eggs into one basket. Also, I'd like to say I finally paid my five-year plan with AXA Chinese Tycoon Fund. I did plan to pull out my ATRAM Global Technology Feeder Fund ASAP. It was because I was planning to buy myself a UPS because of the voltage fluctuations. I bought the UPS because I have big dreams for this site. Big dreams in the sense that I'll be a

One of the biggest misconceptions that I kept hearing is "Investment is only for the rich." It's a very common thing when I told some of my fellow Filipinos to learn to invest their money. Why is investment often thought of as "just for the rich"?  Here are some reasons I feel are  misconceptions that many Filipinos have   concerning investments: Investment is often thought of as investing in huge amounts of money. This has been true whether the investments would be bonds, stocks, and/or insurance.  Investment is often thought of as building a million-dollar business.  It's very easy to hear the statement, "Invest? I don't have a million pesos!" This brings up the irony that I've observed about turning down investment in favor of gambling (read here ). I remembered laughing while writing that article (all the while I was having my house repaired). Are they waiting until they win a million PHP in the lottery, jueteng, mahjong, etc. before th

It's nearly the end of July and I feel we need some lessons in temperament n investing. I wanted to recall some bad experiences I had with finances (as well as other life decisions) due to a bad temperament. It was a bad temperament that caused me to get cheated out of cash by a family friend. It was a bad temperament that caused me to nearly join pyramiding scams (read here ). Now, I decided to take a look at a post on Facebook a few weeks ago   that shows so much economic illiteracy and poor temperament ... Simply, I just can't help but laugh (or cringe) at the comments written here. Dare to read them on Facebook if you dare. What can truly be astounding is the bad temperament of those people. It's very contradictory to what Warren Edward Buffet said namely, "The most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect. You need a temperament that neither derives great pleasure from being with the crowd or against the crowd. " Yet, the cringeworth

I think one of the most misunderstood rules is the PHP 8,000.00 rule. One reason why I decided to reach at least PHP 8,000.00 for my three GInvest funds (ATRAM Global Consumer Trends Feeder Fund, ATRAM Global Technology Feeder Fund, and the Philippine Equity Smart Index Fund) is because of that rule. Though, some people tend to misinterpret it that they shouldn't enter the stock market (in any way either through DIY trading or buying an index fund) until they have PHP 8,000.00. Personally, I took advantage of GInvest's minimum start-up for the local fund (start with PHP 50.00 but it's not going to grow big with just that) and the feeder funds with PHP 1,000.00 each. What I did (instead) was to slowly invest money until the minimum was met.  Why do I feel waiting until you have PHP 8,000.00 before you invest in a bad rule? The fees are there, yes, but you may not be able to take advantage of the low dips . The market is rather unpredictable with the supply and demand. Stocks

The Dollar Stretcher I admit I used to overspend as a teenager. Eventually, I started helping out in our family business, made some bad decisions typical of young people, and I admit I've got the tendency to overspend . I started to invest in time deposits and invested in treasury bond (which is loans for government and retail companies), and I was initially discouraged from stocks because of the volatility. My first bond was sold and I decided to reinvest the money. Right now, I wonder what I'd do with the money when it matures plus I still have a long-term negotiable certificate of deposit (LTNCD) due two years from now. I thought about the bear market and realized Warren Buffett  would advise buying the dip with an index fund. Before that, I decided to get into AXA's Chinese Tycoon Fund which invests in blue-chip companies by Filipino-Chinese businessmen (read here ). I wanted to increase my coverage but found out my short attention span can be a real killer. Before the

As an investor, I tend to be rather impulsive. So, I decided to do more studying about the NAVPU. NAVPU means Net Asset Value Per Unit . So, how do we get the NAVPU? My first understanding of NAVPU is the amount per unit to make up one unit. For example, if the NAVPU is at least PHP 100.00 per unit then spending PHP 1,000.00 will give me 10 units of that certain Unit Investment Trust Fund (UITF). However, how do we fully understand the NAVPU? As a Metrobank client, I decided to look into Metrobank to further understand what NAVPU means than just the amount of units I can get depending on the price per unit. Here's what Metrobank says about how to understand NAVPU when investing: Understanding the Net Asset Value per Unit Net Asset Value per Unit, or NAVPU, on the other hand, is the underlying value of each unit. NAVPU is important because it allows you to compare how different schemes are trading, even though they may have very different prices. A large difference between price and

  Business World Online I was looking at Facebook comments some time ago when the stock market opened red . This caused me to write about why I'd listen to investor Warren Buffett over social media naysayers . One thing I noticed (but never wanted to speak of immediately ) is how people buy stocks during the high and sell them during a crash . It's pretty much contrary to what Buffett advises to buy during a dip that happened for some time. I've been checking the stock market performance (because I've got index funds ) to see what my next move would be. It's because the GInvest system, unlike the AXA Chinese Tycoon Fund, allows me to be flexible to insert a certain amount within the minimum. A person may invest PHP 1,000.00 during regular days and invest PHP 2,000.00 or more during a dip. Right now, some of the GInvest products are at a high, making me think, "If I invest for another year then I should do cost averaging instead!" Instead, from Bankrate , y

There was a time when I had some excess savings. I was worried my money was getting idle . Sure, savings is king but letting it sit idle in a savings account can be a bad thing. Sure, I'm having my AXA Chinese Tycoon Fund for some time and I haven't withdrawn a single cent from it. I decided to use GCash and found out how it's actually convenient. With GCash, there's also GInvest. One of GInvest's greatest products for me to indirectly get into stocks would be the Philippine Equity Smart Index Fund. I placed a few pesos at first because of the low rate. However, I decided to aim to invest at least PHP 1,000.00 per month (or more during a dip but not too much either) or reach a certain target before the year ends. Of course, I've got to curb my impulsive behavior by choosing not to invest too much and not have savings. The ATRAM Philippine Equity Smart Index Fund combines both active and passive investment. Some people prefer purely active or purely passive. It&

I guess it's more than time to tackle on Axie Infinity again. Last time, I wrote a post where I talked about how Axie Infinity promised riches but brought disaster . I even laughed writing about how someone may be dismissing AXA but playing Axie Infinity  thinking that it's an "investment". Instead, it might be wise to get an Index Fund that will start with a minimum of PHP 1,000.00 or higher. GInvest (which has both ATRAM and Seedbox involved) allows some people to start investing for as low as PHP 50.00 though it might be wise to spare PHP 1,000.00 instead. There are two index funds namely the Philippine Stock Index Fund and the Philippine Equity Smart Index Fund--both focused on the Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEI).  I still remember I wrote about  the irony of gambling but  not  investing . I guess people will find buying index funds or indexes boring. What I noticed after I bought my indexes (and again, I wouldn't tell how much I've placed and neith

Well, it looks like the Philippines is hitting a bear market, right? It would be good to start buying some depreciated stocks with money that I don't need for now. As always, it means that I shouldn't put all my savings into stocks and keep a good amount for daily use, and for any bills I have which include my AXA Chinese Tycoon Fund. What I'm focusing with the Chinese Tycoon Fund is long-term. Now, it's time to put a certain amount of money in feeder funds to. Once again, I suggest doing it slowly until it becomes a habit. It's like starting with small things then they will become bigger things.  The Peso Lab - Money Guide for Filipinos explains the feeder fund (which is also a Unit Investment Trust Fund or UITF) in this way: What is the purpose of feeder fund?   There are ways to purchase securities. People can buy stocks from the stock market and retail treasury bonds from the government. They can also go to banks, trust companies, and mutual fund companies. Ther

I recklessly placed small amounts of money on GInvest. What I didn't notice (at first) was that the Unit Investment Trust Fund (UITF) offerings also have index funds and feeder funds. Feeder funds are in a collective investment scheme (CIS) abroad with companies such as Samsung and Apple. Currently, I'm into the ATRAM Global Consumer Trends Feeder Fund via GInvest (and I sold the other feeder fund where I only invested PHP 1,000.00 to test my skill). It turns out that the best strategy for index funds or feeder funds is to buy and hold for as long as possible . Seeing the stock market in red made me want to open a direct stock trading account. However, knowing my attention deficit disorder (ADD)--the second-best choice might be to invest in UITFs. The recent dips in the UITF may be that big chance to buy more units than usual. That's what I slowly did--buying UITFs at a dip. That's why I tend to check on my investments nearly daily--I want to buy the dip as much as poss