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Here’s what you need to know today

• Sussan Ley is Australia’s new Opposition Leader. Peter Dutton’s Deputy Leader was chosen by a party room vote of Liberal MPs and Senators. Ley is the Liberal Party’s first female leader and has the job of rebuilding the party after the comprehensive electoral loss. (ABC News)
  
  

• After the US and China announced their 90-day tariff reduction, the US market pushed higher with the S&P 500 jumping 3%. For the next 90 days, US tariffs on Chinese imports will drop from 145% to 30% and Chinese tariffs on US imports will drop from 125% to 10%. (Bloomberg)
  
  

• The Australian stock market was up slightly following the news, but gold miners suffered. Capricorn Metals (-12.69%), Ramelius Resources (-10.52%) and Genesis Minerals (-10.46%) all saw double-digit falls as investors saw less of a need for the safety of gold. (Capital Brief)
  
  

• Despite the 90-day pause, Apple has announced it may be raising the prices of its iPhones. Despite the phones being predominately made in China, the company has been careful to saw the price rises are because of new features, not tariffs, for fear of frustrating the Trump White House. (Quartz)
  
  

• Trump opened up a new front on the trade war, accusing the European Union of extorting pharmaceutical companies and calling the EU “in many ways nastier than China”. Trump also signed an executive order asking pharmaceutical companies to cut US drug prices to match those paid in other countries. If they fail to comply within six months, America may impose import restrictions or cap prices. (Reuters)
  
  

• India and Pakistan’s ceasefire appears to be holding. Both sides have claimed victory with Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, claiming India “proved its superiority” while his Pakistani counterpart claimed a “historic victory”. (Financial Times)
  
  

• Victoria saw its rental stock reduce by 3.6% or 24,000 rentals in 2024 as investors leave the state after land tax reforms. The flip side of this story, first home buyers comprised a higher portion of lending in Victoria than any other state at 28.9% in Q4 2024. (ABC News)
  
  

• Passive investing giant Vanguard is looking to expand its Superannuation business in Australia. The US$10 trillion giant is reportedly growing at 5-times the overall Superannuation industry, however its A$2.8 billion in Super assets is a fraction of Australia’s $4.1 trillion retirement pool. (AFR)
  
  

• Australian family app operator Life360 saw shares jump 13% after it reported monthly users jumped 26% to 83.7 million and total revenue up 32% to US$103.6 million. The company’s app allows families to create private social networks and track their locations. (Capital Brief)
  
  

• Macquarie has loosened its lending and investment policy to allow work with metallurgical coal mines, the latest reversal of its sustainability restrictions. The bank cited limited alternatives for steelmaking in its reasoning. (AFR)

What the…?

Something strange is happening in the US job market, which may be a sign of the impact of AI. The New York Federal Reserve has noted the unemployment rate for recent college graduates is at 5.8%, a large to the overall unemployment rate of 4.2%.

Up until 2020 the graduate unemployment rate was normally lower that overall unemployment. However, this has drastically changed in the past 5 years. While there are multiple theories as to why, one is that many tasks that were usually done by graduates in white collar roles as the easiest to automate using AI. (The Atlantic)

Investing is a lifelong journey

Here’s what you can learn today.

When to consider an Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF)

Community Question: When does it make sense to consider an SMSF versus an industry or retail super fund?

We put this question to Jonathon Halls, financial adviser and partner at Northhaven Wealth

A Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF) can be a good choice in certain situations, but with the increased capabilities provided by industry funds and retail funds (especially with the continued development of wrap platforms) the instances where they make the most sense is becoming more limited. An SMSF makes sense when:

• You want full control over your investments. You can choose exactly where your super is invested, including direct shares, managed funds, property, collectibles, and even private companies.

• You want to invest as a family. SMSFs can have up to six members, making it easier to consolidate super balances and invest together.

• You and other members of the super fund have a large balance. SMSFs only become cost-effective when your balance exceeds around $300,000, as fixed costs (like admin and accounting fees) are spread over a larger asset base.

• You want to invest in property via super. SMSFs allow investment in residential and commercial property.

Something to be mindful of is that running an SMSF requires managing compliance, reporting, tax obligations, and audits, which can be complex and time-consuming, so you should make sure that you are comfortable with this or be ready to employ someone who can assist with the complexity a SMSF brings.

In most other instances an industry, retail fund or wrap platform through a financial adviser the most sense and will provide you with similar features at a much lower price point.

If you prefer a hands-off approach, industry funds offer lower fees and will make close to all the decisions when investing your super.

If you would like some investment control, some large super funds now offer access to investing directly in stocks the ASX300, ETF’s, ethical and high-growth options, along with various way to access an international exposure.

If you want full control of investing directly in domestic and international stocks, ETF’s and a wide range of managed funds, wrap platforms such as HUB24 and Netwealth will provide a much higher level of control without the complexity associated with a SMSF.

No matter which investment vehicle you choose to manage your superannuation investments, it is important that you ensure your investment selection and insurance coverage continues to meet your long-term financial needs and goals.

Interested in speaking to the team at Northhaven or another of our hand-picked financial advisers? Fill out the form on our website and we’ll put you in touch.

Today’s sponsor is PIMCO

In an era of ongoing uncertainty, an actively managed bond ETF can provide essential diversification benefits to counterbalance your existing equity exposure. In times of heightened volatility, while passive ETFs have to track an index, active ETFs can take advantage of mispricing in the market to generate returns and implement strategies to mitigate risk.

PIMCO’s new ETF range offers Australian investors an easy way to gain instant access to a daily liquid, diversified allocation of bonds. These ETFs benefit from PIMCO’s 50 years of active management expertise and the full strength of its global platform.  

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