About markets.. where to invest? (pension plan)

[slask111]

I live in Sweden, and our pension plan that the government and employer pays us get invested in funds. My employer pays around 20% of my salary in a pension plan and the goverment chips in around 2000us each year.. I have the ability to choose where that money should be invested aslong as it is in funds. So this is a long time investment, i wont be getting any money until im 65. For me that's 31 years away. So where would you invest? I have all my money in Swedish index funds right now, cause .SE is doing well (market up by 25% this year) but if we are talking 30+ years.. what markets would you invest in? Pls advise... would be nice to be able to afford a gen sub when im old

Edited November 2, 2012 by slask111

[TeeJay]

I'm no stock broker, but I keep reading people saying that Silver is the commodity to invest in (I don't understand why, as Gold and Platinum are worth much more, but that's what I see folks saying )

[Lobster]

People go commodity nuts when equity markets are down, I mean why not .. it is safer to have something more tangible, right? Moreover, with a growing global population and thus more demand for a more scarcer product (be it silver/gold/platinum), prices for these commodities will also go up.

Having said that, commodities can be a so so affair in regards to returns as equities can fair much better in the long run.

My money would be in Africa and Far East Asia. Africa has seen some of the fastest growth rates and still has not witnessed some of the miracles of the Far East.

1) Africa Funds (There will be ones covering the whole continent)

2) Asian Funds (With emphasis on the smaller Asian countries thus excluding China and India who should be landing shortly)

I would also look into Canada who got themselves out of the Kyoto Protocol for a reason. Their vast oil potentials in Alberta can equate to fortunes nationally. They, at least Alberta, has learnt from previous mistakes of solely relying on oil and gas, and they have diversified their economy to promote services much much more. I see a lot of potential there for people and their ambitions to start companies and grow.

[panerai153]

Be very careful with commodities, the prices can be very volatile. Lots of folks have been wiped out with margin calls when a futures contract fell in price. If your markets over there are up 25% for they year, i would stay right where you are. it never hurts to have a diversified portfolio, but you need to know what you are doing. At your age, I would assume around 34, you can afford to take a few more risks, as you have a long time to recover. the older you get the more risk aversive you need to be, as you approach retirement age you need to mover into very safe investments. They won't have as much return as the more risky investments, but the upside is they are far less likely to have a drastic decrease in value.

I'm close to 69 years old, and my portfolio is in cash and investment grade bonds, very few stocks, and those are pretty staid old blue chips that pay a good dividend.

[imajedi]

The key is to diversify, which will give you the safety everyone here is talking about. Invest a majority of your money in safe markets and a portion of it in more risky markets. I'll leave it up to you how much risk you want to take on but for long term investments, I'd keep risk fairly low.

[prb]

Get advice from people that really know what they're talking about. Identify your investment goals and risk tolerance and choose accordingly. Commodities may or may not be a good investment, depends on your opinion of the China growth story chiefly. Same with equities, although right now I'm personally iffy on them given their potentially artificial value boost via QE. Really though, dumping more than 50% of your capital in any one asset class is probably not a great idea.

[folex]

At the moment Silver and Gold are quite volatile and quite unpredictable. Too many forces in play in many unstable economies, US and Europe included. Commodities are not exactly a safe haven to go to, although there are opportunities. However, if you are looking at a retirement plan, I wouldn't go into commodities, look for something with smaller Beta and less risk. You don't want to lose what you have left

[rickdangerous]

For me it's gold, gold, a hundred times gold. You'll see.

[Mike on a bike]

rickd "For me it's gold, gold, a hundred times gold." If you go that way it is in your safe , paper that says you own it is toilet paper if you buy into the gold scenario.