Empower Blog Economic conditions

Resilience through selectivity: VanEck’s Jan 2026 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. “Gold is a way of going long on fear.” – Warren Buffett There is no doubt that many investors are mindful. Many markets appear fully priced, and geopolitics weigh heavily. As a result, during the last quarter of 2025, gold and its miners have continued to rally. There we...

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The Selective Path: VanEck’s Oct 2025 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. “Inside every cynical person, there is a disappointed idealist.” – George Carlin It has not been difficult this quarter to peruse the financial press and read about lofty valuations, the AI boom and market distortions caused by the rise of select mega-caps. At the same...

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Why Advice Matters More Than Ever

In uncertain times, having someone in your corner who understands both the numbers and the human side of money can make all the difference. That’s exactly what the Financial Advice Association Australia’s (FAAA) 2025 Value of Advice Index highlights: Australians who work with a financial adviser are more confident, satisfied, and secure across...

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Why premiums go up (and what you can do about it)

Note: This article was first released by OnePath here. There are 3 key reasons why your life insurance premiums go up from year to year. While you can't control all of them, you may be able to take steps to lower the cost of your cover. 1. Factors that you control The cost of cover increases differently depending on whether ...

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Difficulties and opportunities: VanEck’s 2025 Q3 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity” – Albert Einstein. We are in the middle of difficulty. Drafting the quarter’s ViewPoints has been more difficult than in past editions. Why? Because what is influencing markets as we write this may be superseded by somethin...

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Tariff Turbulence: VanEck’s 2025 Q2 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. American economist Harry Markowitz is credited with saying that “diversification is the only free lunch in investing.” The problem for the past quarter is that not everyone was eating. Unloved and under owned assets came to the fore during the first quarter of 2025. Gold was ...

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5 Charts to Define 2025

Note: This article was first released by Beta Shares here. As we move into 2025, investors face concentrated equity markets at all-time highs, elevated government bond yields and policy uncertainty. Within this context we asked five Betashares investment experts to nominate a chart that they think investors should be watching for the year ah...

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Priced to perfection: VanEck’s 2025 Q1 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. “Although expectations of the future are supposed to be the driving force in the capital markets, those expectations are almost totally dominated by memories of the past. Ideas, once accepted, die hard.” – Peter Bernstein If the market does represent the future, US market...

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Risky Business: VanEck’s 2024 Q4 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. “The job of the Central Bank is to worry.” – Alice Rivlin, 16th Vice Chair of the Federal ReserveIf central banks worry, what is an investor to do? In its last monetary policy decision statement, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) stated, “Sustainably returning inflation to...

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Empower Wealth Wins Wealth Advisory of the Year 2024!

We are thrilled to announce that Empower Wealth has been honoured with the prestigious Wealth Advisory of the Year Award – Australia 2024 by Pan Finance, an internationally renowned platform that recognises excellence in the financial industry. This award stands as a significant milestone in our journey. Not only does it reflect the growth we...

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The Waiting Game: VanEck’s 2024 Q3 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. Andy Warhol once said, “You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.” And that is what markets have been doing this past quarter, every percentage point outside of consensus, and every basis point change has been thrilling markets. But if...

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Divergence: VanEck’s 2024 Q2 Summary 

Please Note: This report was created and provided by VanEck. After a few years where monetary policy around the world was more or less in sync, 2024 looks different with some central banks about to go their separate ways. China continues to ease, albeit reluctantly. The US Fed and central banks across Europe sound increasingly hot to trot on ...

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Property Market Update – Positive Start to 2024

As part of the Empower Wealth community, I wanted to share with you my initial thoughts on the property market in 2024.   Based on indications from our team on the ground and the initial data we are collecting, the property market in 2024 has begun stronger than initially expected.  What is interesting about this shift in the ...

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