Portfolio Review 4Q12

Currently holding on to 8 counters (see Portfolio Review 1Q10 for 1-3, Portfolio Review 2Q10 for 4, Portfolio Review 4Q10 for 5-6 and Portfolio Review 1Q11 for 7):

1. FrasersCT
2. PLife
3. Starhill
4. Cache
5. First REIT
6. Sabana
7. Cambridge
8. Sembmarine
   • Buy
     High beta with decent yield amongst STI component stocks (cf. SIAS article)
     Record order book estimated at more than S$13b as of end December 2012
     Price driven down by recent bad news (i.e. Q3 profit decline on margin concerns and Jurong Shipyard accident)

Next portfolio review due after 31 March 2013.

Note to self: only simple P/L calculated


Positioning for 2013
It is commonly said that there are five main asset classes, with virtually every financial product being able to be classified into one of these classes or as a hybrid straddling across classes -

• Cash
• Equity
• Fixed income securities
• Real estate
• Precious metals

 We all know that portfolio diversification is key to managing volatility, and that it is advisable to rebalance one's portfolio through the different stages of life. At the moment, I have exposure to all of the above classes save for the last two: real estate (unless REITs can be considered) and precious metals.

My main gripe with precious metals is that they do not generate any cash flow. On the flip side, advocates of precious metals will say that they tend to be a good store of value, especially in times of uncertainty, and certainly there is a good deal of uncertainty in the world today from fiscal cliff concerns in the US, debt woes in the Eurozone and political instability in the MENA region caused by the Arab Spring.

Add on to my REITs / shares / bond funds / foreign currencies? ... Precious metals or not? Gold, silver or platinum? ETF or physical? ... Some questions for me to ponder over

Merry X'mas and Happy New Year to all! =)