In this week's MoneyWeek magazine: how the fitness industry can help tone up your portfolio; London's Alternative Market finally makes its mark; and how to buy into the rise of the robots.
Plus, a contrarian bet on the London housing market; how the great Tezos debacle is putting ICOs to the test; and what, if anything, you can tell from technical analysis.
All that, and our usual collection of news, views and comment from politics, economics and the markets; a roundup of the best share tips from the rest of the financial press, plus a few of our own; personal finance, small business and six pages of how to spend it once you've made it. Sign up to MoneyWeek magazine now and you can get the magazine delivered direct to your home, along with full access to the MoneyWeek website and the iphone and smartphone app.
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Tone up your portfolio at the gym
It's little surprise that many of us struggle to keep fit in the modern era of sedentary jobs, widespread car ownership, and virtually limitless opportunities to snack, says Alice Grhns. Modern living has turned us into overweight, inactive couch potatoes. But this in turn has created a burgeoning boom in businesses dedicated to keeping us healthy, and has opened up plenty of opportunities to profit for smart investors. Alice takes an in-depth look at the fitness industry. Quite an eye-opener to some of us I wouldn't go anywhere near a gym, frankly, even if you paid me in beer and cake. Anyway, find out what she discovers, and the best ways to invest in this week's issue of MoneyWeek magazine.
London's AIM market finally makes its mark
In its first 20 years of its existence, London's Alternative Investment Market (Aim) performed very poorly, rewarding investors with a positively feeble annualised return of just 1.6%. In comparison, the main market index gained 85%. But today, things look quite different, says Max King. In 2016 it returned 16% overall, and this year, the index had risen by 22% by mid-October. And there are encouraging signs that this is not the flash-in-the-pan seen several times before but the start of a sustained move higher. Max Kings looks at the best ways to play it.
Profit from our new robot overlords
Just four years ago, if you'd wanted to invest in robotics and automation,you'd have struggled to find a decent fund, says David C Stevenson. You would probably have been forced to invest in a broad technology fund with a small amount of exposure to robo and artificial intelligence (AI) stocks. But today you are spoiled for choice. David picks two of the best exchange-traded funds to buy now.
Can you tell anything from technical analysis?
A lot of people (I'm, looking at you, Mr Frisby) spend an awful lot of time performing "technical analysis" poring over the smallest movements in stock charts, immersing themselves in moving averages and momentum; candlesticks, cup-handles, death crosses; and all sorts of other esoteric jargon, in an effort to predict which way a particular price is heading next. It all looks very tiring, I must say. But many people swear by it. So is all the scrutinising and line-drawing just the financial markets' equivalent of poking around in a chicken's entrails, or is there more to it? John Stepek shines some light on the subject here.
ICOs in the dock
Smart contract platform Tezos received plenty of hype ahead of its initial coin offering during the summer. Pulling in $232m (now worth over $400m as the price of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continue their baffling rise) it was the world's biggest ICO. But for those who bought in, the cryptocurrency has yet to materialise. What's more, the people at the top of the organisation have fallen out big time. Now, lawsuits are being flung around like poo at a chimps' tea party. If such a high-profile ICO can fail so spectacularly, what hope is there for the sector as a whole?
Beware an unexpected tax bill
The country's leading body of accountants is warning that a government crackdown on employee benefit trusts threatens to land many ordinary people including nurses, teachers and cleaners with unexpected tax bills. Find out more here.
A contrarian bet on London housing
House prices in London fell in September year-on-year for the first time in eight years, according to Nationwide. The drop was only 0.6%, but prices for higher-end central London properties have fallen more than in the outer Boroughs. For contrarians, however, all this gloom provides a great opportunity, says Max King.
There's a lot more, of course. Ruth Jackson looks at whether you can trust price comparison sites; Simon Wilson looks into the Paradise Papers; and Matthew Lynn outlines four ways in which he believes Britain can prosper in the aftermath of Brexit.
There's our usual pages of luxury spending at the back, too Alice Grhns looks at some intriguing hotels in the Lake District; we have eight of the best properties you can buy for £800,000 right now; and Matthew Jukes tastes an "unoaked South African beauty with impeccable curves". A wine, obviously. He's not a monster.
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