Well On Course

It hit me out of the blue on Sunday afternoon. No sniffly warning, nothing. By the start of the week, the virus had me fully in its grip, confining me to bed. One side effect was beginning the week without a glance at the stock ticker. And you know what happened? Exactly, nothing at all. 

I’m always warning against checking stock prices and looking at your portfolio every day. It's pointless and aggravating. Yet, just between you and me, I’m guilty of checking the market every day. After all, I do get asked now and then: “How’s the stock market doing today?” Or “Why is the dollar so weak?”

Answers like “Really? Let me take a look?” or “Last time I checked what the markets were doing was Tuesday before last” don’t tend to go over so well. It is expected that I am always on top of things. The Chief Investment Officer sits in the cockpit and has all the controls at his fingertips. If only that were true. 

Actively Being Inactive

We can't control everything. Least of all stock market prices. We only have power over our own behavior. And we should use this power to be as inactive as possible when making investments. 

Anyone who only holds options, futures contracts and structured products in their portfolio will certainly see the world differently. Just looking at them every day is not enough. Life as a speculator is not a cakewalk. And not a life we aspire to lead. 

Gutmann's portfolio management portfolios are geared towards the long term. It is important to us that they are robust. Robust means that my colleagues and I could easily lie in bed for a week without lifting a finger. We wouldn’t do that anyway, you say. Also true! But we could.

Our portfolios must function, regardless of whether some central bank unexpectedly cuts or hikes interest rates. No matter who gets elected president where. Of course, we gather information daily and make gradual course adjustments. And you can read exactly where we stand in our quarterly report. The next one, by the way, is coming out in early July.