Investors are keenly waiting for 2019 since this year has been so rocky for them. While 2018 started with a bang following the epic 2017 where we saw the stock market pop by 22%, the rest of the year has been downhill for the investors. The stock market suffered in the first quarter with no betterment in the second or even third one.
Now, 2018 is about to end and the coming year is bringing its own set of challenges and opportunities. From real estate to the energy sector to robotics, every domain will follow distinct patterns depending on the factors governing them. Here are a few things which we think can do wonders to give you maximum ROI:
Start Looking for Emerging Markets
The condition of the U.S. stock market is still questionable in 2019 even after the stocks have returned by 7% following inflation. A better strategy would be to look for global markets with promising growth and ROI opportunities. Do not forget that the short-term growth in these markets is still cloudy so you would need to give yourself a seven to ten-year window to gain worthwhile results.
We have seen even the Chinese market slowing down so expecting immediate returns wouldn’t be a wise approach. However, you should at least invest a modest part of your portfolio in emerging stock markets or exchange-traded funds.
Cryptocurrency – The Game Changer
The recent market trends give an impression that the interest of the masses in cryptocurrency is dying while in reality, they are hungrier than ever before. 2019 will be the year when institutionalized money is finally going to enter the crypto world.
Yes, the value of Bitcoin has dropped from $19,000 to $6,200 and the market size of the digital currencies has shrunk to $200 billion. But do you know what actually matters the most? It is the number of daily transactions in digital currency and they are on the rise year after year.
Value over Growth
When we consider the past decade, it has been ruled by the tech stocks and the revolutions in technology. But the fun fact is that the value stocks have definitely performed well as compared to the growth stocks.
Instead of keeping your focus on tech stocks, you might just consider other better opportunities like energy and financial sector stocks. It is similar to investing in a luxury mattress which will bring comfort and guard your health for a long period.
Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) considered the 90-year period from 1926 to 2016 and found that there was a 9.6% growth cap each year. On the other hand, the large-cap value stocks brought a 12.5% return. The difference may look small but has the tendency to create a huge disparity between the profits of the two.
The Bottom Line
While a lot of investment prospects await you, the major focus should be to find something which does not reap immediate profits but guarantees long-term returns.
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