Safe haven currency or property?

donshale

If the US and all Eurozone economies are sitting on a debt time bomb then I assume that inflation and devaluing currencies is unavoidable.

I don't want to hold any more in Sterling than necessary. So for now I have put the cash element of my savings into USD, but I see this as just a stop gap. I thought of Chinese Yuan (I just feel it has to be allowed to appreciate sooner rather than later, especially with the latest economic data from China) but there is no direct way to hold Yuan other than through ETFs and the like. So I am looking at Australian dollars now. Comments please!

If currencies devalue and there is inflation, what investment would benefit most? Is buying property for cash a good move?

I am looking at gold too, but it seems that gold will only do well if currency and stocks are not doing well, so it's best used as a hedge rather than an outright investment. So how much would you hold in gold - 20%?

Thank you all.

Nosht

donshale wrote: »

If the US and all Eurozone economies are sitting on a debt time bomb then I assume that inflation and devaluing currencies is unavoidable.

I don't want to hold any more in Sterling than necessary. So for now I have put the cash element of my savings into USD, but I see this as just a stop gap. I thought of Chinese Yuan (I just feel it has to be allowed to appreciate sooner rather than later, especially with the latest economic data from China) but there is no direct way to hold Yuan other than through ETFs and the like. So I am looking at Australian dollars now. Comments please!

If currencies devalue and there is inflation, what investment would benefit most? Is buying property for cash a good move?

I am looking at gold too, but it seems that gold will only do well if currency and stocks are not doing well, so it's best used as a hedge rather than an outright investment. So how much would you hold in gold - 20%?

Thank you all.

If you must have gold then 20% gold, property & some cash easily liquid for emergencies.
I really think that NSI & tax free would be better gamble than gold but who really knows?


N.

DiggerUK

donshale wrote: »

........ but it seems that gold will only do well if currency and stocks are not doing well, so it's best used as a hedge rather than an outright investment. So how much would you hold in gold - 20%?

The percentage you choose will be down to how you asses the risk to currencies.
One way to view gold is as a long term short against all currencies, best as a buy and hold.
Gold for protection against monetary inflation, NSI Index Linked to protect against price inflation.

Best of fortune.

wombat42_2

gold flirting with record high right now.

donshale

wombat42 wrote: »

gold flirting with record high right now.

Are you suggesting now is a bad time to buy as gold is over-priced, or that it is a good time to buy because the high price reflects the fragile state of global markets?

wombat42_2

people who buy now have obviously missed out on some upside but it is a widespread view that gold will double or triple in the next few years so is probably still a good bet
http://www.kitco.com
http://www.bullionvault.com/gold-price-chart.do

DiggerUK

wombat42 wrote: »

People who buy now have obviously missed out on some upside, but it is a widespread view that gold will double or triple in the next few years so is probably still a good bet.

+1
With the amount of printy printy, and the toxic waste still buried in the banking system, gold's price has a lot further to go.
Bit of a problem only being able to convert to devalued paper.
But a bigger problem, if all you have is debased paper to start with.

Beyond Gold and NSI IL, I see no safe place to save or invest.
Everything else just looks a gamble.

thor

Well Gideon is in charge now so get ready to watch the whole lot go t*ts up!!!

property.advert

As an inflationary hedge, buying a BTL property on a good rate of borrowing is a fine investment. Your rental should easily outpace your borrowing if you pick the right property and over time, some poor sap of a tenant buys it for you.

I wonder if BTL offsets can still charge the effective interest against tax ?

C_Mababejive

Surely buying low priced FTSE 100 or similar equities is a good place to go? I mean,you are buying a slice of a tangible asset rather than storing a picture of HM Queen under the bed?

jon3001

C_Mababejive wrote: »

Surely buying low priced FTSE 100 or similar equities is a good place to go? I mean,you are buying a slice of a tangible asset rather than storing a picture of HM Queen under the bed?

Be careful with your terminology: the difference between paper assets and hard (tangible) assets is well understood.

Stocks are considered paper assets. Art is a hard asset.