The Allan Gray Podcast

Global elections have been a dominant force this year, with sentiment around polling and election results driving volatility in many markets. The ANC’s drastic decline at the polls and the formation of a government of national unity have been of keen interest to investors in SA Inc. Abroad, we have seen Labour take the lead by a landslide in the UK general election and the US presidential race heat up as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump increase their efforts to return to the White House. In this conversation, portfolio managers Thalia Petousis and Sean Munsie join Product Development manager Vuyo Mroxiso to explore the impact of the great election year on financial markets and explain how political change is reshaping the opportunity set for long-term investors. Allan Gray | Unit Trusts · Introducing the Allan Gray Interest Fund and the Allan Gray Income Fund

The new two-pot retirement system has been designed to improve retirement outcomes for South Africans, while allowing some access to retirement savings in case of severe financial stress. However, there are some hidden risks that investors should be aware of to ensure they don’t inadvertently offset its intended benefits. Richard Carter, head of Assurance, is joined by Shaun Duddy, head of Product Development, to explore what the new rules mean for investors and their retirement planning. In this conversation, they explain the complexities, clear up common misconceptions and highlight the missteps investors should avoid to achieve better results. Two-pot retirement system

Periods of heightened uncertainty are inevitable when you are investing over the long term. And when it is not clear when or how things might change, multi-asset portfolio construction becomes an increasingly complex task. For some time, our offshore partner, Orbis, has warned that the environment appears to be changing, noting stickier global inflation, a shifting geopolitical landscape and higher risk-free rates. With key national elections across the globe, the transition to green energy and the rise of artificial intelligence increasing the noise, long-term investors must consider a host of additional variables as they pursue meaningful returns. In conversation with Orbis portfolio manager Alec Cutler, Nshalati Hlungwane, a manager in our Institutional Clients team, explores the global investment universe and finds out how Orbis is thinking about its multi-asset strategies in the current environment. Allan Gray website · Orbis Global Balanced: Investing through the cycles

Investing in frontier markets is not for the faint-hearted. But for those brave enough to look beyond material risks, such as political instability, currency fluctuations and poor liquidity, many of these smaller markets provide fertile hunting ground for compelling ideas and exposure to sectors that are not available in South Africa. In conversation with Grant Pitt, head of Institutional, portfolio managers Rory Kutisker-Jacobson and Varshan Maharaj discuss the themes shaping frontier markets and explain how they navigate the risks as they pursue long-term returns. Frontier markets: Innovative industry leaders drive returns

The commonly accepted wisdom is that if we want a glimpse into the future of South Africa’s financial services sector, we should take a look at the United Kingdom’s financial landscape and delay the experience by a few years. In this conversation, Dan Brocklebank, UK head of our offshore partner, Orbis, joins portfolio manager Jithen Pillay to explain how key themes, such as tighter regulation, artificial intelligence and increasing geopolitical tension, are shaping the future of asset management and financial advice. They explore how a handful of trends are challenging the status quo and presenting opportunities for those willing to embrace change. Allan Gray website · 50 years of investing in an evolving ecosystem

With 2024 set to be a news-heavy year, investors are speculating about everything from what interest rates might do next, to the outcome of elections around the world. Given the levels of uncertainty, many are finding it hard to avoid panicking and making rash decisions based on emotions. Allan Gray portfolio manager Tim Acker is joined by renowned behavioural psychology expert and bestselling author Morgan Housel. In the conversation, Morgan explores many of the behavioural biases that erode wealth during periods of heightened risk and explains how we can improve our long-term investment outcomes by focusing our efforts on the things that stay the same, rather than the variables that are out of our control. · Allan Gray website

The Investment teams at Allan Gray and Orbis have both been talking about the huge disparities in global valuations for some time. There are pockets of the market that are incredibly cheap, but many of the most popular regions and sectors are eye-wateringly expensive. For a moment last year, it seemed as though these disparities were beginning to narrow amid rising inflation and subsequent interest rate hikes. But in 2023, things snapped back. Bond yields have risen sharply, while the areas that tend to be most vulnerable to rising rates, such as technology, have counter-intuitively also continued to rise. In this episode, Radhesen Naidoo, Allan Gray’s joint head of Institutional Clients and the client-servicing lead for Orbis in South Africa, hosts Orbis portfolio managers Alec Cutler and Ben Preston. As they move through world markets, they highlight many of the exciting opportunities for patient investors and explain how Orbis’s Global Equity and Global Balanced strategies differ in their approaches. Offshore investing · The magnificent middle · Orbis: Navigating market change

James Aitken, founder of Aitken Advisors with three decades of experience in the financial system's plumbing, shares key insights on investing, including reflections on the aftermath of the global financial crisis, valuation of Microsoft stock, geopolitical risk in portfolios, and the role of central bank governors in today's financial landscape.

Buoyed by the ongoing excitement around artificial intelligence, the so-called “magnificent seven” (Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta, MSFT, Nvidia and Tesla) have been able to count themselves among this year’s biggest winners. And it is easy to understand why: They are great businesses at the forefront of the latest tech developments, and they are expected to deliver exceptional growth. That said, history reminds us that it is exceptionally hard to exceed high expectations over the long term – particularly when they are already baked into a company’s share price. In conversation with Tamryn Lamb, Allan Gray portfolio manager Tim Acker and Graeme Forster, portfolio manager at our offshore partner, Orbis, explain why we share the belief that good, undervalued businesses with fewer hurdles to overcome remain the best bet for long-term investors. They also delve into some of their favourite global investment ideas. Orbis Global Equity: Value in a changing Japan · Local investment update: Balancing caution and optimism

In this podcast, they discuss the winners and losers of the investment landscape over the last five years. They delve into topics such as the Steinhoff case, the dynamics of supply and demand in the paper and packaging industry, and the concept of value traps in investing. They also explore the potential of a South African insurance company for expansion. Overall, they share enduring lessons that investors can glean from the not-so-distant past.