No day may be judged until night has fallen.

Posted on 6 July 2015 by Douglas Chadwick

What is the point in trying to second guess where the present tragedy that is being played out in Greece will end? Without a direct feed into the brains of the Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and their negotiating teams, we and the media are mere spectators to the event. The best that we can do for our investments is to be cautious and protect them as best we can by heading for cover until peace is declared. Looking at the graph below it is good to see that the Tugboat portfolio has managed yet again for the fifth time since its conception four years ago, to avoid a major market fall. Is this a coincidence? Of course it is not, it is down to the fact that the portfolio is actively managed inside the restrictions imposed by a Saltydog cautious risk pie-chart. There are many people who decry active trading and promote a passive approach to their investing saying that it is not possible to avoid these market dips and that it is expensive to keep changing your fund selection. Ten years ago this might have been true, but now that is simply nonsense. In today`s world it only costs an annual platform charge of £450 per £100,000 of portfolio to trade as frequently as you like, and if you are using OEICs there is no further cost. Knowing about the Saltydog slow property funds also means that you can hide your money there and still earn a return until the storm passes over. I am sure there must be a medical term for those passive investors who appear to revel in experiencing these regular market drops saying that it will be better tomorrow. This is definitely not for me, instead I feel that being active keeps both me and my investments fit and is certainly better for the soul and the bank balance.