Forget the black box cons and focus on the fundamentals

One of the primary reasons I started my company, Wealth Within, was to provide genuine education to those looking to learn how to confidently and profitably trade or invest in the share market.

I was sick and tired of seeing those new to the markets getting ripped off by dubious marketing companies promoting the latest whizz-bang product, with empty promises of making millions overnight.

Thankfully, authorities have become much smarter in cracking down on financial rip-off merchants; however, I believe more can be done to help those who are tricked into such schemes.

Just this week, I was chatting with a gentleman over the phone who told me of his experience with a company. This company promotes a ‘black box’ trading software that the gentleman was led to believe would select profitable stocks with the touch of a button.

Further, the company claims the software can turn a very small investment into tens of thousands of dollars in a short period of time, and all of this can be yours for just under $20,000!

Fortunately, the gentleman took time to conduct his own research after our conversation and realised the company was not using a physical business address and is also not licensed to deal in financial products or provide financial advice under Australian law.

Let this be a warning to all readers. Do your research, and if an investment sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

So what do we expect in the market?

Last week we saw the market move down slightly as if to gently test 5000 points, and although it dipped temporarily below this level to 4993 points during the week’s trade it managed to close at 5038 points. It is pleasing to see a further rise this week and for the market to be unfolding in a more gentle rhythm.

Right now I believe that radical moves are far less likely to occur even though we are in the midst of company reporting season. For this, I give credit to the looming federal election, which has had a dampening effect on our market, and reporting from a number of stocks like the Commonwealth Bank that have produced solid results to support the rise.

Investors are likely to see further gains in portfolios over the coming months and can look to add solid companies to their portfolios over the coming weeks. Some good opportunities exist in important sectors like financials, consumer discretionary and some industrials are starting to look interesting.