Important: Superannuation is a long-term investment. Don’t be too concerned about a negative month here or there because on average super funds have been providing positive returns for 28 of the last 33 calendar years.
After delivering a stellar 10.4% return for the 2024-25 financial year, super funds kicked off the new financial year in strong fashion, with the median Growth fund (61 to 80% in growth assets) up 1.5% in July. With share markets also up in August so far, Chant West estimates the median Growth fund is up 2.7% over the first seven weeks of the new financial year.
Chant West Head of Super Investment Research, Mano Mohankumar, says share markets globally were up in July, as markets reacted positively to progress on trade negotiations between the US and several of its major trading partners ahead of the 1 August deadline.
“During the month, the House of Representatives passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (President Trump’s core tax and spending policies), which reduced some policy uncertainty. Healthy US corporate earnings results, particularly from most of the mega-cap technology companies, also supported share markets. While geopolitical risks remain, markets largely looked through the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East.
“Over the month of July, developed international shares advanced 2% in hedged terms, but the depreciation of the Australian dollar (down from US$0.65 to US$0.64) pushed up the return in unhedged terms to 3.1%. Emerging markets outperformed developed markets delivering 3.8% in unhedged terms, while Australian shares were up 2.4% over the same period. However, Australian and international bonds had relatively flat months with returns of 0% and -0.2%, respectively.”
Make your super work harder
- Discover best performing super funds
- Tips and strategies to boost your retirement savings
- Calculators give you power to plan
- Step-by-step guides help you put plans into action
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.