Should we feel sad for Singaporean investors?

The Chart below compares the Straits Times Index (STI), Gold prices and Singapore Residential Price Index (RPI) over the last 22 years. Over the past 22 years

• STI grew at 2.2% CAGR
• Gold prices grew at 6.4 % CAGR
• RPI grew at 3.3 % CAGR

Of course, gold was more volatile with a Std dev/mean of 41% where as STI and RPI was 24 % and 26 % respectively.

To give you some perspective, over the past 20 years, the average CPI was 1.9 % annually.

In contrast over the same period. the KLCI grew at 3.3 % CAGR while the Malaysian Housing Price index grew at 5.1 %. Refer to “In Malaysia, which has better returns; Stock market or Property?” https://www.i4value.asia/2020/08/in-malaysia-wh...

If you are a retail stock investor in Singapore, you have to learn to beat the index so as not to lose out to inflation. Of course, the second half of the review period was a tougher one to make money.