Hi anon, timely question as we had just released a post on picking quality Singapore REITs. Some of the factors I look at are: - Growth in Gross Revenue and Net Property Income - Growth in Distribution Per Unit - Property Yield of Between 5% and 9% - Gearing Ratio of Below 40% - Interest Coverage Ratio of Above 5x - Healthy Portfolio Occupancy Rate - Positive Rental Reversions - Presence of Growth Prospects - Acceptable Price-To-Book Ratio - Distribution Yield of Above 5% You can find out more about why I chose each factor here: https://blog.seedly.sg/how-to-pick-the-best-singapore-reits/ There are some REIT asset classes in the US that are not listed in Singapore. One prominent one is American Tower, which owns cell towers. You can check it out if you are keen.

Ascendas REIT has plenty of great things going on for it. Some of its investment merits are: - Strong historical gross revenue, net property income, and distribution per unit growth - Strong sponsor in CapitaLand Ltd (SGX: C31) - Healthy portfolio occupancy - Plenty of growth avenues However, I’m not comfortable with the REIT’s higher-than-average PB ratio of 1.4x to put my money into it currently. You can read more on my thoughts right here.

This too shall pass.... Warren Buffett, the man behind the famed conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, once said in his 1994 shareholder letter: “We will continue to ignore political and economic forecasts, which are an expensive distraction for many investors and businessmen. Thirty years ago, no one could have foreseen the huge expansion of the Vietnam War, wage and price controls, two oil shocks, the resignation of a president, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a one-day drop in the Dow of 508 points, or treasury bill yields fluctuating between 2.8% and 17.4%. But, surprise – none of these blockbuster events made the slightest dent in Ben Graham’s investment principles. Nor did they render unsound the negotiated purchases of fine businesses at sensible prices. Imagine the cost to us, then, if we had let a fear of unknowns cause us to defer or alter the deployment of capital. Indeed, we have usually made our best purchases when apprehensions about some macro event were at a peak. Fear is the foe of the faddist, but the friend of the fundamentalist.” Meanwhile, as the market over-reacts (it most probably will), just pick up fundamentally-strong companies if they are selling at cheap valuations.

Hi Sze Jie, We should not invest in stocks based on the price alone. What we should do instead is to analyse the fundamentals of the company to see if the price we pay makes sense for what we are getting. Warren Buffett once said, "Price is what you pay. Value is what you get", and it rings true here.

Hi anon, I agree with Pang Zhe Liang that it would be good to understand more about yourself first. For some income stock ideas for 2020, you can check out our article here. Some companies mentioned in there include Micro-Mechanics, NetLink NBN Trust, and VICOM.

Hi anonymous, I think some of the Asian markets will play catch up in 2020 since they underperformed when compared to the S&P 500. Eg. of such markets are Singapore and Hong Kong. However, I’m not changing my investing plans based on that prediction of mine. It’s too short a time frame. I’ll continue to pick stocks that have strong balance sheets and produce lots of free cash flow. Such companies are highly likely to stand the test of time. I’ve penned my thoughts here so you can check it out if you would like to know further! And, all the best in your investing journey in 2020 and beyond!

Hi Yc, I usually go to the various companies' investor relations website to get information such as annual reports, etc. You can just Google "company XYZ investor relations website". For aggregated financial statements, you can check out SGX Stocks Facts for local stocks or Morningstar for US stocks.

Hi anon, it all depends on your risk apetite, the time you have on hand, and your temperament. I've tried trading forex and futures before but it wasn't my cup of tea. I got very emotional due to margin calls and losses. That caused me to switch to investing, which made more sense for me than looking at charts. I also know of full-time traders who are doing very well. So, to each his own I guess.

Hi Kelvin, if I were the person in your example, I would invest in a mixture of growth and mature companies. 70% of my portfolio would be in growth stocks like Tencent, etc, while the remaining 30% would be in mature companies like the VICOMs, etc. Mature companies, by virtue of where they are in their business cycle, usually pay dividends but it's alright for me. Dividend-paying companies are less likely to fall heavily during a market downturn as compared to non-dividend-paying companies. The mature companies are deemed to be "safer" and are there to cushion my portfolio. Growth stocks would usually be volatile in the short-term so I need to be able to stomach those wide movements.

Hi Isaac, shares prices can move in the short-term for various reasons. It's hard to pinpoint to a single factor. But over the long-term, share prices move according to the fundamentals of the company. It's better to focus on the long-term when it comes to investing. As for DBS, with the emerging Asian economy over the long run, the bank should continue doing well. However, there are immediate risks due to the emergence of fintech players. One advantage incumbent banks possess, though, is that of trust. I wouldn't want to move huge chunks of money to a digital bank that is not established.