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Tips of the year 2011

FEATURE: Eight shares and six funds for the year ahead
January 6, 2011

Hopefully, last year was a blip. Our 2009 tips beat the All-share by 14 percentage points, while in 2008 we outperformed a falling market and in 2007 our tips of the year were among the best performers within the business press.

What will 2011 bring? Futurology certainly doesn't get any easier, and it's impossible for us to know what will happen when the Federal Reserve stops buying Treasuries, or when the UK government's spending cuts really start to bite. But, taking our cue from Warren Buffett, we've tried to find shares in good-quality businesses, rather than try and second-guess what the broader market will do.

Following the subdued showing of last year's selections, and in line with the classification system we now use for our weekly tipS, we've made some changes to our modus operandi for tips of the year.

We've always tried to pick a broad spread of companies, from relatively high-risk, blue-sky sorts of operations to dull-but-worthy dividend payers. This year, we've taken that segmentation a stage further by dividing the share tips into specific categories, such as income, growth and recovery. We hope this helps you find shares that are right for your particular investment objectives.

We've also included some alternative suggestions, reflecting the discussions we have internally about which shares to choose as tips of the year. So, for instance, while we recommend life insurer Aviva for those seeking a secure income play, we point out that FirstGroup and AstraZeneca are also worthy contenders.

Our eight share selections include one investment trust, but you can read six more fund tips here. And as always, do remember that our tips are only the starting point for further deliberation. It's your money – only you can decide how best to invest it!