FEATURES:
Algy Hall screened more than 300 investment trusts to find three dividend growth stars: high yielders with a strong dividend record to weather the storm.
Buying a fund is easiest of all, but how do other options such as buying gold bars and coins compare - and what are the costs involved?
SEVEN DAYS:
■ All you need to know about investing in the past seven days: what's rising, what's falling and what's making the headlines.
NEWS:
The US agricultural complex should actually benefit from this summer's drought, but it will mean hefty losses for some insurers, while underexplored Morocco attracts attention from oil & gas explorers. Plus, Clinigen lists on Aim and Chemring's shares could slump if potential bidder Carlyle walks away.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK:
■ Deleveraging threat to profits - Any attempts by households to greatly reduce their debts would be bad for corporate profits.
■ Next week's economics - Figures next week will show that the eurozone is still in recession while the US is growing only slowly.
COMMENT:
Our columnists offer in-depth analysis and investment ideas:
■ No free lunch - The comfy world of the share registrar.
■ Simon Thompson - There's a tough decision to be made on one of the companies in Simon Thompson's Bargain portfolio.
■ Chris Dillow - An improvement in the trade-off between inflation and unemployment in the US would be very good news for global stock markets.
YOUR MONEY:
Financial planning, tax and investment wisdom:
■ Reader portfolio - Our reader has a sizeable and diverse portfolio, but does it meet his risk appetite and investment objectives?
■ Financial planning - 'Lifestyle' funds that move you into lower-risk assets as you near retirement may seem an attractively simple option. However, they have limitations.
■ Smart Money - Reform of the state pension is imminent and could bring widespread benefits
SHARE TIPS OF THE WEEK:
■ Giant US companies dominate this healthcare equipment company's markets, but it's got other problems too and we're losing patience.
■ This construction company has adopted a successful all-encompassing business model that wraps up every aspect of a project in one contract. And it's good at securing repeat orders.
■ This share might be a defensive favourite but debts are rising and cash flow is falling, which worries us. Time to bag profits.
■ A new deal with a Saudi oil giant could transform this Aim company, and another deal could be around the corner.
FUND TIP OF THE WEEK:
■ It's never a good idea to put all your eggs in one basket. Widen your sources of income with the addition of this global higher income fund.
SHARE TIP UPDATES:
■ Nokia
FUNDS:
■ Fund news - Bond funds dominate the top performers.
■ Shares I love - Jarden Corporation.
■ The big theme - Mega caps for moody markets: The strength of large-caps in difficult times is a given, but a new report recommends looking even further up the capitalisation scale, at mega caps.
SHARES:
The lowdown on the latest company results:
■ BPI
■ CPP
■ Delcam
■ Diageo
■ G4S
■ Hansteen
■ IMI
■ Lamprell
■ Phoenix
■ Regus
■ Serco
■ SIG
■ Signet
■ Sportech
■ STV
■ Week ahead - A summary of key company announcements expected in the coming week.
TAKEOVERS:
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TRADING:
■ Trading ideas - Chart-driven calls on cotton, sterling/dollar, gold and Vix.
■ The Trader - Pausing, not topping
