China is an economic powerhouse with a dynamic culture. One aspect of their culture revolves around the 12 zodiac animals that signify each new year. 2024 is 'The Year of The Dragon,' representing power, intelligence, ambition, and luck. It also symbolizes confidence, which investors need to navigate the many investment options in 2024. Here are the best ones to consider.
How To Best Navigate the Trading Industry
Before diving into the best investments, it's worth considering using trading software like TradingView to navigate many options. Trading apps offer supercharged charting capabilities and vast real-time updated data to analyze financial markets like digital currencies, forex, stocks, commodities, and indices. These offerings make them an indispensable tool in your trading arsenal.
Investing in the Wild West of Crypto
This brings us to the first considerable investment: cryptocurrency. 2024 represents the 15th year of the existence of digital currencies. This market is familiar to investors due to the untapped potential of blockchain technology. Another reason investors have rallied behind crypto is the belief of being a hedge against the inflationary currencies in the modern financial system.
Moreover, the performance is quite impressive. Bitcoin has historically been among the best-performing assets over the past decade. 2024 is crucial for Bitcoin due to the project's upcoming quadrennial halving, where the mining rewards are reduced in half.
It's a significant event in the crypto market. The last three halvings have seen Bitcoin and other digital currencies rise significantly. Thus, analysts and investors expect more of the same.
However, investors may consider plenty of other gems besides Bitcoin, which, in the eyes of many, is over-valued. Investors can choose from options within the top 10 alone, while others could look at the riskier tokens outside this range.
However, since crypto is only 15 years old, it receives much skepticism regarding its long-term potential. So, it's a high-risk, high-return financial asset.
The Tried-and-Tested Route of Backing Stocks
Stocks or equities have long been considered a must-have investment in any portfolio. Unlike the recent crypto, shares enjoy several decades of long-term, consistent returns.
Another differentiator is that stocks boast intrinsic value, given that they come from real companies with actual products or services. Finally, the equities market is well-regulated, meaning far fewer chances of financial malpractice.
Experts have often recommended technology shares, specifically 'FAANG' stocks (Facebook/Meta, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google) as the best picks. This is a similar narrative to investing in crypto or blockchain due to the growing expansion of digital services, artificial intelligence, and other innovative platforms.
Of course, equities are not without their downsides. Analysts have pointed to a potential recession in 2024, which can negatively impact stocks.
On the bright side, investing legends like Warren Buffett see recessions as excellent opportunities. The key is picking stocks with an economic moat (something offered by FAANG stocks) and those trading below their intrinsic value.
Is All That Glitters Gold? A Bet on Commodities
Like stocks, commodities (precious metals, oil) have existed for a long time. Gold is arguably the most lauded commodity with historical significance. The precious metal has gained a reputation for being a so-called 'safe haven.'
Risks linger over the sustainability of traditional money in this modern, debt-reliant economy. So, many experts see gold as a protective and wealth-preserving asset. Other valuable commodities include silver, platinum, and oil.
While not having the safe haven status of gold, they share a low correlation with other traded markets like stocks and crypto. Hence, commodities are excellent diversifiers in any investment portfolio.
One downside with commodities like gold is that they are generally not income-generating assets physically. Also, their returns haven't always exceeded those of stocks, crypto, and other markets over the years.
Yet, investors have a range of ways to invest in commodities, like owning shares in companies that produce commodities.
Diversifying With Indices
Diversification remains critical for any investor in 2024. What better way to diversify than investing in an index?
While many top indices exist in different global regions (like the CAC 40, Nikkei, DAX, and FTSE), many consider the S&P 500 among the best indices. It covers a wide range of the 500 blue-chip stocks in the prosperous US economy.
With the massive weighting of tech shares (the most favored stocks) in the index, it's considered a better bet than owning individual company shares. The S&P 500 is also applauded for its consistent historical returns since 1928. It has averaged 10%, with a 26% return in 2023 with dividends reinvested, beating out markets like gold and real estate.
Choosing Your Investments Wisely in 2024
It's clear the Year of The Dragon can live up to its themes of good fortune and vitality in 2024. Happily, choices are abundant for investors, and the options in this guide are excellent. Although making the decision to invest can be overwhelming, trading software like TradingView can lessen the burden. Aside from the financial markets it covers, it also provides advanced information about different economic aspects that have a bearing on the investment opportunities discussed. With the right information at hand, you can begin the rest of the year building your financial prosperity with confidence.
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