Falling interest rates are reducing what people can make from money in the bank or term deposits. Photo: RNZ / Diego Opatowski
Investment markets have been volatile in recent months.
Share prices have swung as markets digested the impact of Trump's tariffs.
But property prices are also relatively flat, and falling interest rates are reducing what people can make from money in the bank or term deposits.
So where should you put your money now?
RNZ asked a range of experts where they would be investing.
Murray Harris, head of KiwiSaver, Milford Asset Management
Murray Harris said the best thing to invest in was a well-diversified active managed fund.
"That is where KiwiSaver is such a good investment vehicle. The best way to build wealth is to have a long-term savings plan that you contribute to regularly and in a disciplined way.
"So, contributions to your KiwiSaver account every pay day means you don't have to worry about market volatility if you're in the right fund for your age and goal. Your regular contributions will buy you more units in your fund when markets are down, which you benefit from when markets recover, and those units increase in value … Volatility is your friend when making regular KiwiSaver contributions."
Mike Taylor, Pie Funds founder
Mike Taylor said the best investment was in yourself.
"Use market volatility, uncertainty, and dislocation of asset prices to improve your knowledge and understanding of markets. There are countless podcasts to tune into, books to read, and of course, AI to help build your knowledge."
Steve Goodey, property investment coach
Steve Goodey said the Auckland property market could be an option.
"Whenever I've looked at the property market over the last 20 or 25 years, the Auckland market has pretty much always been booming every five or six years. For the last quite a few years, it hasn't.
"The property market in New Zealand always seems to be strongest when Auckland is booming. To my mind, that makes it very undervalued at the moment."
He said, with 15,000 properties on the market in Auckland, there would be a few hundred where the seller was very motivated.
"The market needs to clear through that stock to give those people the opportunity to move on. I believe the most opportunity is in the 09 district, with existing housing stock that is a bit beaten up or cosmetically distressed, where it can have value added to it."
Greg Smith of Devon Funds Management says New Zealand equities are looking good. Photo: Devon Funds / Supplied
Greg Smith, head of retail, Devon Funds Management
Smith said New Zealand equities looked good.
"We are coming out of the bottom of the economic cycle, immigration is strong, consumer/business confidence is starting to improve from a low base, and we have another rate cut in a month's time and more though the year to get the OCR below 3 percent.
"We are reliant on China a bit but on the tariff side 10 percent to NZ isn't going to cause much of an impact … The relative appeal of high yielders will also strengthen as rates fall. So high yielding, large cap, domestically focused equities. Exporters can also benefit from a lower kiwi dollar."
Rupert Carlyon, Koura Wealth founder
Rupert Carlyon said he still saw opportunities in bitcoin.
"We are nervous about the USD given what is happening. We have politicians all around the world that are putting pressure on central banks to increase lending and lower interest rates. As money supply increases which it inevitably will as this cycle plays out, Bitcoin could be a big winner through it all."
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