NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Business / Companies

Mark Lister: Five reasons to stay cautious in September

By Mark Lister
NZ Herald·
3 Sep, 2014 03:42 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

September is traditionally volatile month, says Mark Lister. Photo / Duncan Brown

September is traditionally volatile month, says Mark Lister. Photo / Duncan Brown

Opinion

I certainly wouldn't describe myself as being bearish, given my optimistic medium-term view on the economy and the local sharemarket. However, with some markets at all-time highs and volatility still at very low levels, it seems sensible to exercise a bit more caution than usual at the moment.

This month carries some added risk for a number of reasons, most notably the five listed below. The market seems to be a little too complacent at present and for those investors looking to take some profits, it might be sensible to do so sooner rather than later.


1. September is historically the worst month of the year. Whether it is simply coincidence, or because many investors re-enter the fray following some time off over the Northern hemisphere summer months, September is traditionally a volatile month for global markets. Since 1928, September has been the weakest month for the S&P500 with an average return of -1.1 per cent. It is also the only month where we have seen more negative performances than positive ones in the last 85 years. Since 1960, the average September return is slightly better at -0.6 per cent, although the seasonal trend remains the same.

Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners, said the couple of wins Wynyard had had were "highly impressive. Photo / David White
Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners, said the couple of wins Wynyard had had were "highly impressive. Photo / David White

2. Investors have done very well over recent weeks and months. Investors have had a very profitable period of late with the NZX50 index up 11.3 per cent over the last year, US shares up 23.7 per cent and Australian shares 14.8 per cent higher. The bout of volatility we saw in July was very short-lived, with the S&P500 having rebounding more than 5 per cent in recent weeks to reach new record highs at over 2000 points. Value has become much more difficult to find for investors, and the New Zealand and Australian markets are respectively trading at levels 15 per cent and 6 per cent higher than the 20-year average. When markets are priced highly, they become more susceptible to bad news.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.


3. Economic growth is slowing in many regions. On an annual basis, economic growth is still accelerating in most regions. However, we seem to have hit a soft patch in some parts of the world with many indicators pointing to a loss of momentum. According to Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) forecasts, we have already passed our strongest period of growth this cycle. The June quarter is expected to have experienced growth of 4.2 per cent, but the next four quarters are expected to see growth fall to an average of 3.0 per cent. Manufacturing surveys suggest that China has lost momentum over the last two months, while Europe is feeling the brunt of the turmoil in Ukraine. Even Germany, the regions powerhouse economy, saw a surprise contraction in economic growth in the three months to June.

4. Globally, geopolitical risks are still being underestimated. Risks remain high in Ukraine as well as the Middle East, where tensions continue to grow. The European Union is considering further action against Russia, and we have seen evidence of the crisis spill over into economic data, with German exports to Russia falling 15 per cent in the first half of the year. With markets seemingly shrugging off any concern of an escalation in these regions, it feels like there is some definite investor complacency regarding these issues.

5. The upcoming election brings significant uncertainty. Last but certainly not least, we have the election later this month. Recent political polls point to a much tighter contest that would have been expected a few months ago. National has seen its ratings slip in most polls and the smaller parties have been the beneficiaries of this, rather than Labour or the Greens. Further tightening in the polls could see markets react to the increasing uncertainty of the outcome, while an unclear result could potentially see weeks of negotiations take place.

* Mark Lister is head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners. His disclosure statement is available free of charge under his profile on www.craigsip.com. This column is general in nature and should not be regarded as specific investment advice.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Companies

Premium
Retail

HelloFresh pleads guilty after ‘subscription traps’ tricked customers

Airlines

Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority

Premium
Banking and finance

'Firepower to help': Small business lender raises $200m capital for new loans


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Companies

Premium
Premium
HelloFresh pleads guilty after ‘subscription traps’ tricked customers
Retail

HelloFresh pleads guilty after ‘subscription traps’ tricked customers

The devious policy targeted former customers but left a key detail out.

14 Jul 03:51 AM
Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority
Airlines

Regional airline grounded for 10 days by Civil Aviation Authority

14 Jul 03:12 AM
Premium
Premium
'Firepower to help': Small business lender raises $200m capital for new loans
Banking and finance

'Firepower to help': Small business lender raises $200m capital for new loans

14 Jul 03:00 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP