The Art of Investing

📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides
View the portfolio breakdown: here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
📱 Behind the scenes: @_theartofinvesting on TikTok
🎧 Listen on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube 

This week on The Art of Investing, Rich McDonald, Mark “Spice” Holden and Chris “CJ” Fellingham are back with a big listener Q&A episode, taking on three of the biggest questions facing investors right now: should you bother picking single stocks, is gold worth buying again, and are equities entering a more difficult phase?

With Nvidia delivering another extraordinary update, Bitcoin back above $80,000, oil falling sharply, and bond markets still waiting on Jackson Hole, the team unpack a market where confidence is returning in some places, but the warning signs have not disappeared.

From the challenge of beating ETFs to the case for gold, AI infrastructure spending, and the hidden effect of new share issuance, this episode asks whether investors should be adding risk, sitting tight, or preparing for a harder turn in markets.
Portfolio Snapshot - Week 54:
No changes were made to the portfolio this week.

📊 Weekly portfolio performance: +0.5%
📈 Total return since inception: +25.4%
📅 2026 year-to-date return: +12.9%

Top Performers:
📈 BlackRock World Mining Trust PLC: +4.7% WoW
📈 WisdomTree Copper ETF: +1.9% WoW
📈 iShares Core MSCI EM IMI ETC: +1.8% WoW

Underperformers:
📉 XLI SPDR US Industrials ETF: -1.2% WoW
📉 iShares Russell 2000 ETF: -1.2% WoW
📉 Invesco EQQQ Nasdaq 100 UCITS ETF: -1.1% WoW
This Week’s Highlights:

📊 Portfolio Edges Higher
The model portfolio rises around +0.5% on the week, taking performance to +25.4% since inception and +12.9% year-to-date.
🤖 Nvidia Reignites the AI Debate
Nvidia guides to 70% revenue growth for the year ending January 2028, but the team debate whether the market is still right to stay cautious.
📉 Bonds Stay in Focus
Stanley Druckenmiller criticises Scott Bessent’s Treasury bond-buying plan, keeping fiscal credibility and bond-market pressure firmly on the agenda.
🛢️ Oil Falls Sharply
Oil drops around 7% as progress around the Strait of Hormuz eases supply fears, helping bonds but raising new questions about inflation and commodities.
🥇 Gold Gets Another Look
After a strong rebound, the team debate whether gold deserves a place in the portfolio again, or whether real yields still make the case difficult.
📦 ETFs vs Stock Picking
CJ and Spice explain why even professional investors struggle to beat indices, and why ETFs remain the preferred route for most long-term investors.
🏗️ Re-Equitisation Risk
The team examine whether a wave of IPOs, AI funding and insider selling could reverse years of shrinking share supply and weigh on future returns.
Big Questions This Week:
• Is Nvidia still cheap, or is the market right to be suspicious of future AI growth?
• Should everyday investors bother picking single stocks, or stick with ETFs?
• Is gold attractive again after its pullback and rebound?
• Will weaker oil and a softer dollar bring central banks back into gold?
• Could a new wave of IPOs and equity issuance drag on market returns?
• Are investors close to the point where they should start reducing risk?

What You’ll Learn:
✔️ Why Nvidia’s numbers can be outstanding while the wider market still stays cautious
✔️ Why most active managers struggle to beat their benchmark over time
✔️ How factor ETFs can replace some traditional fund-manager exposure
✔️ Why real yields, the dollar and central-bank buying matter for gold
✔️ What “de-equitisation” and “re-equitisation” mean for stock market returns
✔️ Why Jackson Hole could shape the next portfolio move

Disclaimer:
This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are illustrative and for educational purposes.

Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

📊 The Art of Investing Survey – Fill in the form here, we’d love your feedback:
https://forms.office.com/e/tCyxzN48Ks
📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides
View the portfolio breakdown: here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
📱 Behind the scenes: @_theartofinvesting on TikTok
🎧 Listen on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube 

This week on The Art of Investing, attention turns to the bond market as rising real yields begin to create a new challenge for investors.
Chris breaks down what real yields actually are, why they are moving higher and how increasingly attractive returns from government bonds could eventually start competing with equities for investors’ capital.
The team also unpack the US Treasury’s latest intervention in the bond market, likening the move to a modern-day “Operation Twist”, and debate whether policymakers can successfully push down longer-term yields when borrowing demand remains so high.
Alongside the bond discussion, Mark reviews a busy week across markets, from a weaker US dollar and a rebound in Bitcoin and Ethereum to Moderna’s extraordinary rally. The team also answer listener questions on whether it’s too late to start following the portfolio, how they use moving averages to inform investment decisions, and the role currency hedging can play when investing overseas.
This Week’s Highlights:
💰 Why Real Yields Matter
Chris explains the difference between nominal and inflation-linked bonds, and why rising real yields could become increasingly important for equities and other risk assets.

🔄 Operation Twist Returns
The team unpack the US Treasury’s plan to increase long-term bond buybacks while issuing more short-dated debt, and why they believe the intervention matters for markets.

🏦 The Competition for Capital
With governments and major technology companies borrowing heavily, the team discuss why growing demand for capital is pushing yields higher and creating a more challenging backdrop for investors.

📉 When Do Bonds Become Too Attractive to Ignore?
Chris considers the level at which higher risk-free returns could encourage investors to reduce equity exposure and start allocating more heavily towards bonds.

📊 How the Team Decide When to Buy and Sell
Responding to a listener question, Mark and Chris explain how moving averages can help identify when markets are becoming stretched and provide a less emotional view of price action.

💷 Should Investors Hedge Currency Risk?
The team explore the impact exchange rates can have on overseas investments and why sterling investors may choose between hedged and unhedged funds.

Portfolio Snapshot - Week 53:

📊 Weekly portfolio performance: -1.1%
📈 Total return since inception: +24.9%
📅 2026 year-to-date return: +12.4%
Top Performers:
📈 BlackRock World Mining Trust PLC: +1.0%
📈 iShares Russell 2000 ETF: +0.1%
📈 Cash: +0.1%
Underperformers:
📉 iShares Nikkei 225 ETF: -3.7%
📉 WisdomTree Copper ETF: -2.9%
📉 XLI SPDR US Industrials ETF: -1.8%

Portfolio Changes:
No portfolio changes this week.

Despite weakness across several holdings, diversification helped limit the overall portfolio decline to 1.1%, with the team maintaining their existing positioning as they begin the second year of the portfolio.
Big Questions This Week:
Could rising real yields eventually pull meaningful capital away from equities?
Why is the US Treasury intervening in the long end of the bond market?
Can policymakers successfully fight the direction of the bond market?
Is it too late for investors to start following the model portfolio after its strong first year?
Which indicators can investors use to help decide when to buy and sell?
Should UK investors hedge the currency exposure in their overseas investments?
What You’ll Learn:
✔️ What real yields are and why they matter for investment markets
✔️ How rising government bond yields can affect equity valuations
✔️ Why the latest US Treasury bond buybacks are different from quantitative easing
✔️ How moving averages can be used as part of an investment decision-making process
✔️ What to consider when choosing between hedged and unhedged overseas funds
✔️ Why the team are becoming more cautious as markets head towards September and October
Disclaimer:
This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are illustrative and for educational purposes.
Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

📊 The Art of Investing Survey – Fill in the form here, we’d love your feedback:
 https://forms.office.com/e/tCyxzN48Ks
📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides
 View the portfolio breakdown: here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
📱 Behind the scenes: @_theartofinvesting on TikTok
🎧 Listen on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube 

This week on The Art of Investing, it’s the end-of-year exam as the portfolio officially reaches its first anniversary.

With the portfolio finishing the year up 26.0% since inception, Rich puts Mark and Chris in the hot seat to assess how much of that performance came from good portfolio management, where they got it wrong, and the lessons they’re taking into year two.
The team revisit some of the biggest investment calls of the past 12 months, from avoiding government bonds and maintaining exposure to commodities, to navigating the Iran conflict and buying back into US equities following the sell-off.
They also look ahead to the next 12 months, debating whether the AI investment boom can continue to drive US earnings, what could finally challenge US market leadership, and why rising bond yields and a changing Federal Reserve could become increasingly important for investors.
Alongside the annual review, Mark unpacks another busy week across markets, with AI investment continuing at extraordinary levels, oil prices climbing and the portfolio ending its first year with another positive weekly return.
This Week’s Highlights:
🎂 One Year of the Portfolio
 The team mark 52 weeks of the portfolio, finishing its first year with a total return of +26.0%.
📝 The End-of-Year Exam
 Rich grills Mark and Chris on their best calls, biggest mistakes and whether the portfolio’s performance really came down to skill or a favourable year for markets.

🤖 The AI Investment Boom Continues
 Huge financing and capital expenditure commitments keep flowing into AI and data centres, but the team debate whether investors are becoming too reliant on the same story.
🇺🇸 US Bull Case Put to the Test
 Mark explains what would genuinely make him rethink his bullish stance on US equities and why earnings growth remains central to his outlook.

📉 Why the Team Avoided Bonds
 Staying away from government bonds is identified as one of the portfolio’s defining calls of the year, differentiating it from a traditional 60/40 approach.
🌍 Where Could Returns Come From Next?
 The team assess the outlook for the US, Japan, emerging markets, the UK, Europe, India and China as they consider positioning for year two.
🏦 A Changing Fed Could Change the Rules
 Chris explains why the Federal Reserve’s approach to supporting markets could become one of the most important risks to watch over the coming months.
Portfolio Snapshot - Week 52:
📊 Weekly portfolio performance: +0.5%
📈 Total return since inception: +26.0%
📅 2026 year-to-date return: +13.5%

Top Performers:
📈 BlackRock World Mining Trust PLC: +3.3%
📈 iShares Nikkei 225 ETF: +2.7%
📈 Vanguard FTSE 250: +1.0%

Underperformers:
📉 iShares MSCI India ETF: -1.4%
📉 WisdomTree Copper ETF: -1.0%
📉 iShares Core FTSE 100 ETF: -0.5%
Portfolio Changes:
No portfolio changes this week.

The portfolio closes out its first year with 14 holdings, including 10% in cash, as the team maintain their existing positioning heading into year two.
Big Questions This Week:
• How much of the portfolio’s 26% return came from good management versus rising markets?
• What were the team’s best decisions, and biggest mistakes, of the past year?
• What would make Mark finally change his bullish view on US equities?
• Can the enormous investment in AI and data centres ultimately justify current expectations?
• Could higher bond yields eventually pull capital away from equities?
• Where could the strongest and weakest investment opportunities emerge over the next 12 months?
What You’ll Learn:
✔️ Why avoiding government bonds became one of the portfolio’s most important calls
✔️ How the team assess performance beyond simply looking at headline returns
✔️ Why earnings growth remains key to the US equity bull case
✔️ How experienced investors respond when markets move sharply against them
✔️ What could trigger a major change in the portfolio’s asset allocation
✔️ Which markets and asset classes the team are watching as they enter year two

Disclaimer:
This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are illustrative and for educational purposes.
Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides: Here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
📱 Behind the scenes: @_theartofinvesting on TikTok | @theartofinvestingpod on Instagram
🎧 Listen on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube 

This week on The Art of Investing, after a sharp reversal across AI-linked stocks, the team explain how Leopold Aschenbrenner’s highly leveraged AI trade became one of the biggest stories in markets, why crowded positioning matters, and how forced selling helped shape the latest moves across tech, software, commodities and emerging markets.
They also look at the parallels with previous market excesses, including 1929, ask whether AI could be disinflationary, and debate whether markets can keep running into Jackson Hole before investors need to think about taking risk down.

This Week’s Highlights:
📈 Portfolio Jumps +4.2%
A strong week takes the portfolio to +25.5% since inception, with no changes made this week.
⚠️ Leopold and Leverage
The team unpack how leverage works, why margin calls can force selling, and why a “one big trade” portfolio can unravel quickly.
⚒️ Miners Lead the Way
BlackRock World Mining Trust tops the portfolio, up +10.4% on the week as gold, silver and copper strength feed through to mining shares.
🇯🇵 Japan Bounces Hard
The Nikkei position rises +9.5%, helped by currency intervention and a stronger week for Japanese equities.
🌏 Emerging Markets Rally
MSCI Emerging Markets gains +6.5%, supported by Korea’s sharp rebound, a weaker US dollar and renewed appetite for growth.
🤖 Nasdaq Reverses Higher
The Nasdaq position rises +5.9% as money flows back into AI and tech after weeks of pressure.
📉 1929 Lessons
Chris draws on Andrew Ross Sorkin’s 1929 to compare today’s market risks: leverage, speculative new technology, retail risk-taking and policy error.
🏦 Jackson Hole in Focus
The team debate whether the Fed is “running the economy hot” and why late August could be important for market direction.

Portfolio Snapshot – Week 51:
📊 Weekly portfolio performance: +4.2%
📈 Total return since inception: +25.5%
📅 2026 year-to-date return: +13.0%
Top Performers:
📈 BlackRock World Mining Trust PLC: +10.4% WoW
📈 iShares Nikkei 225 ETF: +9.5% WoW
📈 iShares Core MSCI EM IMI ETF: +6.5% WoW
📈 Invesco EQQQ Nasdaq 100 UCITS ETF: +5.9% WoW
📈 XLI SPDR US Industrials ETF: +5.3% WoW
Underperformers:
📉 iShares Core FTSE 100 ETF: -0.1% WoW
📈 Cash: +0.1% WoW
📈 iShares UK Gilts 0-5yr ETF: +0.5% WoW
📈 iShares MSCI India ETF: +1.3% WoW

Portfolio Decision:
No changes were made to the portfolio this week. The team remain positioned for the current market rally, while noting they may look to reduce some risk later in August if markets continue to run strongly.

Big Questions This Week:
• What is leverage, and why can it be so dangerous?
• How can a hedge fund lose control of a winning trade?
• Are AI stocks back in charge, or is this just a relief rally?
• Why does a weaker dollar help commodities and emerging markets?
• Are there real parallels between today’s market and 1929?
• Could AI improve margins without reigniting inflation?
• Should investors enjoy the August rally, or prepare to reduce risk before September?
What You’ll Learn:
✔️ How leverage magnifies gains and losses
✔️ What margin calls mean in real market conditions
✔️ Why crowded trades can reverse violently
✔️ How AI is affecting earnings, margins and market leadership
✔️ Why commodities, Japan and emerging markets performed strongly this week
✔️ Why the team are watching Jackson Hole before making the next portfolio move

Disclaimer:
This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are illustrative and for educational purposes.
Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

📊 The Art of Investing Survey – Fill in the form here, we’d love your feedback: https://forms.office.com/e/tCyxzN48Ks
📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides
View the portfolio breakdown: here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
📱 Behind the scenes: @_theartofinvesting on TikTok
🎧 Listen on: Apple, Spotify, YouTube 

This week on The Art of Investing, the team assess the latest Federal Reserve decision and the key takeaways from earnings season, examining what both could mean for the market outlook.
The team unpack a volatile market backdrop as the AI trade begins to unwind, bond markets take centre stage, and central bank credibility comes into question.
A sharp sell-off in semiconductor and AI-linked stocks has driven significant moves across global markets, particularly in Japan and emerging markets, while rising bond yields are beginning to challenge equity valuations.
The episode explores whether investors truly understand their exposure, particularly within popular themes like AI and emerging markets, and how concentration risk can quietly build within diversified portfolios.
Alongside this, the team break down another week of portfolio performance and a major shift in positioning, as they debate whether this market correction presents a buying opportunity or a warning sign of deeper structural change.
This Week’s Highlights:
📉 Portfolio Pulls Back
A difficult week sees the portfolio fall -1.7%, driven largely by weakness in AI-linked markets.
🤖 AI Trade Unwinds
Semiconductors and AI stocks come under pressure, with sharp declines across global tech markets.
🇯🇵 Japan & Emerging Markets Hit
Nikkei and EM equities lead losses as tech exposure and global positioning unwind.
📈 UK Markets Show Strength
FTSE 100 reaches new highs, highlighting ongoing rotation into value-led markets.
🏦 Central Banks in Focus
The Federal Reserve, Bank of England, and Bank of Japan all take centre stage in a pivotal week for policy.
📊 Bond Yields Rise Sharply
Markets begin to question central bank credibility, pushing yields higher and tightening financial conditions.
🔄 Rotation Accelerates
Capital continues to shift away from growth and into value, changing the leadership within markets.
Portfolio Snapshot – Week 50:

📊 Weekly portfolio performance: -1.7%
📈 Total return since inception: +21.4%
📅 2026 year-to-date return: +8.8%
Top Performers:
 📈 iShares MSCI India ETF: +2.2%
 📈 iShares Core FTSE 100 ETF: +1.6%
 📈 Vanguard FTSE 250: +0.3% 
Underperformers:
 📉 iShares Nikkei 225 ETF: -6.7%
 📉 iShares Core MSCI EM IMI ETC: -5.3%
 📉 BlackRock World Mining Trust PLC: -4.7% 
Portfolio Changes:
A significant shift this week as the team deploy capital back into equities:
Reduce UK Gilts (0–5yr) by 7.5%
Add 2.5% to Japan
Add 2.5% to Nasdaq
Add 2.5% to FTSE 250

The move reflects a view that recent market weakness may present selective opportunities, while also maintaining diversification across regions and styles.
Big Questions This Week:
• Has the Federal Reserve lost credibility with markets?
• Are rising bond yields a bigger threat to equities than expected?
• Is the AI trade undergoing a healthy correction, or something more structural?
• Can value continue to outperform growth in this new environment?
• Does this sell-off present a buying opportunity, or signal further downside?
What You’ll Learn:
✔️ Why bond markets are now driving equity market direction
 ✔️ How rising yields impact growth vs value investing
 ✔️ What’s really behind the recent AI and semiconductor sell-off
 ✔️ How professional investors navigate earnings season volatility
 ✔️ Why diversification matters more than ever in shifting market regimes
Disclaimer:
This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are illustrative and for educational purposes.
Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.