2017, analysts predict, is going to take the ups and downs of 2016 and throw them into a blender. The incoming Trump administration in the US is likely to upend long-established global trade equations, as the new President comes in with a different set of friends and foes. We will be seeing a US President who is the friendliest towards Russia in decades, anti-trade and pro-tariffs, antagonistic towards China, and lukewarm at best and hostile at worst to long-standing agreements like NAFTA and NATO. And is also on social media a lot, issuing both angry threats and praise from his twitter feed.
In continental Europe, the impact of Brexit will begin to have its effects as the EU starts acting to push Britain out of the Union. In China, new tensions may be emerging between the country and neighbors like Taiwan, while India is recovering from the effects of demonetization, and prepares to implement the GST.
The phrase, 'may you live in interesting times' is rarely more than a mixed blessing. 2017 looks to be that kind of time, and investors preparing for turbulent markets will be looking for counsel and sage advice. What are the best investing books for times like this? We compiled a list of five, consisting of old stand-bys and some new entrants.
5) THE DHANDHO INVESTOR, Mohnish Pabrai. Finally an investing book from India worth its salt, and a compelling read. Dhandho is the strategy, Pabrai says, used by the Patels in Gujarat to maximize their returns on their earnings. His advice focuses on identifying a select few, good companies when others are selling them. His advice on making a few BIG investments on companies that are unfairly under-valued due to bad news or sharp market dips, may be especially useful for stock investing in India post-demonetization.
4) ONE UP ON WALL STREET, Peter Lynch. Peter Lynch's book is highly tailored to the small, individual investor willing to do their homework rather than play the ups and downs of the market. He details out many useful strategies for investors to do their homework on stocks and identify the multi-baggers that will give them good returns, regardless of the health of the overall stock market. It's a good, sobering reminder that in the stock market, as anywhere else, it's hard work that pays off.
3) STOCKS FOR THE LONG RUN, Jeremy Siegel. Siegel teaches at Wharton, and makes the case for investing not for the day or the week but for the long run, which he argues results in stocks giving you returns beating all other assets, and protecting against inflation. Useful advice for a period where the short-term may be up and down, but the longer outlook more stable.
2)THE BROKE AND BEAUTIFUL LIFE, Stefani O'Connor is more personal finance than investing, but is a useful and practical book for young investors, one that provides advice in making smarter decisions and setting effective budget goals. It helps for both tighter budgets and effective financial planning, especially during unpredictable income shifts.
1) IRRATIONAL EXUBERANCE, Robert Shiller: This may be THE book for 2017, since it argues that stock markets can go both irrationally high and irrationally low at times of high emotion and panic. Shiller, who won a Nobel Prize in 2013, argues that what drives stock prices is not an understanding of future dividends and growth, but psychology. Shiller's advice is good to remember when you are staring at a market crash or a full speed rise fuelled by rumor and headlines.
