🏆 NOW AN AWARD-WINNING PODCAST
Huge thank you to everyone who voted! TAOI just won Best Financial Podcast, Best Financial Analysis, and Best Investing Education at the Good Money Guide Awards.
This week, Rich McDonald, Chris Fellingham and Mark “Spice” Holden break down one of the most complex macro weeks of the year. From Japan’s shock rate-rise chatter to a crypto wipeout, a commodities surge, and the portfolio’s push toward being fully invested for the potential Santa Rally…yes, we’ve added more copper!
We answer a few listener questions;
1. Should all investors be using a stop loss?
2. How to manage positions when taking profits and managing the downside risk?
3. Should we all have an annual target return for our ISAs and how to manage investments when you hit your target early?
This Week’s Highlights
- 💥 Crypto Rollercoaster - Bitcoin dumps 10% right after last week’s episode… then rips back. China’s clampdown on illegal exchanges sparks volatility.
- 💵 Dollar Weakness = Commodity Strength - A 1.5% fall in the dollar boosts metals across the board. Silver hits a new all-time high, gold approaches one and copper posts a new post-crash high.
- 🇯🇵 Japan Shocks Markets - The Bank of Japan hints at a rate hike (from 0.5% to 0.75%), sending JGB yields to 1.9%, the highest in years.
- 🎅 Santa Rally… Incoming? - December is typically strong, but Japan’s sudden move could complicate things.
- 🇺🇸 US Markets Stay Resilient - The S&P 500 notches its 7th straight monthly gain.
- 📉 Oil Wobbles - Tensions with Venezuela move prices, but weak structural supply keeps oil struggling.
Macro Deep Dive: Japan, Yields & Why It Matters
The team translate Japan’s bond market into plain English:
- What a “30-year vs 10-year implied 20-year rate” actually tells us
- Why the market is already pricing Japanese rates rising to ~4% over time
- How a rising yen hurts Nikkei earnings
- Why Japan’s decades of deflation explain their ultra-cautious approach now
Portfolio Snapshot
(as referenced in-episode — not final weekly numbers)
Weekly Performance: +0.68%
Total Return Since Inception: +9.8%
Top Performers:
🥇 BlackRock World Mining Trust: +5.4%
🥈 WisdomTree Copper ETF: +3.34%
🥉 VanEck Crypto & Blockchain Innovators ETF: +2.55%
Underperformers:
🇮🇳 iShares MSCI India ETF: –2.94%
🌏 iShares Core MSCI EM IMI ETF: –0.93%
🇯🇵 iShares Nikkei 225 ETF: –0.64%
Actions Taken:
We are now fully invested heading into year-end.
• +2.5% WisdomTree Copper ETF
• Cash now fully deployed, with Gilts acting as defensive ballast
What You’ll Learn
- How Japan’s bond market can move global stocks
- Why a weak dollar supercharges metals
- Why India suddenly fell this week
- How professionals think about risk once they’ve hit a return target
- The psychology of selling winners and losers
- Why copper may be the portfolio’s secret weapon for 2026
📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides
View the portfolio breakdown: here
📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com
Subscribe for weekly investing insights and to follow the live portfolio in real time.
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.
December Incentive – Get 5% cashback on your investments:
Open a new account and invest a minimum of £50 by 31 December, and keep at least £50 invested until March.
You’ll receive 5% cashback on your invested value from 21 November to 31 December (max payout £100).
Your capital is at risk. New customers only.
Offer valid until 31/12/2025 on ISA, GIA or SIPP accounts. T&Cs apply.
📄 Full details & T&Cs: https://www.ig.com/uk/5-percent-cashback-nov-25
The Art of Investing