Are millennial investors facing a perfect strom?

1st July 2016

Looking at the mismatches between expectation and reality

Depressed wages, escalating living costs and a struggling global economy – millennials have a lot on their plates. They need investment income to support short and long-term financial aspirations. Does something have to give and is the perfect investment storm brewing?

Depressed wages, escalating living costs and a struggling global economy – millennials have a lot on their plates. They need investment income to support short and long-term financial aspirations. Does something have to give and is the perfect investment storm brewing?

The Schroders Global Investor Study 2016 found that millennial investors (those aged 18-35) have unrealistically high income expectations, a worryingly short-term investment outlook, and many dependencies to support both now and in the future.The result could see millennials fall drastically short of their investment goals.

Schroders Global Investor Study revealed:

  • Millennials demand more income (10.2%) than other investors (8.4%)
  • Millennials have an extremely short-term investment outlook, with 63% holding investments for less than 2 years
  • Millennials are risk averse, prioritising capital preservation and a return higher than inflation when choosing an investment
  • Millennials’ income is being stretched across a wide spectrum of dependencies from supplementing salary and pension to supporting children and buying houses

Is a financial storm brewing?

It is a potentially toxic mix. We live in a world where most developed nations’ interest rates are at or below 0.5%, and, in some cases, heading lower. The average stockmarket yield is just 3.8%[1].

To get the higher income they demand millennials would either need to take more risk or hold investments for a longer period in order to ride out market cycles, neither of which they seem willing to do.

The major risk is that millennials are labouring under two misapprehensions:

  • Their investments will grow faster than is realistic
  • The pot they ultimately do build will pay a far higher income than is likely

Compounded over a 20 or 30-year time frame, the gap is potentially huge, making the mismatches between expectation and reality identified by the Schroders Global Investor Study 2016 a cause for real concern.

Stretching incomes to the limit

To make matters worse, millennials have a far greater number of dependencies than older generations over which their income is being stretched.

Schroders Global Investor Study found the main reasons millennials invested were:
1. To supplement salary (46%)
2. To grow a portfolio (41%)
3. To supplement pension (35%)
4. To provide income for children/relatives (30%)
5. To buy something other than a home (28%)
6. To pay for a deposit for a home (26%)
7. To pay education fees (26%)
8. To pay for healthcare (22%)

Yet, according to a recent Guardian newspaper study, ‘a combination of debt, joblessness, globalisation, demographics and rising house prices is depressing (millennials) incomes.’[2]

The chasm that has opened up between millennials’ investment goals, their unrealistic income expectations and short-termism needs to be addressed, otherwise we could be heading for another social and economic crisis. τ

Source:
[1] Source: FTSE, S&P 500, CAC, DAX, Shanghai, Nikkei, ASX, Hang Seng, Bovespa, Mexbol. Average forward 12-month yield across 11 indexes as at 18 May, 2016, according to Bloomberg data.
[2] http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/07/revealed-30-year-economic-betrayal-dragging-down-generation-y-income

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