March 31, 2022

How Your Portfolio Can Profit From Rising Interest Rates

As inflation increases around the world due to the impacts of the pandemic and geopolitical events, governments in many countries are expected to increase interest rates. This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that the Bank of Canada recently raised interest rates by 0.25% and further increases are expected later this year. In the United States, the Federal Reserve is planning several interest rate hikes starting in this month.

It is important to note that rising interest rates can be beneficial for certain sectors. For example, banks benefit due to an increased “net interest margin”, the different between interest received and interest paid. Insurance companies benefit from the possibility of achieving enhanced returns on their investments. On the flip side, companies with high debt loads will have challenges as the cost of financing increases. Additionally, companies in the technology sector where profitably is far into the future will also be challenged.

The question investors should be asking is how can I position my portfolio to benefit from a rising interest rate environment? Below are some portfolio tweaks to consider.

Make Sure Your Portfolio Has Exposure To Banks and Insurance Companies: As interest rates rise, banks’ profit margins and interest income should see a noticeable improvement in profitability which should allow for dividend increases over time.

Reduce Long-Term Bonds: The relationship between bonds and interest rates is like a teeter-totter. As interest rates increase, bond prices tend to decrease. Long term bonds are most sensitive to this relationship. To prevent capital losses on bonds, consider shifting bond exposure to shorter term issues. They mature faster and are less volatile and susceptible to interest rate fluctuations.

Use Alternative Assets: Adding alternative assets such as real estate, farmland, timberland, and hedge funds to your portfolio can provide a different source of return that are less correlated to the stock and bond markets. With alternatives, you should be looking “under the hood” to understand what you are buying, the risk involved, and liquidity available. One of Northfront Financial’s core capabilities is helping individual investors access quality alternative investments.

About Northfront Financial

Northfront Financial, based in Calgary, Alberta is a boutique full-service financial planning firm serving professionals and business owners. We pride ourselves on being a different kind of investment firm. This stems from our humble roots, entrepreneurial spirit, and a culture of integrity and professionalism. Our goal is to offer the best investment products, services, advice, and ideas the financial industry has to offer from our experienced team, which includes individuals with the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA®), Chartered Investment Manager (CIM®), and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designations.

Share Post:

53 comments

  1. I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.

  2. I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.

  3. Can you be more specific about the content of your article? After reading it, I still have some doubts. Hope you can help me.

  4. Currently it seems like Drupal is the preferred blogging platform out there right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you’re using on your blog?

  5. I always spent my half an hour to read this website’s articles or reviews every day along with a cup of coffee.

  6. Heya i’m for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It truly useful & it helped me out a lot. I hope to give something back and help others like you helped me.

  7. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this. Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.

  8. May I just say what a comfort to discover somebody that truly knows what they are discussing online. You actually realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More people have to check this out and understand this side of the story. It’s surprising you’re not more popular since you most certainly have the gift.

  9. May I just say what a comfort to uncover an individual who truly understands what they’re talking about on the web. You certainly know how to bring an issue to light and make it important. A lot more people need to look at this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised you are not more popular since you most certainly have the gift.

  10. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this. Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.

  11. Aw, this was an extremely nice post. Spending some time and actual effort to produce a great article… but what can I say… I procrastinate a whole lot and never manage to get anything done.

  12. Wow that was odd. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say excellent blog!

  13. May I just say what a comfort to uncover someone that actually understands what they’re talking about online. You actually realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important. A lot more people ought to look at this and understand this side of the story. It’s surprising you’re not more popular since you definitely have the gift.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*/ ?>