Common pitfalls of investors-mistakes investors tend to make

　　Stock prices have fallen considerably during the current economic malaise. Although there is the risk that stock markets may not have bottomed， the current low stock prices offer an opportunity for retail investors to gradually invest in selected blue chip stocks that may have previously been out of reach. 　In the event that you decide to invest， here is a list of pitfalls you should avoid:

　　Inadequate Asset Allocation-- Asset allocation is the process of dividing your pool of money among different asset classes， e.g. between income investments such as fixed deposits and bond funds， and growth investments which will include riskier investments such as stocks or physical property. The former is considered the safer option， however bond funds are riskier than fixed deposits although they may offer a higher return in the long run. Growth investments are more volatile and have been very popular in Singapore because they offer the potential for higher returns. 　The mistake most investors make is to put most of their money in one form of investment， say stocks or properties. As a result， when the property and stock markets decline， these investors are in an extremely vulnerable position. It is always prudent to keep aside at least enough cash to provide a cushion of about 6 months' monthly income as a safeguard against sharp declines in the stock and property markets or in the event that you need cash urgently. 　Lack of Diversification--Having decided that you want to put aside some moneyin an investment portfolio comprising say equities， you should always aim to diversify the stocks within your portfolio so as to minimise your risk exposure to any one stock. Not only should you diversify between stocks， you should also diversify between different industry sectors， and if resources permit， within different geographical regions. This would reduce your risk exposure should any one company or sector or region suddenly experience a sharp decline. 　If you are a first-time investor， you may not have much funds at your disposal. The purchase of one stock alone could utilise the bulk of your investible savings. One way to diversify is to invest in unit trusts which usually cost about $1 per unit when launched. These unit trusts are investment portfolios managed by a professional fund manager. As the fund manager pools the funds from many investors， he can invest in a diversified portfolio that offers lower risk. Unit trusts may also enable investors to diversify across regions， e.g. a European fund paired with an Asia Pacific Fund， or between assets， e.g. investing under an umbrella fund in an equity fund， a bond fund and a money market fund. 　Market timing--Some investors try to "time" the

　　market， i.e. waiting for the market peak to sell and bottom to buy. Such strategies are difficult to implement even for the professional fund managers. You may also incur higher transaction costs as a result of such a strategy. 　Investments should be made with a long-term view. The ups and downs in the market can be made to work in your favour. If you think a stock is good， you can pick it up in small amounts so that you average out the cost of the investment over time. For example， buying 1 lot of stock each month over a 4-month period at say $0.70， $0.80 and $0.90 and $1.00 would result in an average cost of $0.85. 　Letting Go--If you have made a bad investment decision， do consider selling the stock even if it results in a loss. The mistake some investors make is in trying to average down their losses by buying the stock again at a lower price without analysing the cause of the decline. The price of the stock may have fallen due to the deterioration of the company"s financial position， poor business prospects， or potential law suits. If the stock is not good， you are essentially throwing good money after bad. 　Herd Instinct--Some investors buy shares when they see hectic buying in the market by other investors， i.e. chasing the price of the stock up. Huge price fluctuations can occur and fade very quickly leaving naive investors stranded and holding on to stocks purchased at high prices. 　Inadequate Research --Before you invest in anything， you should familiarise yourself with the instruments and their risks. Such information can be obtained from newspapers， financial magazines or even on the Internet. For example， in the case of stocks you may wish to ask yourself the following questions: Does the company have a good management? What type of business is the company in? Does the business have growth potential? Does the company have a good profit track record? What are its prospects? How volatile isthe company's stock price? If the price of the stock is volatile， will you be able to tolerate the risk if the price of the stock rise or decline sharply?

　　投資者常犯的錯

　　股票價(jià)格因為當前的金融危機已大幅度下跌。雖然目前還不肯定 是否已見(jiàn)底，但小投資者還是可考慮趁目前的低價(jià)買(mǎi)進(jìn)一些從前遙不 可及的藍籌股。

　　如果你決定投資了，應避免犯以下的錯誤： *資產(chǎn)分配不足：你把資金分配于不同等級的資產(chǎn)，例如帶來(lái)固定收 入的定期存款和債券基金，或是具增值潛能的股票或房地產(chǎn)。

　　許多投資者都犯上把大部分資金集中于一項投資的錯誤，如股票或 房地產(chǎn)。一旦房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)或股市下滑，他們所受的沖擊將不小。謹慎 的做法是擁有一筆相等于六個(gè)月薪金的儲蓄，在股市和房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)突 然下滑或是急需現金時(shí)，可作為后盾。

　　*投資不夠多元化：決定利用部分資金投資后，你應該盡量使投資組 合多元化。舉例說(shuō)，如果你投資的是股票，應盡可能不要過(guò)度集中于 某只股票。除此之外，也應確保組合內的股票不是都從事某個(gè)行業(yè)。

　　如果有足夠的資源，甚至投

　　資的地區也應多元化。

　　如果你初次接觸投資，你可能沒(méi)有足夠的資金，一只股票可能就用 盡所有的資金。投資單位信托基金是其中一個(gè)分散投資的方式，而投 資一個(gè)單位通常只需1元左右。負責管理基金的專(zhuān)業(yè)經(jīng)理會(huì )集合許多 投資者的資金，組成一個(gè)風(fēng)險分散的投資組合。

　　投資者也可借這個(gè)途徑投資于其他地區，如歐洲基金和亞太基金， 或是投資于不同的資產(chǎn)，如包括股票基金、債券基金和貨幣基金的雨 傘基金。

　　*投資時(shí)機：有些投資者想等到市場(chǎng)升至頂峰時(shí)賣(mài)掉，跌至谷底時(shí)買(mǎi) 入。這樣的投資策略，對專(zhuān)業(yè)的基金經(jīng)理來(lái)說(shuō)，也不容易執行。此外 ，它的交易費用可能會(huì )較高。

　　投資時(shí)應把眼光放長(cháng)遠，市場(chǎng)的起起落落也可能對你有利。如果你 認為一只股　具投資潛能，可考慮分幾次買(mǎi)入以把平均價(jià)拉低。舉例 說(shuō)，你在4個(gè)月內分四次買(mǎi)入4000股，買(mǎi)入價(jià)分別是0.70元、0.80元 、0.90元和1.00元，平均買(mǎi)入價(jià)是0.85元。

　　*不懂得放手：如果你做了個(gè)錯誤的投資決定，即使會(huì )蒙受虧損，還 是應考慮脫售。一些投資者犯的錯誤便是在沒(méi)有研究股價(jià)下跌的情形 下繼續買(mǎi)進(jìn)，期望能因此減少虧損。

　　股價(jià)下滑可能是因為財務(wù)狀況欠佳、業(yè)務(wù)前景不理想或是公司可能 面對訴訟。

　　因此，你可能是在浪費時(shí)間和金錢(qián)。

　　*羊群效應：一些投資者見(jiàn)其他投資者在市場(chǎng)上追購某只股票，也不 落人后跟著(zhù)買(mǎi)入。股價(jià)是有可能在瞬息間大起大落的，經(jīng)驗不多的投 資者若在高價(jià)時(shí)買(mǎi)入而沒(méi)來(lái)得及賣(mài)出，就會(huì )被套牢。

　　*研究不足：投資任何東西前，你應該對它和其風(fēng)險有足夠的認識。

　　這些資訊可從報章、財經(jīng)雜志甚至是網(wǎng)際網(wǎng)絡(luò )上得到。

　　假設你要投資股票，先問(wèn)問(wèn)自己以下的問(wèn)題：這家公司有沒(méi)有好 的管理層?從事什么業(yè)務(wù)?業(yè)務(wù)有沒(méi)有發(fā)展潛能?盈利記錄好不好? 股價(jià)波動(dòng)大嗎?如果大，有能力承受大起大落的風(fēng)險嗎?