The Philippine Stocks Market 2013: A Year in Review

As December 30 and 31 are declared national holidays here in the Philippines, our last trading day for 2013 has ended by the close of the bell last December 27. How did our stocks index fare as compared to last year? Let us look at the comparative numbers below:

As you can see, The Philippine stocks' main index grew by a modest 1.33% from last year. After breaching an intraday record high of 7,403.65 last May 15, 2013 PSEi has since experienced an up and down ride, primarily attributed to tapering talks from the US Fed. It even reached an intraday bottom of 5,562.13 last August 28 with many stocks analysts signalling the start of the bearish cycle. In the end, the local bourse only managed to squeeze-in a 77.10 increase from prior year's close. PSEi increased by 32.95% last 2012.

User Guide: Stocks Profit Monitoring Worksheet

Just in case you missed our Facebook and Twitter announcement, I just released the FREE Stocks Profit Monitoring Worksheet which can help you track your stocks better. I also use this in my own investments. I find it really beneficial as it lets me know my total costs and how much my profit would be should I decide to sell. To assist you in using the file, I have provided a brief explanation of the important points included therewith:

If you would notice, I indicated different colors for the different headers in the worksheet - green for buy and red for the sell transactions, while yellow indicates the computed profits.

Philippine Stocks Market Outlook: December 23 - 27, 2013

Our friends in pinoyinvestor have an exciting market review for us this week!

First, AB Capital Securities brings a concise 2-page analysis about the macroeconomic backdrop and its impact to the stocks market. Also, on December 26, they will be releasing a Special Report on Philippine Stocks Market Strategies for 2014 exclusive to premium access members so make sure to upgrade now!

Wealth Securities have an interesting take on why they still consider Meralco (MER) and Universal Robina Corporation (URC) a must buy.

For traders, be sure to have a look what market experts think of their stock picks - Aboitiz Power (AP), Globe Telecom (GLO), Energy Development Corp (EDC) and Robinsons Land Corp (RLC).

All these and more in this week's stocks report. Log in now to get exclusive access.

5 Tips to Avoid Serious Losses in Your Stocks Investment

We've seen the Philippine Stocks Index go up and down for the past several months. Being successful in your stocks investment not only require identifying where you can get the highest possible returns, but also protecting yourself in incurring huge losses.

Here are 5 tips to help you avoid making serious losses in your stocks investment:

1. Don't buy stocks you do not know. Are you the type of person who asks people in forums and social media on which stocks you should buy? Please stop it. They don't know your investment goals. Chances are they don't really care if you lose money. And you don't even know them to trust their investment advice. Buy stocks that you are comfortable holding on to. You owe it to yourself to sleep better at night.

Steve Jobs

Apple will never be as successful as it is today without the genius of Steve Jobs. Even after his death, the values he instilled in the company he built remain steadfast and has guided Apple to be hailed as the most valuable brand in the world.

Steve has often been referred to as demanding and aggressive to his wants. But after reading his authorized biography, I know everybody would really appreciate his perfectionism and his artistic sense. In a world where businesses are measured by their bottom line profits, Jobs has proven that quality and innovative designs are as important.

Things You Should Know About Exchange Traded Funds (ETF)

In a recently concluded Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) seminar in Manila, Juanita Cueto, Commissioner for Securities and Exchange Commission made a fearless forecast that ETFs will be the next big thing in the Philippine investing industry. "There is no better time than now to educate investors on this product", she said in her keynote address on the said event. Others speakers agreed that availability of ETFs can spur growth in the country and may even attract more investors.

In this article we will list down the basics of ETFs and hope to answer why investment professionals are optimistic about this type of investment.

4 Life Lessons Nelson Mandela Taught Us That Can be Applied to Investing

Nelson Mandela was well loved for bringing peace to South Africa and ending oppression and racial inequalities to his people. Even in his death, he continues to inspire the World by his ideals. While he is not exactly an icon in investing, the lessons he embodied throughout his life will inspire investors in their own search for finding financial freedom. Here are four qualities he showed the World that can be embodied by every investors:

1. Age is never a hindrance to succeed.
When Mandela was imprisoned, he was 44. By the time he got out he was already 72. He was elected president of his nation four yeas later. Except for the time when he started to have health problems, he continued to champion the people to achieve sustainable peace.

Taxes on Stocks Investment

Manny Pacquiao's tax case with the BIR was all over the news the last two weeks where the famous boxer is being accused of not paying over P2.2 billion pesos to the government. Don't worry, we will not dwell on each side's arguments on the matter. But I think this is the best opportunity to discuss the related taxes associated in being a stocks investor. This is an important lesson to understand for new investors, and what long-time investors should already know. We will focus our discussion to transactions involving individual investors.Let's dive in to answer some of the common questions asked by fellow investors:

1. What are the taxes applicable for stocks investing?

For BIR purposes, there is a distinction whether a stock is traded in a public exchange or not.

For stocks listed in PSE, our tax authority requires us to pay 1/2 of 1% of the gross selling price of every stock transaction sold. Here is an example to show you how to compute your tax.

It is important to note that the BIR also requires stock brokers to withhold the amount and directly remit it to them. If you are familiar with how the tax system works, corporations and businesses act as collecting agents
and they would automatically deduct any tax collectible and they would be the ones to remit it to BIR. If what I'm trying to say is still not clear, just think about why you have never received the full amount of your salaries from employment. That's right, your employer automatically deducts the taxes you owe to the government not because they want to, but because they were told to do so.