Back to the complete issue
Wednesday, 2 January 2019

Where to invest in 2019

So what does the new year have in store, and where should you think of putting your money? Think cautious, but not hopeless. Amid warnings of a bearish 2019, there’s a lot of negativity in the market, FT Money says, and many investors are spooked, torn between the fear of missing out and the fear of losing money. While the optimist could argue that a dip could mean more buying potential, rising political tensions in both developed and developing countries have led to investors holding onto cash and super defensives like utilities and healthcare. Still, it’s worth remembering that experts’ end-of-year sentiments were off the past two years; people thought that 2017 was going to disappoint — instead it was a positive year — while people had high hopes for 2018 — which were unmistakably dashed. FT’s main prediction is that 2019 could be a little worse than 2018, but not terrible.

Profitable investment options for the next year include exchange-traded funds (ETFs), especially utilities ETFs which are a safe option, Forbes advises, as well as the real estate and the surging elderly care industries. Look out though, for traditional “disrupted” markets that are about to be destroyed by tech and innovation, such as traditional retail and auto sales industries, which have seen sales decline as e-commerce and the sharing economy grow.

Tech companies are staying optimistic about 2019, despite difficult market conditions, WSJ notes, dubbing it the “reign of the unicorn IPO.” We can expect to hear a lot about the four giant tech IPOs in 2019, with Uber expected to bring USD 120 mn from public funding, becoming the biggest IPO in US history. Hospitality industry disruptor Airbnb is also valued at a whopping USD 31 bn for its IPO next year. Uber’s ride-hailing rival Lyft is also expected to issue an initial public offering, with a potential valuation of USD 15 billion, while productivity software giant Slack is expected to pull in USD 7 bn in its IPO next year.

Enterprise is a daily publication of Enterprise Ventures LLC, an Egyptian limited liability company (commercial register 83594), and a subsidiary of Inktank Communications. Summaries are intended for guidance only and are provided on an as-is basis; kindly refer to the source article in its original language prior to undertaking any action. Neither Enterprise Ventures nor its staff assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, whether in the form of summaries or analysis. © 2022 Enterprise Ventures LLC.

Enterprise is available without charge thanks to the generous support of HSBC Egypt (tax ID: 204-901-715), the leading corporate and retail lender in Egypt; EFG Hermes (tax ID: 200-178-385), the leading financial services corporation in frontier emerging markets; SODIC (tax ID: 212-168-002), a leading Egyptian real estate developer; SomaBay (tax ID: 204-903-300), our Red Sea holiday partner; Infinity (tax ID: 474-939-359), the ultimate way to power cities, industries, and homes directly from nature right here in Egypt; CIRA (tax ID: 200-069-608), the leading providers of K-12 and higher level education in Egypt; Orascom Construction (tax ID: 229-988-806), the leading construction and engineering company building infrastructure in Egypt and abroad; Moharram & Partners (tax ID: 616-112-459), the leading public policy and government affairs partner; Palm Hills Developments (tax ID: 432-737-014), a leading developer of commercial and residential properties; Mashreq (tax ID: 204-898-862), the MENA region’s leading homegrown personal and digital bank; Industrial Development Group (IDG) (tax ID:266-965-253), the leading builder of industrial parks in Egypt; Hassan Allam Properties (tax ID:  553-096-567), one of Egypt’s most prominent and leading builders; and Saleh, Barsoum & Abdel Aziz (tax ID: 220-002-827), the leading audit, tax and accounting firm in Egypt.