The Rules of Investing

Investors had a decade to buy Amazon. Is it Spotify’s turn now?

Amazon spent over a decade as a misunderstood stock - volatile, unprofitable, and often written off. But for those who looked past the noise, it became one of the greatest investments of our time. Today, Janus Henderson sees echoes of that journey in Spotify. It may not look like a market leader yet, but under the surface, the building blocks of enduring growth are falling into place. In this episode, Josh Cummings explains how volatility creates opportunity, why time is a long-term investor’s best friend, and what separates the winners from the noise. Is Spotify your second shot at an Amazon-style success?
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

Marcus Padley reveals the secret sauce of timing markets

In this special episode of The Rules of Investing, veteran stockbroker and Marcus Today founder Marcus Padley joins Livewire’s James Marlay for a wide-ranging conversation on two critical themes. First, Marcus takes aim at the industry’s obsession with buy-and-hold, arguing that smart market timing isn’t just possible - it’s essential for managing risk and avoiding underperformance. Then, he fields Livewire reader questions on everything from gold and lithium to bond yields and WiseTech. It’s bold, unfiltered, and classic Marcus.
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

Andrew Mitchell: The market always wins

Equity markets have bounced, but Andrew Mitchell from Ophir says the road ahead is tricky. Higher bond yields and policy risks point to slower growth. In this environment, companies that can grow through the cycle will stand out. In this episode of The Rules of Investing, Mitchell shares his views on equity markets, the dominance of US megacaps, and why he remains optimistic on small and mid-caps. He also unpacks the thesis behind a mission-critical tech stock flying under the radar, one he believes has the potential to become a rare ‘Rule of 40’ standout.
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

Meet David - He’s taking on Australia’s ETF Goliaths (with just 10 stocks and a bold plan)

Australia’s ETF industry is booming - up $53 billion in the past year alone - and a new player is stepping into the ring. David Tuckwell, son of ETF pioneer Graeme Tuckwell, has launched ETF Shares to challenge the giants like Vanguard and Betashares. His weapon of choice? Low fees and ultra-focused US tech exposure. One fund holds just the top 10 Nasdaq stocks - an audacious bet on concentration over diversification. Is there room for another player in an increasingly crowded market? We explore the strategy, the story, and the stakes behind ETF Shares’ bold launch.
 
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

Tough medicine: Trump 2.0 is a structural break for economies and markets

Investors hoping for a swift ‘V-shaped’ recovery from the recent market sell-off are likely to be disappointed. Instead, they face a slow, grinding path forward. That’s the base case from Koda Capital’s Chief Economist, Brigette Leckie, who says the tariff-led policies of Trump 2.0 represent a structural break for economies and markets.
 
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

“We’re buying”: Emma Fisher spots a rare chance to upgrade the portfolio

“Are you okay?” That was the question Emma Fisher got from her mum after the ASX plunged more than 6% in a single day. For Fisher, it was a soft signal that the worst of the panic may be behind us. In this episode of The Rules of Investing, Emma shares why sharp sell-offs are the new normal, the two market “buckets” she’s buying from, and how she’s funding new ideas. Last time she was on the podcast, Emma tipped ResMed at $22. This time, she’s back with a fresh idea she’s backing for the next 5 years.
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Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

The world is complex. Beyond the headlines is where the real opportunities lie

No matter how long you’ve been in markets, we’re all guilty, at one point or another, of operating at a headline level. When markets are moving violently - like they are now - and we’re all trying to keep up, operating at a summary level can become even more pronounced.
But looking beyond the headlines, challenging what you think you know, and diving deeper into complex issues, will almost certainly always yield a better result.
For example, one of the dominant narratives right now is that Trump’s tariffs will lead to higher inflation. Logically, it makes sense. But the reality could look quite different according to Charlie Jamieson, Co-Founder of Jamieson Coote Bonds.
“Everybody just jumps to ‘tariffs mean higher prices, that means inflation'. Well, it's not quite that simple.
It definitely means higher prices, but that does potentially mean demand destruction in some things. It really matters how elastic the thing that is being tariffed actually is", says Jamieson.
He goes on to provide the example of a 100% tariff on a luxury handbag: “you probably won’t sell too many.” Conversely, a tariff on the one little part you need for a broken-down heating or air conditioning unit: " You're probably going to pay it because you're really, really need it - it’s very inelastic.”
Jamieson also points out that inflation is “a continual and sustained increase in pricing”.
“If prices go up 10% that's terrible, obviously demand will be affected, but if they don't change thereafter, it's not inflationary. 
It just means that yes, of course it is in the very first reading of, but it's not a continued and sustained price increase”.
The final piece to this puzzle is what happened last time.
“As we saw in Trump 1.0, despite his tariffs at that time, inflation continually fell through that period”, notes Jamieson.
“Trump's thinking is that if he can bring that budgetary deficit down considerably, it will also help take out excess demand, it'll bring more efficiency to government and in doing so, he will lower inflation”.
This is just one of the many narratives that Jamieson unpacks in the following Rules of Investing podcast, which covers a lot of ground about the global economy, central bank policy, interest rates, inflation, and why investors have a great opportunity right now to rethink and reposition their portfolios.
Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.

Jun Bei Liu: 2 stocks for the bottom drawer and how to play the only realistic scenarios left for 2025

At the start of 2025, there were three big-picture scenarios facing investors: a hard landing, a soft landing, or no landing at all. Just two of those scenarios remain, with a hard landing now off the table, according to Ten Cap’s Jun Bei Liu.
That view might seem a touch ambitious in light of the market rout that kicked off in mid-February and gathered steam as sticky inflation and a tariff war put equity valuations under pressure.The ASX 200 has fallen 8.5% in a month and is down over 4.5% for 2025. The picture is worse for US equities, where, after back-to-back years of +20% gains, the S&P 500 has shed over 10% in a month and is down over 5% from the start of the year.
The headlines and moves are unnerving, but the backdrop for equities remains favourable, and the volatility is creating opportunities to buy businesses at better valuations, according to Jun Bei Liu.
 
Thanks to our Sponsor AlphaSenseThis latest episode is brought to you by AlphaSense.See what AlphaSense can do for your investment research—visit alpha-sense.com/livewire to get started.