Sharing Mary Anne, my wife’s article first published in HerWord.com last September 30, 2010

Dear Mrs. Colayco,

Where can I go to learn about the stock market? I hear about ordinary employees like me playing the stock market on the Internet and they say they make a lot of money from it.

—Aggie

Mrs. Colayco replies:

Dear Aggie,

I believe that only those who are competent and have an investment appetite for risk should invest in stocks directly. Competency requires a lot of learning, both technical and experience. It requires that you study each company you invest in. The stock market is bullish now and may remain so in the near future but it could dive down just as fast and definitely, there will be ups and downs. Thus, stock investments should be limited to the better companies that you can hold on to no matter how the market moves.

We prefer to advise most Filipinos to invest in mutual funds. If their personal financial plan depending on their age and goals will allow them to invest in equities, then equity mutual funds are a good option. However, they should choose the better-managed funds. Your diversifying into fixed income and balanced funds is also a good strategy to spread your risks.

Managers of the better mutual funds and unit investment trust funds (UITF) know how to ride with the ups and downs of the market. This is why you can stay invested in a mutual fund or UITF for at least three to five years by just buying shares on a regular basis, whether the market is up or down.

You need not really time your buying and selling like you would if you were buying directly into specific stocks.

Join our seminars that will help you in your personal financial plan.

PISObilities: Wealth Within Your Reach
Saturday, October 16, 2010, 2 to 5 p.m.

INVESTability: The Stock Market
Tuesday October 19, 2010, 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon

For more details, call (632) 637-3731 or 6373741 or visit www.colaycofoundation.com.

Mary Anne B. Colaco is a happy wife, fulfilled mother of three beautiful ladies, helpful mother-in-law of two handsome gentlemen, doting grandmother of two adorable girls and the diligent President of Colayco Foundation for Education (CFE). For over 40 years, Mabsi, short for MAB-C, was in executive-level finance-related positions, as well as general management positions in Ayala Corporation subsidiaries (then, Pure Foods and Globe Telecom among others) and also served as a Commissioner of the Energy Regulatory Commission.