Balanced Asset Allocation: How to Profit in Any Economic Climate

Foreword

Let's face it—everyone needs a catalyst now and then. For me, this book has been a wake-up call; it has heightened my awareness of the risks in the portfolios I manage, and reminded me that managing money is as much art as it is science. Reading Balanced Asset Allocation has both reinvigorated my perspective related to constructing portfolios, but also given me valuable insights into how the portfolios could react under different economic conditions. Balancing risks and diversifying is what my job is all about. As an institutional investor, I have put the concepts of this book to work in the portfolios I manage. But as the saying goes, the cobbler's children have poor shoes, and I need to do a better job in my personal portfolios.

By explaining how to balance the risks in a portfolio, Alex has written a book that is completely accessible and useful across a wide spectrum of investors. Both the institutional investor managing billions and the average investor saving for retirement over a long time horizon can benefit. You don't need a lot of math skill to implement a balanced portfolio. The recipe is right here in the book. Alex does a wonderful job explaining why the economic machine works the way it does. You don't have to know the volatility of the stock market or the bond market, although the book spends time showing the reader how the numbers work if they are so inclined. The problem with the way we currently invest our portfolios is that they are too dependent on ...