Going for gold with ETF provider

The ETF way

Australian investors seeking a refuge in gold as a safe-haven investment have been hurt by a rise in the Australian dollar. While spot gold prices (in US dollars) have surged by over 70% since 2008, unhedged spot gold rose only 12% for Australian investors. ETF provider BetaShares has launched a leveraged trading tool on the BetaShares Gold Bullion Exchange Traded Fund ($A hedged) called the Macquarie QAU Mini Long (ASX code: QAUKMA).

It allows investors to access leveraged exposure to gold without margin calls. According to BetaShares' Drew Corbett, you pay only a fraction of buying the ETF outright, and gain access to gold bullion that is unaffected by currency movements, leveraged at 65%.

Women connect

If you are a woman in business, check out the Commonwealth Bank's new Women in Focus website at womeninfocus.com.au. It's a website that aims to connect women with other women in business in Australia and around the world.

It is designed to help women develop their skills, networks and businesses by sharing ideas and their inspiring stories. It encourages women to ask other women questions and express opinions. It is set up as a noticeboard with offers to women from businesses and events too.

Over-50s insurance

If you want to cover your funeral costs, credit card bills and utility expenses, there's new life insurance cover for the over-50s from ANZ. One of the attractions of ANZ 50+ Life Cover is that the costs don't go up as you age. Also you can request a capped premium so that the maximum you pay never exceeds the total benefit. There are no medical tests or health questions when you take out the insurance that is for a $15,000 benefit. It also typically pays the benefit within two business days.

Get stories like this in our newsletters.