thebigpicture Top Ten Investment Themes
These ten structural trends affecting long term investment decision-making summarise the views which underlie the opinions expressed in thebigpicture weekly review.

• Changing expenditure patterns including
          ~ reorientation of consumption spending to higher value branded goods
          ~ rising expenditure on healthcare
          ~ higher leisure expenditure
• Rising taxation burden or recourse to debt funding
• Pressure on individuals to stay in the workforce longer

• Historically low interest rates
• Relatively low income growth rates
• Monetary policy to err on the side of caution – lower growth             
• Pressure on managers to improve operational business performance

• Continuing geo-political tensions sourced in Middle East
• Risk of 'war' shocks or terror attacks in western countries
• Higher defence expenditure
         ~ taxation or government debt and interest rate impact
         ~ opportunities for military equipment and service providers

• Ethics - a debate on the nature of life
• Economics - who captures the value to be decided
• Difficulties in raising equity for commercialization
• Demands for more government funding for research and subsidizing usage

• Review of government v private sector in
         ~ periodic retraining
         ~ educational infrastructure
• Failure of companies to nurture internal skills will affect performance
         ~ corporate emphasis to swing back from cost cutting to intellectual capital development

• Winners: users of IT as a tool to improve productivity
• Losers: product developers facing low barriers to entry
• Will influence national competitiveness

• Good volumes will attract but little pricing power will constrain profits
• Highly competitive markets will constrain global inflation
• Australia will have potential advantages as high value service provider in region
• Production transfer will reduce low skill jobs
• Pressures will rise for wage cuts to compete

• Greater risk of shareholder disappointment
          ~  company growth rates to diminish
          ~  greater reliance on operational improvement to boost earnings    
• Greater shareholder agitation for public accountability for performance
• Continuing tension between prescribed behaviour and obtaining adequate financial returns

• Market upside dependent on improvement in sustainable profit
         ~ less reliance on valuation effects from lower interest rates
• Capital to remain relatively scarce

• New infrastructure developments
• Relocation of carbon generating industries
• More intense cost management pressures
• Utility providers to review pricing options
• Domestic recycling and industry packaging changes