Why do we bother to write this daily newsletter? Since we hardly ever change our investment ideas or portfolio picks, why don't we just send out quarterly updates, like most investment firms?

We like writing to you often because it makes us think more clearly. To have sound opinions you need to work on new ideas, trying out different words, researching the facts, and then condensing your thoughts into a few paragraphs.

Here's an example. When editing our newsletter yesterday, I added the insight that the market was just one week away from its all-time highs, despite having endured a few rough days.

In the process of checking the index chart and articulating that insight, I was reminded (again) that market sentiment shifts quickly and that we should remain calm, and fully invested, taking the rough with the smooth.

Market volatility has picked up over the last few days and a few nervous clients have called in, wondering if they should sell before the "inevitable" crash. Short-term market movements are entirely unpredictable, so neither we nor anyone else knows when or if the market is going to hit a speed bump. If someone does call it right, it's 95% luck.

What we do know is that markets in the US trend upwards over time and that if you pick quality companies that operate in sectors that are growing and stay the course, you will make money. That's guaranteed according to historical odds, if you have been invested for any 20-year period, you have made money 100% of the time.

Half our job here at Vestact is to pick the best stocks, the other half, and maybe even more important, is to keep you invested through the bad times so that you can enjoy the good times. If you are a new client and feeling a bit concerned, don't be, we are with you for the whole journey.

Two of my favourite financial writers sat down in September to do a podcast together - Howard Marks and Morgan Housel talk about debt and endurance. In summary, debt enhances your returns but makes you financially fragile. When you have a large debt burden, you aren't able to handle volatility.

The Vestact model portfolio was up 40% last year and 50% the year before. Over the last 10 years, we have been up on average 18% a year after fees. Imagine how much money you would have made if you had borrowed money at a relatively low interest rate to invest in that portfolio. However, in 2022 our model portfolio was down 35%. If you were using borrowed money, that pullback could well have blown you up.

Debt from car loans can also make you fragile. If you take 100% finance on a new car, roughly speaking, for the first three years you will owe more on the car than it is worth. You never want to be in a position where you can't clear your debt by selling your car. I've read countless stories where the primary breadwinner gets retrenched, and they are stuck with expensive car repayments because the debt on the vehicle is more than the resale value. That adds significant stress and financial pressure!

Life happens, and compromising your financial endurance for short-term gains is not worth it.

Berkshire Hathaway reported results over the weekend with operating earnings surging 71% in the fourth quarter to $14.5 billion. That was driven by a 48% jump in insurance investment income ($4.1 billion) and a major turnaround in its insurance underwriting business.

Insurance giant GEICO stood out, with pretax underwriting earnings more than doubling to $7.8 billion. Reinsurance earnings grew 44%, although they expect $1.3 billion in losses from January's Los Angeles wildfires.

The company's cash reserves hit a record $334.2 billion as it remained a net seller of equities. CEO and founder Warren Buffett reassured investors that cash is not preferred over quality businesses, and hinted at increasing stakes in Japan's top five trading houses.

If you're after a well-diversified, steady business with a strong track record in capital allocation, Berkshire remains a solid investment choice. We have 97 clients that own this one in their New York portfolios.

Wired did a teardown of the new iPhone 16. If you take a radio apart you won't find any tiny people inside - Apple rolls out another well-made gadget.

A man lost his bank card. It was used to buy a winning French lottery ticket - The petit EUR500 000 crime.

Asian markets slipped on Thursday as investors digested the fresh tariff ramblings by Donald Trump. Indian markets managed to buck the trend.

In local company news, Bidcorp delivered solid results yesterday, with revenue up 7% in constant currency to R118 billion and a 10% increase in half-year profit. After adjusting for food-basket inflation and acquisitions, real organic growth peaked at around 5%.

US equity futures are slightly higher, but there are no important companies reporting results today.

The Rand is trading at around R18.47 to the US Dollar.

We will do this again tomorrow. Over and out.