WORLDVIEW: This week’s big bond issues make us even more bullish about Amazon, Tesla

There a was a time South African investors cared less about what happened to stocks in global markets. No longer. Progressive relaxations in exchange controls triggered a different line of thought. In recent times, the impact of Zumanomics has provided fresh stimulus.

My own global stocks journey only began three years ago. It came after Standard Bank Online stockbrokers asked us to work on something to publicise its new Webtrader platform. Perhaps naively, I suggested we create a portfolio of stocks and provide a monthly update on their news flow.

After some months of research we opted for a conservative portfolio with half invested in the S&P500 Index Fund and a close proxy, Berkshire Hathaway. Having this solid base allowed me to confidently apply Warren Buffett's tried and tested approach to some more stock picks. And to add a few potentially exponential companies whose models I understood because of my own hands on experience in the digital business.

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