PRECIOUS METALS TAKE CENTRE STAGE WITH AUSTRALIA’S FIRST GOLD DECUMULATION PLAN
ABC Bullion has launched a pioneering investment product that allows Australians to draw regular cashflow from their precious metal holdings.
ABC Bullion has launched a pioneering investment product that allows Australians to draw regular cashflow from their precious metal holdings.
ABC Bullion has launched a pioneering investment product that allows Australians to draw regular cash flow from their precious metal holdings, in a move aimed squarely at retirees and self-managed super funds.
Australasia’s leading bullion specialist, ABC Bullion, has unveiled the country’s first Gold Decumulation Plan (GDP), a product designed to give investors the ability to generate a steady monthly income from their gold and silver investments.
The initiative was launched before more than 700 clients, VIP guests and government ministers at ABC Bullion’s sold-out Precious Metal Forum, “Gold and the New World Order,” held at Sydney’s Ivy Ballroom.
The event featured keynote presentations from WestGold Resources CEO Wayne Bramwell and World Gold Council CEO David Tait, alongside a showcase of the $900,000 Lexus Melbourne Cup trophy, handcrafted by ABC Bullion’s sister company W.J. Sanders.
At the core of GDP is an auto-sales function: investors nominate the monthly dollar amount they wish to receive, and ABC Bullion buys back the required amount of precious metal to fund that payment. The funds are deposited into the client’s bank account on the first business day of each month.
Unlike term deposits, GDP has no lock-in period, offering maximum flexibility. Investors can pause or adjust payments, top up accounts, or convert holdings into physical bullion such as ABC-branded bars and coins. Portfolio tracking and transactions are available online 24/7.
Jordan Eliseo, General Manager of ABC Bullion, said the plan is particularly suited to Australians in or approaching retirement, especially the more than one million who self-manage their superannuation. “Gold has outperformed mainstream asset classes like shares and property over the past twenty-five years, averaging nearly 10% annual growth since 2000,” Eliseo said.
“The ABC Bullion Gold Decumulation Plan provides access to precious metals investments combined with the ability to generate monthly cashflow through fractional sales of precious metals to meet cashflow needs and lifestyle goals”.
Eliseo added that the appeal lies in gold’s resilience across economic cycles. “GDP is likely to be particularly appealing to Australians either already in or approaching retirement,” he noted, pointing to research showing that an investor who put $100,000 into gold in 1999 and withdrew $500 monthly would today have received $153,000 in income and still hold more than $420,000 worth of gold.
With gold prices rising and the Reserve Bank of Australia cutting rates to 3.60% in August, demand for stable, alternative investments is expected to increase. ABC Bullion says GDP uniquely caters to that demand, combining liquidity, flexibility and inflation protection in one platform.
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The pandemic-fuelled love affair with casual footwear is fading, with Bank of America warning the downturn shows no sign of easing.
The pandemic-fuelled love affair with casual footwear is fading, with Bank of America warning the downturn shows no sign of easing.
The boom in casual footware ushered in by the pandemic has ended, a potential problem for companies such as Adidas that benefited from the shift to less formal clothing, Bank of America says.
The casual footwear business has been on the ropes since mid-2023 as people began returning to office.
Analyst Thierry Cota wrote that while most downcycles have lasted one to two years over the past two decades or so, the current one is different.
It “shows no sign of abating” and there is “no turning point in sight,” he said.
Adidas and Nike alone account for almost 60% of revenue in the casual footwear industry, Cota estimated, so the sector’s slower growth could be especially painful for them as opposed to brands that have a stronger performance-shoe segment. Adidas may just have it worse than Nike.
Cota downgraded Adidas stock to Underperform from Buy on Tuesday and slashed his target for the stock price to €160 (about $187) from €213. He doesn’t have a rating for Nike stock.
Shares of Adidas listed on the German stock exchange fell 4.5% Tuesday to €162.25. Nike stock was down 1.2%.
Adidas didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Cota sees trouble for Adidas both in the short and long term.
Adidas’ lifestyle segment, which includes the Gazelles and Sambas brands, has been one of the company’s fastest-growing business, but there are signs growth is waning.
Lifestyle sales increased at a 10% annual pace in Adidas’ third quarter, down from 13% in the second quarter.
The analyst now predicts Adidas’ organic sales will grow by a 5% annual rate starting in 2027, down from his prior forecast of 7.5%.
The slower revenue growth will likewise weigh on profitability, Cota said, predicting that margins on earnings before interest and taxes will decline back toward the company’s long-term average after several quarters of outperforming. That could result in a cut to earnings per share.
Adidas stock had a rough 2025. Shares shed 33% in the past 12 months, weighed down by investor concerns over how tariffs, slowing demand, and increased competition would affect revenue growth.
Nike stock fell 9% throughout the period, reflecting both the company’s struggles with demand and optimism over a turnaround plan CEO Elliott Hill rolled out in late 2024.
Investors’ confidence has faded following Nike’s December earnings report, which suggested that a sustained recovery is still several quarters away. Just how many remains anyone’s guess.
But if Adidas’ challenges continue, as Cota believes they will, it could open up some space for Nike to claw back any market share it lost to its rival.
Investors should keep in mind, however, that the field has grown increasingly crowded in the past five years. Upstarts such as On Holding and Hoka also present a formidable challenge to the sector’s legacy brands.
Shares of On and Deckers Outdoor , Hoka’s parent company, fell 11% and 48%, respectively, in 2025, but analysts are upbeat about both companies’ fundamentals as the new year begins.
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