Focus On. . .  |  JAN 2002

Working Money: Buy American by David Penn

Buy American? by David Penn What You Don’t Know About Investing Overseas According to Kornitzer Capital Management’s Tom Laming, some of the best international investments come from US companies. Confused? Read on. ""Over there ... over there ..."" Investors have long been encouraged to put at least part of their hard-earned dollars to work in the equities markets of other countries. Given the more predictable returns readily available from the US stock markets, convincing investors to invest in companies they may never have patronized, operating in countries they may have never visited, can be no mean feat. In order to do so, a variety of sales pitches, claims, and counterclaims have been made about investing overseas — all with the goal of convincing investors that there are indeed major opportunities in markets outside of the US. For these pitches, international investing offers a great diversification hedge against downturns in the US stock market and perfect exposure to global growth. All it takes is the skill, determination, and hard work to find the right companies or, failing that, a list of international mutual funds whose managers will, for an often not-insignificant fee, provide the skill, determination, and hard work that’s required.

by David Penn