KARACHI: It has never been more important to save money than it is now. Saving money helps us to meet our expenses for emergencies, child(ren)’s education, big purchases, or accumulating wealth for future use.
However, with costs of staples, daily items, utilities, fuel, transportation and other items rising on a frequent basis, everyone is caught in the web of inflation.
Making ends meet and fulfilling one’s responsibilities towards home and family expenses has become a matter of deep concern for all.
Inflation not only makes it very difficult for the common man to make ends meet, but it also eats into our savings, resulting in loss of value of money if kept aside and not invested.
In such a scenario, it is important to make arrangements to tackle the inflation dragon and deal with it head-on.
While there are several possibilities how one can do that, such as investing in bonds, National Savings Scheme, gold or other asset classes, the returns from investing in the stock market outweigh those from other asset classes.
Investing in securities on the stock market for the long term can result in fruitful gains for the investor as passive investment has its own significant benefits.
As of June 30, 2021, historical returns from the KSE-100 index for the 10-year period from 2011 to 2021 are 14.55% (on compounded annualised basis), which is relatively higher than the returns from other asset classes for the same period.
While Pakistan’s macroeconomic indicators are on the mend, more is needed to control the galloping inflation, which directly affects the standard of living of the nation.
With inflation at 7.28% in FY21 and Consumer Price Index (CPI) up at 13% YoY in January 2022, it is expected that inflation might go further up before coming down in the latter part of 2022.
Keeping the above factors in mind, it is important to earn additional income in order to beat inflation and make ends meet.
While getting a second job or starting a new business may not be for everyone, for most middle-class consumers it is an uphill task to meet the rising costs of living. In such a scenario, the stock market may well prove to be the proverbial knight in shining armour and save the day.
To invest in the stock market, the first step is to open an account. For those members of the public who are pressed for time or find the account opening process cumbersome, the Sahulat Account is the ideal solution to their quest for opening an account to invest in the stock market.
Even for those members of the public who do not have salaried income, who are students, housewives, novice investors or others who cannot fulfil stringent account opening requirements, the Sahulat Account is the optimal solution.
All licensed securities brokers are offering the Sahulat Account facility. This facility was initially introduced in 2016 to facilitate small-to-medium range individual investors who can invest up to Rs800,000 in their investment account.
The Sahulat Account facility has been introduced to facilitate new customers who fall in the low-risk category. This account keeps the interest of retail investor at the forefront while making the account holder’s entry in the market a simple process.
The writer is the Head of Marketing & Business Development, Pakistan Stock Exchange Limited
