Quora Answer: What Would You Recommend for Alternative Investments in 2019?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “I am looking to make some alternative investments in 2019.  What would you recommend?”

One area you might want to look into would be technology funds, particularly in the areas of online retail.  It is growing, and it will continue to grow as more people move away from traditional retail and buy online.  There is a pronounced shift in China and East Asia, and that will drive growth in companies such as Alibaba and Tencent.  Currently, their stock is underpriced due to negative sentiment pertaining to issues such as the recent trade dispute between China and the US.  This is a bargain, when we consider an extended investment horizon.  China’s middle class, their domestic market, is growing, and their consumption is at double digit growth.  This means companies geared towards servicing them are largely impervious to losing market share elsewhere.  Their only pressure is in funding, debt servicing and the export market.

Another area of growth, in the long term, would be food.  Food security is a priority for many countries, and they are willing to spend billions to secure supplies and maintain prices in domestic markets.  It would be a sound strategy to consider taking a position in companies that are in the business of farming, agribusiness and related suppliers.  Yet another underrated market with phenomenal growth is actually pet food.  The cost of the ingredients to the consumer price is huge.  This means they make far more profit than most people realise.