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It’s a relatively well-known pension investment maxim that the optimal way to go about maximising the value of your final pot is to take on more risk in the pursuit of higher returns when younger and de-risk the portfolio the closer you get to retirement. The logic behind the approach is that the most powerful investment portfolio value builder is compounded returns. It’s important to target average returns of 5% while building an investment portfolio earmarked for retirement and re-invest those returns as you go.

Anyone who is investing online in equities, either through funds or their own stock picks, is likely to have done very well over recent years. Of course, some will have done better than others by dint of having picked better performing funds or shares, but an investor would have had to have made a fairly spectacular series of very bad picks to not have recorded strong profits. Major equities indices such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and our own FTSE 100, which closed to a new record high last week, are on or close to their longest ever bull runs. Net average profit margins are also at or near historic records highs.

Global equity markets have been on one of the longest bull runs in the history of financial markets for several years now. March marked the 9th birthday of the current run, with major global equities indices on an upward trajectory since the end of the 08/09 international crisis. Analyst Leuthold Group say the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s bull run is now its longest since post-WWII. In the case of the S&P 500, only the tech-led run of the 1990s was longer and bigger than the current post-financial crisis rally.

London-listed bookmakers finished in the money yesterday for anyone who held their shares with online stock brokers. 888 surged 15.39%, Paddy Power 12.25%, William Hill 10.71% and GVC, the holding company of Ladbrokes Coral, Bwin and Sportingbet, 7.37%. Sportech, which creates and licenses software to the sports betting industry also rose almost 12%. Total gains across the sector over the course of Monday trading combined to a staggering £1.5 billion. And there could well be more to come after a US Supreme Court judgement that paves the way for the country’s ban on sports betting being lifted in the near future.

Last week oil prices surged past $78 a barrel for Brent crude, setting a high last seen in 2014. Many believe the recent rally is likely to continue and Bank of America Merrill Lynch have warned there is a real risk of $100 a barrel oil in 2019. That timeline could accelerate if geo-political conditions deteriorate. Despite the advancements of sustainable, ‘clean’, energy sources, oil and gas still powers the world economy, turning the wheels of industry. As such, oil price swings have a significant impact on financial markets and your investment portfolio.

After Amazon and Facebook’s blockbuster results reports late last week and an impressive showing from Netflix the previous week, big tech has roared back from Facebook’s data breach scandal and last month’s sell off. Later today its Apple’s turn, as the world’s largest company by market capitalisation gets ready to reveal its 2018 Q2 performance to investors.

Amazon’s share price has hit new record highs after the online retail and web services giant posted a set of stellar quarterly results yesterday. The company’s stock was up over 7% in after-hours trading, taking it past its previous record high of $1618 set in early March before the big tech sell off hit in the wake of the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal.

The spat between the USA and China initiated by President Trump’s decision to introduce increased levies on around $50 billion worth of Chinese imports is currently being played out mainly in financial markets. This is bringing stock market investors into the dispute with particular sectors and companies that new import taxes being introduced by both sides leading to panic and significant share price swings in recent days. Those investing online in companies that sell the areas affected are panic selling as both sides announce new levies.

For the millions around the world investing online in equities, as well as professional institutional investors, Tesla has offered an enticing combination of qualities. Elon Musk is nothing if not a master of convincing investors to back his vision of business concepts that are presented as an intoxicating combination of potentially huge profits while changing the world for the better. The traditional automotive manufacturers are specialists in engine technology for the age of fossil fuels, that will soon be replaced by renewables. Tesla, so the promise is presented, will dominate the new electric and driverless car market that will soon become a reality.

While they should always be taken within the context of ‘ideas’, rather than recommendations, newspaper share tipping columns can be a great resource for the DIY investor. The companies highlighted may or may not have a natural place within your particular portfolio and you also may or may not agree with the analysis and forward-looking optimism behind the suggestions.