Hi QAVVERS,
Well this week has been a little busier than some. I actually had to sell some stocks, which is unusual. Markets are obviously chaotic at the moment, so it isn’t surprising that some ripple effects will appear, but all-in-all, I think the markets are absorbing the inherent bonkers state of things quite well. Too well, perhaps?
But I’m not paid to prognosticate on such matters. Well above my pay grade. QAV doesn’t ask for, nor require, prognostication.
As my new QAV Motto goes:
“OURS IS NOT TO REASON WHY, OURS IS JUST TO SELL AND BUY”
AUSTRALIAN MARKET UPDATE
The All Ordinaries closed Thursday at 8,897 and the broader ASX 200 ended the week lower, extending its run to five losses in the past six weeks:
- The ASX 200 finished Thursday down 0.72% at 8,702 and the All Ords fell 0.66% to close at 8,897.
- The sharemarket fell on Thursday as oil surged above US$100 a barrel, following steep losses on Wall Street where tech and AI stocks continued to be sold off.
- August labour force data released Thursday showed Australia’s unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, the highest since late 2021, even as employers added 39,500 jobs, roughly double the 20,000 economists expected. The ABS cautioned that a transition to its new Labour Force Survey collection model may have had an “unintended impact” on the August estimates.
- The RBA meets 28 and 29 September, where a rate increase from the current 4.35% cash rate is widely expected; markets price a hike as near-certain, with any surprise hold seen as the bigger market mover.
- Flash PMI data released mid-week showed private-sector activity grew at the slowest pace in three months, with services cooling and factory output plunging, while RBA Assistant Governor Sarah Hunter warned rates may need to rise again if inflation pressures persist.
- Earlier in the week on Tuesday the market found brief support from a tech rally, with information technology the strongest sector, up 2.67%, led by Megaport up 4.3%, NextDC up 3.8%, and Life360 up 2.9%.
US MARKET UPDATE
The S&P 500 is on track for a down week, sitting around 7,700 through Wednesday’s close after pulling back from Monday’s rally above 7,760:
- The Fed hiked its overnight lending rate for the first time in three years on September 16, moving the target range to 3.75%-4%, and its dot plot signaled at least one further hike this year.
- The 10-year US Treasury yield surged to above 5.12% on Wednesday, its highest since 2007, after S&P Global PMI data showed private-sector activity expanding at its fastest pace in more than five years in September, with both services and manufacturing recording accelerating inflationary pressures.
- Following the Fed rate hike, odds of another quarter-point increase in October rose to 66.4% from 55% the day prior, per CME FedWatch.
- On Wednesday, the S&P 500 shed 0.75% to close at 7,706.03, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.13% to 26,936.04, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 352.10 points, or 0.68%, to 51,511.59.
- Earlier in the week, chipmakers surged on Monday as early signs of success for Meta Platforms’ AI agent sparked enthusiasm; Meta jumped 11% and Advanced Micro Devices topped $1 trillion in market cap.
So, let’s get into my weekly updates and see where we are at.
All the Best,
Cam
QAV MYTH KILLERS
Actions Speak Much Louder Than Words
As I’ve probably mentioned, during the last week I’ve been listening to Shostakovich’s Seventh Symphony, aka the Leningrad, over and over. I’ve also been watching a 2016 BBC documentary about the Leningrad première. It’s been called “a legendary moment in Soviet political and military history” and for good reason.
Two questions I’ve been thinking about are: why the hell would you try to put on a concert when people are dying of starvation and a city is under siege? And… what investing parallels can I learn from this story?
STOCK ANALYSIS OF THE WEEK
Australian Members can check out the stocks we traded in QAV Australian Light portfolios this week.
American Members can check out the stocks we traded in QAV American Light portfolios this week.
Tony did a Pulled Pork on Focus Minerals (FML) this week, a debt-free, single-mine gold producer near Coolgardie trading at a PE of four while comparable gold stocks sit at ten or twelve. Find the full deep dive at the podcast link below.
This week on the American podcast I did a Pulled Pork on Village Supermarket (VLGEA), a family-run grocery chain that has been quietly operating on the Nasdaq for nearly 90 years after a Greek immigrant founded it in 1930s New Jersey. Check out the full episode at the link below.
BUY LIST
Each week, we produce a buy list based on our value investing system that we share with our QAV Club members. The intended primary purpose of this buy list is for club members to use as a reference for comparing their own buy list. In theory, all of our buy lists should look pretty similar each week.
AUSTRALIAN BUY LIST
QAV Value Investing Buy List (AU) 2026-09-19
U.S. BUY LIST
QAV Value Investing Buy List 2026-09-21
PORTFOLIO PERFORMANCE
We compare our performance to what we think is the most relevant benchmark (SPDR 200 in Australia, S&P500 in the USA), but if you’re new to investing, these comparisons might not mean much. Instead, you can compare our performance to the top-performing Super Funds in Australia and see why an amateur active investor (who has a system to follow) can out-perform most of the “professionals”.
We publish a fresh performance snapshot once a month. Weekly noise doesn’t tell you much in a value-investing system — what matters is the trend.
September 2026 performance snapshot.
Australian Model Portfolio: No trades this week.
American Model Portfolio: No trades this week.
Become a QAV Light Member today and start your investing on the right track
If you want to find out what we’re trading in QAV Light each week, sign up to become a member. You’ll get an email from me every Monday letting you know what we’re buying and selling in that portfolio. You can choose to copy our trades or not. It’s the easiest way to start your rules-based investing career… and you don’t even need to know the rules. I’ll follow the rules for you. It’s a good first step to eventually becoming a QAV Club member and learning how to run the system by yourself.
QAV LIGHT: Someone already cleared the way.
(Note: Americans interested in joining QAV Light or Club please go here instead.)
Add QAV America — US stocks, the same QAV method
Already a QAV member? You can add QAV America as your second membership at 50% off — US-listed stocks, the same QAV approach, billed in AUD through this site (just one payment to keep an eye on). Add QAV America →
Not a QAV member yet? Join QAV first, then you can add QAV America at the 50% member rate.
THIS WEEK’S EPISODES
Our is Not to Reason Why: QAV AU #948
You Can’t Stop The Fruiterer: Village Supermarket: QAV America #71
STOCK NEWS AND UPDATES
A1M
AIC Mines Limited announced an investor presentation regarding the acquisition of a copper project.
Investor Presentation – Copper Project Acquisition
BRI
BIG RIVER INDUSTRIES LTD released its annual report to shareholders covering full-year financial performance and operations.
Annual Report to shareholders
NMG
New Murchison Gold released its 2026 annual mineral resource and ore reserve statement detailing updated resource and reserve estimates.
2026 Annual Report
UBS
Switzerland’s upper house voted to require UBS to back 90% of foreign subsidiary investments with Common Equity Tier 1 capital, a significant regulatory defeat that the bank estimates will require approximately $16 billion in additional capital and $2.5 billion in annual costs.
UBS Loses a Big Round in Switzerlands Capital Fight
COMMODITIES
No significant commodity status changes this week.
DISCLOSURE
Please review our trading and disclosure policy.
SIGNING OFF
SSDD!
- Cam
That’s it for the week!
QAV A GOOD SHAREMARKET!
Got a question? info@qavamerica.com