February marks the end of summer holidays for many of us and getting down to business for 2023. It can be a good time to reflect on plans and goals for the months ahead.

With interest rates on the rise and investment returns increasingly volatile, Australians with cash to spare may be wondering how to make the most of it. If you have a mortgage, should you make extra repayments or would you be better off in the long run boosting your super?

Financial Adviser, Simone Richardson asks Mortgage Broker, Edwena Dixon from Pinpoint Finance your lending questions.

Do rising interest rates mean you can't borrow as much? Is fixing your loan the way to go? How do you tackle a simultaneous settlement?

Sustainable investing isn’t new and is becoming more mainstream. From climate change to gender diversity, more people are aligning their money with their values. In 2021, Australia’s sustainable investment market increased 20 per cent to a record $1.5 trillion.

The year began on an optimistic note, as we finally began to emerge from Covid restrictions. Then Russia threw a curve ball that reverberated around the world and suddenly people who had never given a thought to the Reserve Bank were waiting with bated breath for its monthly interest rate announcements.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has slowed the pace of interest rate increases as it seeks to tame inflation while avoiding recession.

High inflation and a shortfall in households’ purchasing power will likely prevent the U.S. economy from growing above trend over coming quarters.

Economic momentum continued to deteriorate in the euro area as nations adapted to the cut-off in natural gas supplies from Russia.

Citadel’s Jack Mascitelli catches up with Betashares Chief Economist David Bassanese to unpack current market conditions, the impact of rising cash rates, the noise around a looming recession and what it means in the near future.

The growth outlook in Australia in 2022 has been downgraded by researchers to a range of 3% to 3.5% as higher interest rates and inflation continue to weigh on spending. Although the risk of recession is rising, it’s not yet part of the base case scenario.

With both equities and bond allocations selling off over the last six months, investors are understandably worried about the seemingly never-ending uncertainty and volatility within markets. Whether it is geopolitics, inflation, energy issues or rising interest rates, the markets seem inundated with negativity.

But there appears to be some light at the end of the very dark tunnel.

US growth seen holding up despite expected rate rises and broader policy tightening by Fed. But recession risks rising, particularly in UK and euro area.

European Central Bank expected to tighten by half a percentage point in 2022.

Policy trilemma in China due to zero-Covid policy and 5.5% growth and financial stability goals.

Years of accommodative monetary policy are coming to an end, thanks to inflation that has lasted longer and gone higher than anticipated.

We expect the impact of higher energy prices on Australian inflation to subside, but a tightening labour market is likely to keep headline CPI above 2%.

Job creation remains strong in the United States, with the unemployment rate falling to 3.6%, just a shade above its pre-pandemic low.

COVID outbreaks and lockdowns in China are creating economic pain, with some indicators pointing to a sharp slowdown taking hold in March.

As we approach the end of the 2022 financial year, it is important not to forget long term planning for retirement. We would like to highlight some superannuation related issues worth considering.