Anthony Hilton: Terry Smith's book is a must-read for everyone in the market

All these articles have now been collected into a short book* with a foreword by Jeff Randall, available from today on Amazon.

Here is one extract not written specifically about the current market turmoil but very relevant to it. He has observed, he says “the obsession of market commentators, investors and advisers with macroeconomics, interest rates, quantitative easing, asset allocation, currencies, developed markets versus emerging markets — whereas they almost never talk about investing in good companies.

“It seems to me that most of these subjects pose questions to which no one can reliably forecast the answers and, even if you could, the connection to asset prices is tenuous at best.

“Take GDP growth — few things seem to obsess commentators more yet no one has ever managed to demonstrate a positive correlation between GDP growth and stock-market performance.”

There is much more in similar vein. This is not an investment primer — it should be compulsory reading for everyone in the market.

*Celebrating Five Years of Investing in Decades of Success by Terry Smith, published by MCMLIII Publishing.