As one year ends and another starts, I often think about a personal balance sheet for the year gone by and make some resolutions for the year ahead. For myself and our own family, 2023 was a pretty good year, particularly relative to the pandemic-scarred years at the start of this decade. As for resolutions, apart from the usual healthy-living aspirations, I am determined to spend less time looking at screens and more time looking at faces.

This is also a good time for investors to review the balance sheet of economic and investment performance for 2023 and make some resolutions for the year ahead.