2025 - It remains a wild rollercoaster ride. On April 2, Donald Trump sends everything that is not gold on a downward spiral.

And just a few weeks later, investors in the US / in US dollars at least might ask themselves: Tariffs, was there anything at all?

The US indices S&P 500, Dow Jones and NASDAQ have returned to their pre-Liberation Day levels of early April and have recovered all their losses.

Unfortunately, things look somewhat worse for us euro investors due to the strong depreciation of the dollar. An S&P 500 ETF in euros is still around 6% below its level at the beginning of April.

Monthly view:

Nevertheless, there was also a real race to catch up in my portfolio in April. While my portfolio had lost ~10% in March, at the beginning of April there were again price losses of almost -11% on the board. In total, this amounted to ~€70,000 in price losses.

After that, things picked up significantly and April closed with only -3,4%.

This corresponds to price losses of over 11.000€.

The MSCI World (benchmark) was -5.1% and the S&P500 -1.1% (in dollars, for euro investors it was more like -6%).

Winners & losers:

A look at the winners and losers shows a much more balanced picture in April than in March:

On the winner side the top 5 are my two cybersecurity investments with Crowdstrike $CRWD (+2.73%) in 1st place and Palo Alto Networks $PANW (+0.17%) in 4th place. 2nd place goes to Bitcoin $BTC (-0.71%)
, which finally lives up to its status as "digital gold" this month.

The top 5 is completed by MercadoLibre $MELI (-2.17%) in 3rd place and Bechtle $BC8 (+3.07%) in 5th place.

Now a look at the losers' side:

1st and 2nd place go to Starbucks $SBUX (+5.99%) and NVIDIA $NVDA (+2.01%) with losses of €1,300 each. In 3rd place follows Meta
$META (+3.95%) with losses of €1,200, despite the strong quarterly figures at the end of April. Places 4 and 5 then go to two healthcare stocks with Amgen $AMGN (-1.89%) and Thermo Fisher $TMO (-0.79%)

The performance-neutral movements in April were € 650 - these are still lower at the moment due to the issue of house building.

current year:

In the YTD my portfolio is still clearly in the red with -12,4%. The MSCI World is still slightly better at -10.6%.

In total, my portfolio currently stands at ~252.000€. This corresponds to an absolute decline of ~€33,000 in the current year 2025. -37.000€ of this comes from exchange rate losses, slightly offset by ~1.200€ from dividends / interest and ~2.600€ from additional investments.

Dividend:

• Dividends in April were +38% above the previous year at ~221€
• LVMH is in the lead with a (gross) dividend of over €40
• In the current year, dividends after 4 months are +20% over the first 4 months of 2025 at ~955€
• I have reached another milestone with regard to the rolling 12-month view. For the first time, I have received over €3,000 in gross dividends for the last 12 months.
• However, the significant fall in the US dollar is also making itself felt in the dividends. My dividend forecast for this year is now only +5-10% instead of 15-20%

Buying & selling:

• I bought in March for 875€
• 570€ shares
• 205€ ETFs
• 100€ crypto
• Sales there were none in April

YouTube:

My portfolio update for April is now also available on YouTube (as usual). There I also discuss the impact of the US dollar in more detail.

Link: https://youtu.be/EeEZ4JveSec

Target 2025

I haven't really set myself any goals for 2025 due to the issue of building a house. A fixed savings rate is difficult to implement due to the issue (unforeseen costs and the like).

A dividend target will also be very difficult due to the high volatility of the US dollar.

That's why I'm focusing on other topics this year, especially building a house and possibly one or two YouTube successes.

How are things looking for you? Have you also felt the effects of the weak US dollar? Or are you now buying properly and taking advantage of the "strong euro"?

#dividends

#dividende

#rückblick

#depotupdate

#aktie

#stocks

#etfs

#crypto

#personalstrategy

It's probably time to look back at the last month and the launch of my own ETF.

This first monthly update is still boring, but should provide the basis for the following ones.

Benchmark comparison with the MSCI World looks positive for the few stocks:

As only a few stocks are currently included, and $AMZN (+0.69%) The MSCI World is the largest position at 31.95%, so this is of course not yet meaningful.

Allocation by region is as follows. The aim is to get below 70% US exposure in the long term.

You can see what my current savings plans and valuations look like in the picture. These will also be executed tomorrow. $NOVO B (+4.44%)
$ASML (+3.01%)
$V (+1.31%)
$MELI (-2.17%) will therefore be added to the portfolio.

Dividends received April 2025:

A YouTube video is not yet available for this portfolio update. However, the first analysis video will be available the day after tomorrow ($AMZN (+0.69%) ).

Feel free to write what you would like to see in future (real) updates and, of course, how your portfolio performed.

Would you currently rather buy additional positions in your portfolio or add new shares to your portfolio?

I am currently short these positions:

$ASML (+3.01%) (-17%) (actually position full)

$NVDA (+2.01%) (-20%) (position actually full)

$GOOGL (+2.1%) (-15%)

$VST (+4.52%) (-20%)

$HIMS (+22.02%) (-22%)

$AMZN (+0.69%) (-2%)

that I would like to get new

$MC (+2.12%)

$MELI (-2.17%)

$SPOT (+5.08%)

$MSCI (+2.24%)

$UBER (+4.03%)

$SIE (+3.83%)

$MUX (+8.85%)

Hermes $RMS (+3.54%) (very expensive 🤑 )

Ferrari $RACE (+0.52%)

Lululemon $LULU (+3.17%)

Just do it $NKE (+4.15%) (supposedly cheap at the moment, please do not reach into the falling knife)

Booking $BKNG (+1.24%)

Marriott $MAR (+4.63%)

Ulta Beaty $ULTA (+2.29%) and/or L'Oreal $OR (+1.36%) (much more expensive)

Mercadolibre $MELI (-2.17%)

Texas Roadhouse $TXRH (+3.75%)

Chipotle $CMG (+2.73%)

Fast Retailing $9983 (+1.6%)
(doesn't fit with the others on the list but I could imagine it as a speculative stock)

"Everything" very expensive, luxury.

I would be interested to know what your favorites are for a long-term investment?

I think the share will deliver 20-40% pa. from this level.

These assumptions are based on past data and analyst estimates for the future in combination with the current valuation ratios.

I would like to make these purchases:

$SPOT (+5.08%) , $META (+3.95%) , $GOOGL (+2.1%) ,$APH (+5.06%) ,$CSPX (+1.89%) , $MC (+2.12%)
$MELI (-2.17%) but I would still wait for the US. Stock market or wait for the reaction of other countries

What do you want to get in any case?

$MELI (-2.17%)

How long have you held the share?

How do you see the future (long-term, medium-term, short-term)?

What was your buy-in?

At what price would you like to buy in / buy more?

I am currently still collecting input on Mercadolibre :)

LG and have a nice evening Hasis

2025 - A stock market year that has so far been more reminiscent of rough seas. It goes uphill and the next moment it goes abruptly downhill again.

The January began with a lot of Trump euphoria on the markets, before this was halted by DeepSeek in the second half of January.

The February recovered relatively quickly from this shock before falling again in the second half of the month. The Trump euphoria has turned into a Trump shock for the time being.

Nevertheless, I will continue to hold a 75-80% USA quota with a high proportion of tea.

I can get over the fact that after 2 years of outperformance against my benchmarks, there may be an underperformance this year.

Monthly view:

In total, February was -3,2%. This corresponds to price losses of almost 10.000€.

The MSCI World (benchmark) was down -2.5% and the S&P500 -1.4%.

Winners & losers:

A look at the winners and losers nevertheless reveals a surprising picture for the top performer in February.

But first a look at the losersThe biggest loser by far is Alphabet $GOOG (+2.04%) With losses of almost €3,000, the share price took a heavy hit in February. This is followed by a total of almost €5,000 in price losses Bitcoin
$BTC (-0.71%) & Ethereum
$ETH (-0.88%) . 4th & 5th place goes to Salesforce
$CRM (+0.61%) and TSMC $TSM (+5.46%) two more tech stocks

On the winning side are actually at the top, much to my own surprise NVIDIA
$NVDA (+2.01%) with a price gain of almost €1,000. And this despite the fact that NVIDIA lost over 10% on the penultimate trading day in February. Nevertheless, the recovery after the DeepSeek shock in February was greater than expected.

The top 5 includes Amgen
$AMGN (-1.89%) and Johnson & Johnson
$JNJ (+0.47%) two stocks from the healthcare sector, a rather defensive sector. These are joined by MercadoLibre $MELI (-2.17%) and Palo Alto Networks $PANW (+0.17%) but also two tech stocks.

The performance-neutral movements were positive again in February at € 900, after January was clearly negative due to a property purchase.

current year:

In the YTD my portfolio is still just in the plus with +0,6%. However, the MSCI World is up +1.9% and I am currently underperforming my benchmark.

In total, my portfolio currently stands at ~288.000€. This corresponds to an absolute growth of ~€3,000 in the current year 2025. ~1.000€ of this comes from price increases, ~500€ from dividends / interest and ~1.500€ from additional investments.

Dividend:

• Dividends in February were 19% above the previous year at ~€188
• At the top of the list Procter & Gamble
  $PG (-0.59%) with now over €50 (gross) dividend every 3 months
• In the current year, the dividends after 2 months are +24% over the first 2 months of 2025 at ~350€

Buys & sells:

• I bought in November for ~800€
• 520€ shares
• 210€ ETFs
• Here I took up a new ETF via a savings plan, an ETF that normally does not correspond to my strategy at all. This is a Covered Call ETF on the NASDAQ $JEPQ (+1.24%) - The ETF uses a covered call strategy to aim for a distribution of ~10% p.a. and still generate price gains. I know that this doesn't make sense from a tax perspective, but what the heck: you can have fun sometimes 😉
• 100€ crypto
• sales there were none in February

YouTube:

I uploaded a few new videos to YouTube in February and I'm starting to feel less stupid talking into a microphone.

I've also uploaded my portfolio update there as a video if anyone would like to see some more information about the portfolio performance in February:

https://youtu.be/iJZ0i3EO5Hs

Here I act according to the motto: Let's see what happens - What will happen!

Goal 2025

Building a house makes it particularly difficult to formulate a goal this year.

A certain savings rate? Difficult if additional costs are suddenly added

A certain deposit value? Also difficult, as I can't really back this up with my savings rate this year and the markets are very volatile.

The current portfolio balance is ~€290,000. I would estimate additional investments at ~€15,000. This would bring me to just over €300,000. I originally assumed a market return of 7% for this year. However, after the first two months it is difficult for me to estimate how this year will go.

That's why I'm being honest: A target doesn't make sense for me this year.

The goal is to build a successful house and for the portfolio we'll just see what happens.

#dividends

#dividende

#rückblick

#depotupdate

#aktie

#stocks

#etfs

#crypto

#personalstrategy

MercadoLibre ($MELI (-2.17%) ) is the undisputed market leader for e-commerce and FinTech in Latin America. Often referred to as the "Amazon of South America", the company dominates with its marketplace, digital payment services and its own logistics infrastructure. But after years of growth and a correction, the question arises: Can MercadoLibre take off again in 2025?

🚀 The MercadoLibre business model

✅ MercadoLibre (e-commerce): The largest online marketplace in Latin America with strong growth. In 2024, sales increased by 20%which shows the continuing demand.

✅ Mercado Pago (FinTech): One of the leading digital payment platforms in the region, used both online and in brick-and-mortar retail.

✅ Mercado Envios (logistics): Own logistics network for faster and more efficient delivery - a major advantage over Amazon.

✅ Mercado Credito (Lending): Enables buyers and sellers to access credit and expands the business model in the direction of FinTech.

Thanks to this broad diversification MercadoLibre is not only an e-commerce company, but also a FinTech and logistics player with strong growth potential.

🏆 Competition - Who can be a threat to MercadoLibre?

🔸 Amazon $AMZN (+0.69%)
: Global giant, but with lower market penetration in Latin America.

🔸 Sea Limited (Shopee) $SE: (+5.92%) An emerging threat in e-commerce, especially in Brazil.

🔸 Nubank & StoneCo $NU (+1.01%)
: Strong FinTech competitors entering the payments market.

🔸 Alibaba (AliExpress) $9988 (+5.45%)
: Focuses on low-cost imported products - but without its own logistics in the region.

Despite tough competition, MercadoLibre remains the market leader - mainly due to its logistics network, which Amazon and Shopee do not yet offer at this level in Latin America.

📈 Growth potential: why MercadoLibre could take off in 2025

✅ E-commerce boom: Online retail in Latin America continues to grow. Annual growth of 15% is expected until 2026 (Statista).

✅ Digitalization:
In 2024, internet usage in Latin America increased by 8%which creates the basis for further growth in online retail and digital financial services.

✅ Logistics advantage: MercadoLibre has acquired Mercado Envios an infrastructure that dominates the market.

✅ FinTech growth: With Mercado Pago and Mercado Credito the company is developing into a kind of "PayPal $PYPL (+2.72%)
& Klarna of Latin America".

✅ Latin America as a growth market: While markets such as the USA and Europe are more mature, Latin America still offers still offers enormous potential for increasing online purchases.

⚠️ Risks: What are the challenges?

⚠️ Currency risks: The High inflation and currency fluctuations in countries such as Brazil or Argentina could depress profits.

⚠️ Fierce competition: Shopee in Brazil in particular is putting MercadoLibre under pressure.

⚠️ Regulations: Political uncertainties and possible new regulations for digital financial services could slow down growth.

⚠️ Rising financing costs:
Mercado Credito is growing, but higher interest rates could weigh on the lending business.

📊 Conclusion: turnaround candidate for 2025?

MercadoLibre remains the dominant player in Latin America and is benefiting from growing digitalization and rising e-commerce sales. Despite currency risks and competition the company has strong growth driversthat make it interesting in the long term.

🔥 Turnaround candidate or long-term winner? What do you think - will MercadoLibre remain number 1 or will the competition catch up?