With a spare $500, here’s how I’d start buying ASX shares this March

With just $500, anyone can make a good move for growing their wealth with ASX shares.

If I were starting to invest, I’d want to choose quality businesses that I am familiar with but also have the potential to deliver good returns.

The share market has returned an average of around 10% per annum, which is a good rate of compounding growth.

Many brokers in Australia require a minimum investment of $500 the first time we invest in an ASX share. So, let’s see what we can do with that.

Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS)

It can be hard to choose one business to own when there are some many out there. So, why not (indirectly) own more than 1,400 in a single purchase? The VGS ETF held shares in 1,433 businesses in its portfolio at the end of January 2024. That’s a lot of diversification!

We can own many of the world’s leading technology businesses with an investment in this exchange-traded-fund (ETF), including Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Nvidia, Amazon.com, Meta Platforms and Tesla.

I believe this is the sort of investment that we can own forever because of how diversified it is, the quality of those businesses and the good returns it typically makes (though nothing is guaranteed). Over the years, the holdings are regularly updated, ensuring the ASX ETF is always invested in leading businesses.

It has an annual management fee of 0.18%, and it has achieved an average return per annum of 12.4% since it started in November 2014.

While US shares make up around 71% of the portfolio, there are numerous other countries with a noticeable weighting, including Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands.

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

For investors wanting to own a specific ASX share, I think Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) is a great choice.

The ASX retail conglomerate operates Kmart, Bunnings, Officeworks, Priceline and many other businesses across the chemicals, energy, fertilisers, industrial and healthcare sectors.

The company has proven to be a solid performer. Bunnings and Kmart Group both earn strong returns on capital (ROC), while the overall business earns an impressive return on equity (ROE).

Wesfarmers aims to generate good total shareholder returns (TSR) for investors through a combination of capital growth and dividends.

According to CMC Markets, Wesfarmers shares have delivered an average TSR of 14% per annum over the past decade, though past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. Having said that, I think the ASX share is very capable of outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) over the next five years.

The post With a spare $500, here’s how I’d start buying ASX shares this March appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 4 ASX ETFs for smart investors
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• 2 fantastic ASX ETFs to buy for global investing in March
• 3 things about Wesfarmers stock every smart ASX investor knows
• 5 ASX shares to buy for an effortless path to financial freedom

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, and Vanguard Msci Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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