Investing money into your superannuation is for many Australians a great, tax-effective way to build wealth.

The downside is that the funds are locked away until we hit at least 60 years of age, but for those who start early, the magic of compound interest can build a substantial nest egg.

Superannuation calculations can help achieve your goal

So, how much superannuation do you need? That’s obviously a very subjective question, but the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) has pegged the number at $55,923 per year for singles and $78,566 per year for couples for what they have determined to be a comfortable retirement.

ASFA’s numbers also assume the retiree owns their own home.

Today, I’m looking at how much superannuation is needed to support $6000 per month in passive income, which equates to $72,000 per year, well above the comfortable benchmark.

How much money you’ll need in your superannuation to generate this amount depends on the income stream you can depend on from your portfolio – assuming you don’t sell down any shares to generate income.

If you can generate a 7.2% return, you’d need $1 million worth of investments.

While this might sound like a high return, remember that superannuation funds benefit from franking credits – in lay terms, they are paid back the tax already paid by a company on its earnings.

If you generate just a 5% return on your investments, you’d need $1.44 million in superannuation savings, while if you were able to generate 10% returns, the figure drops to just $720,000.

How much can be generated from superannuation savings?

I would argue that it is possible to put together a diversified portfolio that can consistently generate returns of about 7%.

In terms of stocks to buy, there are some income-focused funds and exchange-traded funds that might be worth a look.

For example, WAM Active Ltd (ASX: WAA) just this week announced it had a stellar year, and declared a special dividend on top of its final dividend, which the fund said in a statement to the ASX would bring its fully-franked dividend yield to 8.6% and its grossed-up dividend yield to 12.3%.

On the ETF front, there are products such as the Betashares Global High Dividend Aristocrats ETF (ASX: INCM), which pays a quarterly dividend and, for the July quarter, paid out 5.74%.

There is also the S&P/ASX 200 Covered Call Complex ETF (ASX: AYLD), which uses a more complex strategy to deliver high yields, paying 9.64% over the past 12 months, albeit only franked at 15.3%.

There are also traditional stocks which pay strong dividends, including Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG) at 6.49%, Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) at 5.63%, and on the lower but dependable end, Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) at 4.01%.

The post How much do I need in superannuation to receive $6000 per month in passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• How to build a successful ASX dividend portfolio
• How much superannuation do you need to earn $5,000 a month in passive income?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• With Hormuz closed, is there an opening to buy Woodside shares?
• This fund’s 75% return smashed its benchmark, and it’s celebrating with a special dividend

Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

A new report from VanEck has highlighted the impressive resilience of the Australian market in recent years. 

It has weathered the pandemic, inflation and the fastest interest-rate tightening cycle in decades without falling into recession.

However VanEck believes this resilience should not be mistaken for strength. 

While inflation has eased from its peak, underlying price pressures remain among the highest in the developed world, business hiring intentions are softening and consumer confidence remains subdued. Together, they point to an economy that is slowing rather than stalling.

This combination of factors reinforces that investors’ portfolios should not be overexposed to the big banks and miners that dominate the ASX 200. 

VanEck contends that there are several reasons investors should look beyond simply tracking the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). 

Trailing global equities

VanEck argues that simply buying the index is not always the most effective way to build wealth. 

The past financial year has brought this case to the fore more than ever.

Since the start of 2010, the S&P/ASX 200 has trailed the MSCI World, which tracks developed markets globally, in 11 of the past 17 financial years.

But the bigger concern is that the underperformance is getting worse. FY26 saw the underperformance run extend to four consecutive years, and the second biggest performance gap since 1996.

If Australia’s economy is entering a period of more subdued growth, investors should not be surprised if earnings growth becomes harder to find domestically. That strengthens the case for looking beyond a standard S&P/ASX 200 index fund.

The case for mid-caps 

According to the report, one option for investors looking to avoid overconcentration is to target mid-caps. 

One way to do this is through the VanEck S&P/ASX MidCap ETF (ASX: MVE). 

The fund focuses on Australia’s mid-cap companies, a part of the market that has historically offered an attractive balance between earnings growth and business maturity.

VanEck believes this could be a “sweet spot” of the market. 

They are typically more established than emerging small companies but still have meaningful scope to grow earnings. Analysts expect company profits in this part of the market to grow much faster than Australia’s largest companies, while valuations are still around their long-term averages.

MVE provides exposure to this often-overlooked part of the market through the S&P/ASX MidCap 50 Index. For investors looking to complement a large-cap Australian allocation, it offers access to businesses with greater growth potential, without moving too far down the risk spectrum.

The post The growing case for ASX mid-caps: Expert appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• PLS shares are down 28%. Are they a buy, hold, or sell?
• Why are Light & Wonder shares flying 9% higher today?
• 4 ASX shares rated a strong buy and with upsides of up to 109%
• This ASX gold stock could jump 150%: Broker

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Bell has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) had a very interesting day indeed this Tuesday. For most of the session, it looked as though the market was destined for a red day. However, investors pick up the buying in late afternoon trading.

The ASX 200 didn’t record a gain for the day, though. It didn’t record a loss either. Instead, it ended the day exactly where it started. Yep, the index was completely flat this Tuesday, moving precisely 0.00% and finishing at the 8,808.5 points it was sitting at 24 hours ago. A rare occurrence indeed.

This fascinating result for the local markets followed a decisively negative night to kick off the American trading week on Wall Street, though.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) wasn’t in a good mood, dropping 0.26%.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) fared even worse, falling 1.55%

But let’s return to ASX shares now, though and take stock of how the different ASX sectors navigated this Tuesday’s tepid trading conditions.

Winners and losers

As you may expect, we had a fairly even break between winners and losers this session.

Leading the latter were real estate investment trusts (REITs). The S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) was hit hard today, tumbling 1.64%.

Consumer staples shares didn’t hold their value either, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) tanking 0.81%.

Financial stocks also had a rough time. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) retreated 0.54%.

Industrial shares were on the nose too, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ)’s 0.47% slide.

That’s it for the res sectors though, so let’s get to the winners. Leading said winners were energy stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) rocketed 1.98% this Tuesday.

Utilities shares were in demand as well, with the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) soaring 1.37%.

Mining stocks ran hot too. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) surged 0.67% by the closing bell.

Healthcare shares were right behind that, as you can see by the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ)’s 0.66% jump.

Gold stocks were als in that ballpark. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) leapt 0.62% higher this session.

Consumer discretionary shares came next, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) advancing 0.39%.

Communications stocks got out ahead as well. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) lifted 0.21% today.

Finally, tech shares were lucky to come out intact, evident by the S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ)’ was hit hard, plunging 2.48%.’s 0.07% bump.

Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown

Gaming technology company Light & Wonder Inc (ASX: LNW) took out this Tuesday’s top spot. Light & Wonder shares vaulted 7.98% higher today to finish at $111.60 each. We dove into this jump earlier today.

Here’s how the other winners pulled up at the kerb: 

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Light & Wonder Inc (ASX: LNW)	$111.60	7.98%
Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP)	$16.75	4.95%
Seek Ltd (ASX: SEK)	$13.92	4.98%
IperionX Ltd (ASX: IPX)	$3.71	4.51%
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)	$34.75	4.29%
Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR)	$1.50	3.81%
Treasury Wine Estates Ltd (ASX: TWE)	$4.70	3.75%
Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)	$11.78	3.15%
Aurizon Holdings Ltd (ASX: AZJ)	$4.24	2.91%
Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL)	$5.56	2.77%

Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary that shows which companies made big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.

The post Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why are Light & Wonder shares flying 9% higher today?
• 4 ASX shares rated a strong buy and with upsides of up to 109%
• Steadfast Group takeover bid update: KKR joins consortium
• Here’s what $10,000 invested in ASX tech shares 5 years ago would be worth now
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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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 Domino’s Pizza Enterprises, Light & Wonder Inc, Treasury Wine Estates, and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Treasury Wine Estates and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Domino’s Pizza Enterprises and Light & Wonder Inc. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.