As Covid-19 continues to consume 2020 month by month, it seems hard to believe that we are already in the middle of May. Here in Germany the impact of the virus has been kept to a minimum, certainly compared to other European countries and as a result the lock-down measures in places are finally starting to be lifted. Restaurants, bars, cafes and bakeries are all open once more and small outdoor gatherings with one other household are now permitted. Life appears to be slowly returning to normal.
Personally we are lucky that the lock-down has not affected our day to day life too much, we are both still working full-time, all be it one of us from home on the sofa. Normally by this stage of the year we would have already been on holiday and would have gone back home to the U.K. at least once. This has obviously not been possible and has massively increased our saving potential by not having to pay for flights and accommodation. However, having been stuck in the apartment for the last 3 months we have discovered a new found love for D.I.Y and this has largely offset these potential savings.
Nonetheless, May was still an incredibly strong month when it came to our monthly savings. This was aided two-fold by this being the first month of Ms. FB’s new salary and from Mr. FB receiving his bi-annual bonus. These two factors combined meant that we saved £6,562 in May, over double our £3,200 monthly saving target.
Continuing the trend from the previous few months, the stock market has been incredibly volatile with large swings occurring almost every day. The net effect was that the value of our total portfolio increased by £4,181 and when combined with our additional investment, means that our total portfolio increased by £10,743 versus April.
Despite the global stock market still being approximately 15% down, our portfolio hit all time highs of £122,8k. This was achieved by investing as much as possible during the market downturn, something that we continue to do now. We hope that this propels us towards our goal of financial independence even quicker when the markets inevitably return to their pre Covid-19 highs.
How have you been coping during the lock-down? Discovered any new passions or hobbies? Let us know in the comments section.
FIREBEARS 