The last decade has been a time to make hay for New Zealand investors, with both the property and equity markets basking in the sunshine of a low interest rate environment.

Whether you’ve been a stockmarket investor, property investor or a KiwiSaver member, you could have been forgiven for thinking it was all too easy, and lost sight of the fundamentals of successful investment: namely diversification and a long-term investment horizon.

However, as inflation bites, the importance of these fundamentals has come sharply back into focus.

So what does inflation mean for investors?

In the long term, the reassuring answer is actually very little.

We know markets work in cycles, but history tells us they ultimately rise.

While our KiwiSaver or investment balances may not make for pleasant viewing over the next few years, ultimately we can have a level of confidence that over a much longer timeframe they will rebound, and then some.

Many of us will also want to think of the present as well as the future. Fund managers will talk about the importance of defensive assets in times like these - sectors or companies that are well positioned to thrive through uncertain periods and help protect the value of our money against inflationary forces while also providing regular, reliable cashflow returns.

Right now, some of the most defensive assets can be found in the industrial and logistics sectors. As a property fund manager we have been increasing our exposure to the sector for some time, as we strive to deliver regular, reliable and competitive returns to our investors and protect their hard-earned wealth for the future.