Marion no longer needs a large house and has decided to sell the property and to purchase a townhouse. The expected proceeds from the sale of the large house is AUD2.5 million.

From these proceeds, AUD1.1 million will be used to fund the purchase of the townhouse, AUD1.0 million will be added to the superannuation fund and the balance of AUD0.4 million will be used to establish an investment portfolio comprising Australian government bonds and ASX listed shares.

1.Describe and compare the key features in general of bonds and shares as investment securities. In your response make sure you compare returns and risks for these two types of asset classes.

2.Make a recommendation on how much should be allocated to bonds and how much should be allocated to shares. In your response make sure you take into account the specific circumstances of Marion and clearly set out the reasons for the recommendation.