In the context of investments, what does diversification mean?

Diversification refers to the strategy of spreading investments across a variety of assets, such as stocks, bonds, real estate, and other financial instruments. The primary goal of diversification is to reduce the overall risk of an investment portfolio. By not putting all of one's financial resources into a single investment or asset class, an investor can help mitigate the impact of any one investment's poor performance on the overall portfolio. If one asset performs poorly, the losses can be offset by gains in other assets, thus leading to potentially more stable returns over time.

This concept is foundational in investment management as it aligns with the risk-return trade-off principle. Investors can potentially achieve more consistent returns while reducing volatility when investments are carefully selected from different sectors, industries, or geographical regions.

The other choices do not capture the essence of diversification. Focusing solely on government bonds limits exposure and does not reduce risk through varied asset allocation. Concentrating investments in one sector increases vulnerability to sector-specific downturns, which contradicts the risk reduction goal of diversification. Lastly, simply minimizing expenses by reducing the number of trades relates to cost management rather than the risk management strategy that diversification embodies.