What Investment articles from November 2003

What Investment archives from November 2003

Small but powerful.(Comment)
November 1, 2003... A random flick through the pages of What Investment this month will reveal, even to the most casual observer, a plethora of references to boutique funds or boutique fund management groups. Manager Moves this month highlights the move of a...

High yielders.(November News)
November 1, 2003... IFA the David Aaron Partnership has launched the second edition of its Guide to High-Yield Bond Funds. The guide includes recommendations of funds currently yielding 7 per cent or more and examines the past performance as well as the future...

Supermarket expansion.(November News)
November 1, 2003... IFA Unitas Investments has upgraded its website www. unitas-investments.co.uk, to allow investors to buy and manage their investments online. Investors currently receive a free bimonthly newsletter, providing comprehensive information helping...

Special offer.(November News)
November 1, 2003... Framlington is offering a discount of 1 per cent on the standard initial charge for all lump-sum investments into the Framlington Equity Income, High Income and UK Select Opportunities funds to celebrate the one-year anniversary of managers...

Let battle commence.(News Round-up)
November 1, 2003... Online stockbrokers keen to offer private investors cut-price trading in a depressed market could trigger a price war, according to money supermarket.com. "In volatile markets, share trading can be a risky business," says Richard Mason,...

Best and the worst.(News Round-up)
November 1, 2003... The 185 per cent performance gap between the best and worst FTSE stocks represents a fantastic stock-picking opportunity, according to fund management group Schroders. Schroders' research reveals that, from the start of 2003 to the end of...

National stealth tax?(News Round-up)
November 1, 2003... National Savings & Investments represent poor value for investors relative to other products, according to IFA Bestinvest. Research by Bestinvest shows that for all National Savings accounts, with the exception of index-linked certificates...

Shop before you drop.(News Round-up)
November 1, 2003... Disclosure rules on buying annuities on the open market are not working, according to the Association of British Insurers. The number of people shopping around for their pension annuity has fallen over the last 12 months, according to its...

Investment classics.(News Round-up)
November 1, 2003... What Investment has six copies of Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits by Philip Fisher, and The Alchemy of Finance by George Soros, to give away to readers. Published by Wiley at 13.95 [pounds sterling] these updated classics are packed with the...

Savings guide.(November News)
November 1, 2003... The IMA has updated its guide to investing for children. The updated factsheet outlines the different options available for those investing on behalf of a child--including children's bonds and stakeholder pensions, as well as savings accounts...

Know your ISAs.(November News)
November 1, 2003... Invesco Perpetual is offering a free guide to ISAs to explain the finer points of these tax-efficient investments. The guide looks at the difference between Maxi and Mini ISAs, how to transfer your ISA to another manager and what your options...

Website update.(November News)
November 1, 2003... The Association of Investment Trust Companies (AITC) has added a new resource to its website, www.aitc.co.uk, to help investors get the low-down on the men and women running their portfolios. Investors can now access biographical information...

Taking issue: Nic Cicutti reports on the latest issues rocking the world of finance.(November News)
November 1, 2003... Hands up those of you who remember what a 'broker bond' is. You don't remember? Ten or fifteen years ago, they were all the rage. Essentially, broker bonds were a creation of independent financial advisers (IFAs) who, for whatever reason,...

Top ten funds.(November News)
November 1, 2003... Unit trusts One year 1 Putnam Emerg Info Sciences 177.48 2 Invesco Perpl UK Aggressive 174.76 3 Jupiter Preference 165.44 4 Unicorn Free Spirit A Inc 164.89 5 Manulife Global China Value 163.93 6...

Shepherds group.(New offers)
November 1, 2003... Shepherds Group has launched the With Profits Bond Converter, a solution for investors who require an income from a poorly performing with-profits bond and may currently be risking the erosion of their capital. The Converter aims to provide...

Thames River Capital.(New offers)
November 1, 2003... Thames River Capital has launched the Thames River Global Bond fund, a sub-fund of Thames River Traditional Funds, a Central Bank of Ireland-regulated UCITS with FSA recognition. The portfolio will employ a top-down investment strategy and will...

Schroders.(Product of the month)
November 1, 2003... Schroders has launched the Schroders European Alpha Plus fund, which will be modelled on the group's existing UK Alpha Plus fund (see fund manager profile). The new fund will be managed by Adriaan de Mol van Otterloo and will comprise a 'best...

Chelsea Building Society.(Also launching this month ...)
November 1, 2003... Chelsea Building Society has launched a two-year fixed-rate bond offering a variable rate of 4.4 per cent gross per annum. The minimum investment is 1,000 [pounds sterling]. Call 01242 283 593. Chelsea has also launched the Chelsea Bonus...

Artemis Investment Management.(Also launching this month ...)
November 1, 2003... Artemis investment management has opened up its full range of eight funds-of-funds to retail investors. The range includes Portfolio Growth, Portfolio Balanced, Portfolio Conservative, Multi-Manager UK Growth, Multi-Manager UK Equity Income,...

Allianz Dresdner Asset Management.(Also launching this month ...)
November 1, 2003... Allianz Dresdner asset management is offering investors a 1 per cent discount off the initial charge on both its UK Growth fund and UK Mid Cap fund until 31 December 2003. Call 0800 317 573.

ISIS Asset Management.(New offers)
November 1, 2003... ISIS Asset Management has launched the ISIS Portfolio Service. The service allows investors access to two existing funds-of-funds: ISIS Multi-Manager Growth and ISIS Multi-Manager Balanced. A major feature of the service is that the initial...

Panel of experts.
November 1, 2003... * Patrick Connolly is a director at Chartwell Investment Management [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Philip Johnson is a director at Kenwood Associates * Tim Cockerill is a senior investment manager at Principal Investment Management ...

Managers on the move: should you stay or should you go? What Investment looks into the reasons behind recent fund manager moves.(Fund managers)
November 1, 2003... The most prominent fund manager to opt for a change of scene in September was Keiran Gallagher, who announced his intention of leaving LeggMason Investments, where he was both chief investment officer and manager of the group's Continental...

Packing punch: do boutique fund management groups offer private investors a better deal? Harvey Jones looks at the evidence.(Focus: Boutique fund managers)(Cover Story)
November 1, 2003... Funds from specialist 'boutique' asset managers have been riding high in the performance tables in recent months, often outstripping those from the major asset management houses. So is small beautiful, or are recent strong returns simply a...

Fund manager's eye-view: Lee Gardhouse, fund manager of the HL Boutique Opportunities, explains why boutique fund groups have the edge.(Focus: Boutique fund managers)(Cover Story)
November 1, 2003... Faced with 3,000 funds to choose from, most investors would probably ask themselves why they should even consider using a boutique investment group. I usually start by asking exactly the opposite question. An investor may state that the...

Cash IS(A) king: what Investment looks at ways to boost the returns from your cash ISA investments.(Cash ISAs)
November 1, 2003... On the Richter scale of interesting financial products, even ardent supporters of the cash ISA would have to admit that this product, while an extremely useful part of any investor's portfolio, is hardly a ground shaker. That's not to say...

On distant shores: looking to make an investment in property? Why not consider buyinh abroad? Guy King explains all.(Buying a propert abroad)
November 1, 2003... Overseas property has impressive capital gains potential. Price increases of 30 per cent per year are not uncommon in parts of coastal Spain. In two decades property in Nice, France, rose 1,600 per cent. Television programmes featuring Norma...

Helping hands: want a helping hand with your investments? What Investment looks at the changing face of financial advice.
November 1, 2003... We are, officially, in the Age of Convenience. Everything apparently can now be achieved from the comfort of your own living room, from your very own sofa. You can order your shopping online, purchase clothes and furniture on the telephone, you...

Pension annuities: Nick Cooper looks at the latest developments in the annuity market.
November 1, 2003... Annuities are something you've all no doubt heard about. But what are they, why do we nearly all have to buy one, and how do they work? With the 2001 UK Census showing that for the first time there are more people over age 65 than there are...

Will the gamble pay off? David Harris examines the finer points of financial spread-betting on the net.(Technology)
November 1, 2003... The late Benjamin Franklin is remembered for once famously saying, "There are two things you can be sure of in life--death and taxes!" When an opportunity to make money and not pay any tax on the profit comes along, it's fair to say that most...

United Kingdom: pockets of potential; each month, What Investment speaks to the top-performing fund managers in six global markets, and asks them to reveal the key issues currently driving their stock-selection decisions.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... while interest rates remain low and the economic news continues to improve, equities are still fair value relative to bonds Despite the strong rebound in UK equities since March, Sacha Sadan, joint manager of Gartmore's UK Growth fund,...

United States: improvement in earnings.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... After a few minor setbacks, the US economy seems to be experiencing signs of a genuine recovery "Despite "all the debate about a global downturn, the world economy appears to be experiencing a 'normal' cyclical recovery," says Nigel...

Europe: a wall of worry.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... Cost cutting and corporate restructuring will have a positive impact on profits over time "Companies across Europe have effectively been forced to look at their cost base and take action,' says Matthew Leeman, co-manager of the SocGen...

Far East: momentum picks up.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... A global market upturn has boosted confidence in Asia, and fund managers anticipate that growth can be sustained "Asian economic momentum has picked up over the past two months," says Nigel Richardson, senior investment strategist at AXA...

Japan: encouraging signs.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... Capital expenditure and corporate reform are on track; however, the underlying economy remains weak "The tone of Japanese economic data has been very encouraging," says Sarah Whitley, manager of the Baillie Gifford Japan investment trust,...

Emerging markets: good value.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... Despite the rally over the past couple of years, emerging markets represent better value than developed markets "Emerging markets look attractive for a number of reasons," says Jeff Chowdhry, co-head of emerging markets at F&C. "The amount...

Market insider. China: continuing our series providing a fundamental analysis of a region from an economic and political perspective. This month Michael Wilson considers the outlook for China.(World Markets)
November 1, 2003... By the time you read this, China should be moving boldly into yet another new era. No, please don't groan like that, and do stop snoring! The Third Plenum of the Communist Party of China, which met in Beijing in late October, was scheduled to...

Market view.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... September was one of those months that showed how the FTSE 100 can be so misrepresentative of the UK stock market as a whole. Falling sectors outnumbered rising sectors by almost two to one. Many more stocks fell than rose on the month, yet at...

UK stock performance.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... UK STOCK PERFORMANCE Rank Company Weight in 1 Month Name Index Return TOP 20 FTSE All-Share 1 Edinburgh Fund Mgers Gp 0.00% 97.90% 2 Filtronic ...

FTSE 100 index.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... Stock 1 month Rank 1 year Rank 3i Group Inv Tr 94.63 73 140.02 11 Abbey National 93.14 79 99.36 77 Alliance & Leicester 97.11 54 ...

Index constituent rankings FTSE 100.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... Dividend Dividend P/E Rank Stock Price Yield (%) Cover Ratio 1 BP 413 3.80% 1.38 19.06 2 HSBC Hldgs 793.5 4.42% ...

IT sector view.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... IT services has not been a sector to invest in over the past years. Clearly valuations--in this diverse and well-populated sector--became totally overheated in the late nineties. Partly, this was part of the general TMT bubble but it was...

IT share view.(UK Shares)
November 1, 2003... Northgate Information Solutions was an IT services disaster well before the dot.com boom and bust. But out of a wreck known as MDIS a new management team arrived in late 1999 and has created a significant player in a number of key sectors,...

European sector review: Hilary Cook, director of investment strategy at Barclay privare clients, examines the prospects for the European food-retailing sector.(Stock Market Review)
November 1, 2003... Food retailing has been much in the news during 2003 with the bidding war for Safeway and the accounting irregularities at Dutch company Ahold dominating the City pages. At the time of writing, the Competition Commission has just given the...

European stock performance.(Stock Market Review)
November 1, 2003... EUROPEAN STOCK PERFORMANCE Rank Company Weight in 1 Month Name Index Return Top 20 FTSE World Europe 1 Telecom Italia Media 0.01% ...

Unit trust best buys: what investment asks three independent financial advisers to recommend their favourite unit trusts for a cautious, a balanced and an aggressive investment.
November 1, 2003... CAUTIOUS OPTION Gillian Cardy, principal of IFA Professional Partnerships, recommends that cautious investors look at the Gartmore Cautious Managed fund, for a suitably balanced investment. Launched in February of this year, this Band...

Unit trust performance table.
November 1, 2003... The figures show the value of [pound sterling] 100 over six months, one, three, five and ten years to 30 September 2003, on an offer-to-bid basis with net income reinvested. Funds are listed by sector so that you can compare them against trusts...

A brave new world: Keiron Root meets Richard Buxton, a fund manager who believes in new solutions for 21st-century investors.
November 1, 2003... Readers who have suffered the ups and downs of the stock market over the past few years will probably be deeply suspicious of fund management groups claiming that their funds have 'outperformed' relative to an index, when all this really means...

Investment trust best buys: What Investment asks three independent financial advisers to recommend their favourite investment trusts for a cautious, a balanced and an aggressive investment.(Monitor)
November 1, 2003... CAUTIOUS OPTION Nick Sketch, investment trust analyst at Cart Sheppards Crosthwaite, suggests Merrill Lynch FTSE 100 Stepped Growth shares for investors who do not wish to take too much risk. The trust was launched in June 2002 and these...

Investment trust performance tables.(Investment Trusts)
November 1, 2003... What the tables show The figures show the value of 100 [pounds sterling] over six months, one, three, five and ten years to 30 September 2003, on an offer-to-bid basis with net income reinvested. Funds are listed by sector so that you can...

Making a claim: a panel of independent experts answer readers' financial planning and investment queries.(Money clinic)
November 1, 2003... I have recently been contacted by someone saying that they are an employee of Wickers Anderson Consulting" and that for a fee of 349[pounds sterling](plus 10 per cent of any compensation payment) they can, on my behalf, pursue a case for the...

Regular saving options.(Money clinic)
November 1, 2003... I am looking to invest some money into the stock market but can't seem to find an investment vehicle that will allow me to do so for under 50[pounds sterling] per month. Can you tell whether there are any products that will allow hie to invest...

Invest in debt.(Money clinic)
November 1, 2003... I am a bit confused about the difference between bonds and gilts. I know bonds are company debt and gilts are government debt, but what are the main factors affecting their performance? Is now a good time to be investing in bonds or gilts or...

Best ways to save.(Reference)
November 1, 2003... NO-NOTICE ACCOUNTS Company Account Gross Name Rate Balance of 500 [pounds sterling] Northern Rock ...

Personal pension annuity rates.(Reference)
November 1, 2003... An annuity is a financial product that converts capital into income. You can buy one with any lump sum of money or you can buy one with accrued pension funds. Currently, for money purchase pension funds, you must buy an annuity by the time you...

Top-performing unit-linked pensions.(Reference)
November 1, 2003... Five years to 30 September 2003. Results of 100 [pounds strerling] invested on an offer-to-bid basis with gross income reinvested. Name Value Rank Balanced Managed Scottish Friendly Managed...