Fund Strategy articles from April 2008

Fund Strategy archives from April 2008

COMMENT: Irrational fears fuel stifling regulations.
April 7, 2008... The image of the deputy Labour leader walking through her constituency in a stab-proof vest generated plenty of debate last week. Harriet Harman likened it to wearing a team kit, but the picture provided easy pickings for the Conservatives....

Investment to plummet, say experts.
April 7, 2008... Investment in emerging markets is set to fall by as much as 40% by 2009, according to a World Bank official. Yukiko Omura, executive vice president with the bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), last week said that weaker...

BNP Paribas boosts profile with IMS acquisition.
April 7, 2008... BNP Paribas Investment Partners has acquired IMS, a multi-manager, in a drive to further its activity in the British market. IMS will join the brand of FundQuest, BNP Paribas' multi-management arm. The #5.1 billion of assets managed by...

Skandia offers retail access to alternatives.
April 7, 2008... Skandia Investment Group plans to launch a multi-manager alternatives fund investing in 10 alternative asset classes. A panel of 10 fund managers, whose names are yet to be confirmed, will manage it. Initially the fund is likely to invest...

IN BRIEF: New Star unveils sharia-friendly fund.(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... New Star has launched a sharia-compliant fund to reflect the performance of the New Star International Property fund. The Emirates Islamic Global Property fund is managed by Emirates Investment Services and invests mainly in bricks and mortar....

IN BRIEF: Credit Suisse hires asset chief.(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Credit Suisse has appointed Rob Shafir as chief executive officer (CEO) of its asset management division, taking over from David Blumer. Shafir will also continue in his roles as CEO of the Americas region and member of the executive board...

CORRECTION: New Star fund.(Correction notice)
April 7, 2008... The cover story in last week's Fund Strategy (see page 27) mistakenly referred to the head of New Star's fund of funds team as Mark Harries. The head of New Star's fund of funds team is Mark Harris. Mark Harries is the head of multi-manager...

Tata manager to run New Star fund.
April 7, 2008... New Star has named the manager of its new Indian equity fund as Bhupinder Sethi, a fund manager at Tata Asset Management. As reported in Fund Strategy last week, New Star was rumoured to be launching an India fund in partnership with...

Trustnet launches site for offshore investors.
April 7, 2008... Trustnet, a Financial Express company, has launched a sister website to Trustnet UK for offshore investors, and has reviewed its mutual fund ratings. Trustnetoffshore.com is designed as a research tool for investors in offshore mutual,...

Fed admits America may be in recession.
April 7, 2008... Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, has admitted for the first time that recession in America is a possibility. In a speech to a congressional panel last week, Bernanke said that despite figures suggesting marginal growth, the...

IN BRIEF: Aegon strengthens property team.(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Aegon Asset Management has hired two new recruits. Christopher Wakefield and Helen Batten join from Morley as assistant fund managers in Aegon's property team. Wakefield previously worked as an asset manager on the Norwich Property Trust, where...

Western rates 'need to rise' after short-term remedy.
April 7, 2008... Western economies have to continue to loosen monetary and fiscal policy to help resolve imbalances in the global economy, Julian Jessop, chief international economist at Capital Economics, told delegates at this year's Fund Strategy...

Asia experts see good prospects despite recent falls.
April 7, 2008... Prospects for Asia remain good despite the slowdown in the global economy and the recent poor performance of the region's stockmarkets. That was the view of the two panellists in the session on Asia at the Investment Summit. Sunil...

IN BRIEF: Swip appoints bonds director.(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (Swip) has appointed Guy Skinner as investment director of government bonds. Skinner will be responsible for managing a selection of global and sterling government bond portfolios and for contributing...

World 'to suffer American knock-on'.
April 7, 2008... The factors that have propelled the American economy towards recession will have a large knock-on effect on the rest of the world. This was the opinion of the opening two speakers at the Fund Strategy Investment Summit. Over-leveraged...

Academics lock horns over risk aversion trends.
April 7, 2008... This year's Summit debate focused on whether the preoccupation with risk aversion in business and finance has gone too far. Frank Furedi, a professor of sociology at Kent university, put the motion. For him a powerful "cultural narrative"...

First positive inflows may signal move back from cash.
April 7, 2008... In February the investment management industry enjoyed its first net monthly retail inflow since last October, according to Investment Management Association (IMA) statistics published last week. The British retail sector had net inflows of...

STRATEGY: Liquidity crisis set to force rate cut.
April 7, 2008... Interbank interest rates surged in response to market fears and because banks have used up the liquidity support provided by the Bank of England - so analysts forecast a cut to ease pressure. What explains the surge in interbank interest...

TRENDS: Crunch tests skill of bond managers.
April 7, 2008... The market turmoil divides opinion on the best plays - but some managers are reaping the rewards of strategies before the crunch hit. This year will continue to test managers' skills. The fallout from the credit turmoil has presented...

Q&A: Active approach aims to select best ideas.(Interview)
April 7, 2008... Simon Murphy, manager of the Old Mutual UK Select Equity fund, is questioned by Adam Lewis. Q: You assumed management of the UK Select Equity fund in the second week of March. How much of the fund have you changed in that time? A: I...

IRON AGE: By the truckload.
April 7, 2008... Grain, metal and oil prices tumbled last month. But emerging economies - especially China and India - have a surging appetite for commodities. Is it the end of the boom or was the dip just a blip? Sunil Jagtiani reports from Sydney. Is...

Commodity index investors.
April 7, 2008... The value of passive investments in commodities has grown substantially and commodity index funds have played a role in this year's rise in raw material prices, according to recent research by Lehman Brothers. "We estimate that the value...

Main drivers of the hike in food prices.
April 7, 2008... Commodity prices have risen not just in sectors like oil and metals, but also in cereal crops and for many other foodstuffs. Figures from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization suggest food prices are up about 40% over the past year,...

ANALYSIS: Contrarian focuses on asian growth.
April 7, 2008... Peter Lucas, manager of Ashburton Global Sterling, takes a top-down approach to allocation - a strategy he says can limit losses in the bad years and boost performance in the good. Peter Lucas lives and works in Jersey. He manages money for...

AFI: Wary managers turn to Specialist.
April 7, 2008... Several groups reacted to market volatility by launching absolute return funds to guarantee returns and take advantage of the Ucits III shorting powers - and inflows support the move. Volatility in global markets weighs on investor...

FoFs: Swip pair focus on absolute returns.
April 7, 2008... The burst of activity in 2007 highlighted the fund of funds sector, as managers moved firms at a rate of knots. Despite this, Swip's Mark Harries is staying loyal to the commodities market. The fund of funds sector got plenty of media...

FOCUS: Hawk-eyes look beyond the market.
April 7, 2008... SVM Asset Management takes a bottom-up approach to stockpicking and, says Mark Noble, head of retail sales, it has consolidated the group's performance. Neal Underwood reports. Across all SVM Asset Management's literature is the slogan...

Fund Manager's Diary: 17-21 March 2008.
April 7, 2008... Monday Usually I wake up to the dulcet tones of Louisa Bojesen and the CNBC morning crew. However, today is different. It is 5.30am and my banks analyst Ben is on the phone. This is an unusually early call, especially as Ben is on his...

COMMENT: No profit in talking up Doomsday scenario.
April 14, 2008... The world could end tomorrow. Then again it is hugely more likely that things will carry on much like today. It is the word "could" that causes the problem. Although it is theoretically possible that the world will be hit by catastrophe,...

Hambi steps down in funds shake-up.
April 14, 2008... Bambos Hambi, head of multi-manager at Gartmore, is stepping down from his post as the company reviews its range of multi-manager funds. Tony Lanning, currently deputy head of multi-manager, will lead the team in his place. Hambi, who...

Hedge issuance falls amid calls for scrutiny.
April 14, 2008... Issuance of listed hedge funds weakened significantly in March, according to the latest Wins monthly report. Only #147m of new capital flowed into the sector last month, compared with #422m in February. The drop coincided with poor returns...

Unicorn MD departs in wake of Eaglet's flight.
April 14, 2008... Peter Walls, the managing director of Unicorn when it lost its fight to keep control of the Eaglet Investment Trust, has left the company. As Fund Strategy reported on December 17, the trust was taken over by a consortium of three...

IN BRIEF: Bank of England cuts rates to 5%.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... The Bank of England has dropped interest rates by a quarter point to 5%. The action is the third cut in five months as the Bank moves to help ease liquidity constraints. The Bank, which held rates at 5.25% last month because of concerns over...

IN BRIEF: Close venture fund nets #10m.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Close Ventures, the venture capital trust (VCT) provider, has announced that the Close Enterprise VCT top-up received more than #10m in subscriptions when it closed on April 4. The balance of the net funds will be invested in higher growth...

IN BRIEF: Blue Sky plan proves popular.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Blue Sky Asset Management launched a third tranche of its 10% Protected Income Plan last week in response to investor demand. The structured investment pays 10% fixed income a year for six years with contingent capital protection. It is...

JO Hambro picks pair for new range.
April 14, 2008... JO Hambro Capital Management has hired Chris Lees and Nudgem Richyal from Baring Asset Management to run a global and Europe, Australasia and Far East (EAFE) range of funds. Lees, at present head of global sector teams at Barings, is...

BNY Mellon launches first 130/30 global fund.
April 14, 2008... BNY Mellon Asset Management has announced the launch of its first 130/30 fund in its global funds range. Meanwhile, Paul Feeney, former head of sales at Gartmore, was unveiled as head of distribution for its international business. The...

IN BRIEF: Witan CTF based on global portfolio.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Witan Investment Services has launched the Jump child trust fund (CTF) for parents wishing to invest the #250 government voucher in a shares account. The CTF, based on the #1.25 billion Witan Investment Trust, offers the potential for strong...

IN BRIEF: Venture capital beats expectations.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Figures published by the Association of Investment Companies suggest that fundraising was better than expected for the venture capital trust sector at the end of the 2007/2008 tax year. Overall, #219m was raised by the sector, with some...

IN BRIEF: RCM beefs up trust team.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... RCM has appointed Peter Ames as a director in its investment trust team. Ames, who arrived last week, will develop RCM's closed-ended fund business and will liaise with investment trust boards and shareholders. He reports to Simon White, the...

IN BRIEF: Prodesse plans share placing.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Prodesse Investment, a London Stock Exchange-listed investment company, has announced it is placing up to 2,816,500 new ordinary shares, up to 10% of Prodesse's issued ordinary share capital. The net proceeds will be used to invest in...

Group is people-watching for profit.
April 14, 2008... JP Morgan Asset Management has launched a Global Consumer Trends fund. Managed by Peter Kirkman in New York and Burcu Ugurtas in London, the fund aims to profit from changing human behaviour. It focuses on what people around the globe...

New Star recruits three equity fund managers.
April 14, 2008... New Star Asset Management has hired three new equity fund managers and changed the manager on its Global Equity fund. Charles Deptford and Trevor Green will join the group from Baring Asset Management and RCM respectively at the end of...

Traded life policy funds push for own sector.
April 14, 2008... Certain product providers of traded life policy funds (TLP) want to lobby the Investment Management Association (IMA) to create a new sector. Eight funds are available to British investors at present. However, given their offshore domiciles and...

IN BRIEF: New HSBC plans to protect capital.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... HSBC Investments has launched its Capital Protected Plan and Capital Protected Isa. Both products offer 106% participation in any growth of the FTSE 100 index at the end of their six-year Capital Protected Period. The offer period runs from...

Maia sells UK equity income funds.
April 14, 2008... Maia Capital, Resolution Asset Management's multi-manager boutique, has sold the UK equity income funds held in its #30m Cautious portfolio. The boutique has also reshuffled the Japanese funds held in its #50m Growth and #50m Balanced...

SVM all set to expand multi-manager range.
April 14, 2008... SVM is to expand its multi-manager range with the launch of two funds. The SVM Cautious Managed fund and Balanced Managed fund aim to meet the demands of cautious investors. Melville Bucher, head of institutional clients at SVM, says the...

IMF downgrades global growth forecasts in new report.
April 14, 2008... The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has downgraded its forecasts for world GDP growth once again in its latest World Economic Outlook (Weo). Overall global growth is expected to be 3.7% in 2008 and 3.8% in 2009. That is revised down...

IN BRIEF: S&P adds to its Africa indices.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Standard & Poor's (S&P) has extended its Africa series of indices. It is designed to provide investors with access to Africa's developing equity markets, as well as being a complete measurement tool for the performance of those markets. The...

IMF's global stability picture is not as black as painted.
April 14, 2008... The Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR) released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last week set off an instant gloom- fest in the media. Stories focused excitedly on potential write-downs and losses - caused either directly or...

STRATEGY: Expect a slowdown, not recession.
April 14, 2008... The US credit crunch is having an impact around the world, but that does not mean we are set for a global recession. There will be a slowdown, but the outlook is not all gloom and doom The conventional view of the global economy is still...

TRENDS: UK equity income is hard to ignore.
April 14, 2008... Over recent years, UK Equity Income has proved a consistent performer. Advisers have made it a key component of their investment strategy, and it remains a good long-term investment. UK Equity Income has been the cornerstone of investment...

Q&A: Smaller firms help set Guinness energy alight.(Interview)
April 14, 2008... Tim Guinness, the founder and chief executive of Guinness Asset Management, talks to Will Jackson. Q: You launched the Guinness Global Energy fund on March 31. Is the fund fully invested? A: We have had strong expressions of interest...

RECOVERY RUSE: Betting on recovery.
April 14, 2008... The credit crunch has hit hard and the markets have taken a hammering. Not a good time to buy, many might think - but as Frances Hughes reports, for recovery investors, this is where it all starts as they look for turnaround stocks. With...

Finding the right stocks at the right price.
April 14, 2008... Ben Yearsley, investment manager at Hargreaves Lansdown, likes the Melchior UK Opportunities fund managed by Glen Pratt and the M&G Recovery fund managed by Tom Dobell. "Recovery is certainly a theme I like," he says. "It's an interesting...

ANALYSIS: Bullish enough to go big in banks.
April 14, 2008... Russell Wallis has a derivatives strategy, "options overlay", that keeps his UK equity fund ahead of the FTSE 100. And far from avoiding financial stocks, he is overweight in them. I spent all last week writing about tumbling property...

AFI: Getting across the message on risk.
April 14, 2008... The flight to caution by many investors has underlined the need for IFAs to discourage panic selling and reassure clients that managing risk is an ongoing part of the fund-selection process. The three Adviser Fund Index (AFI) indices have...

FoFs: A golden performance from Lacomp.
April 14, 2008... Lacomp World has performed consistently well over the past three years, thanks in part to a significant weighting in gold - now up to 17.5% over fears on the impact of the credit crunch. Lacomp World has moved up the performance tables...

FOCUS: Innovative Schroders riding high.
April 14, 2008... With two new income funds and two new alpha funds, plus a strong multi- manager range, Schroders is viewed by advisers as offering good choices for investors, writes Adam Lewis. The second half of 2007 and the start of 2008 saw Schroders...

Fund Manager's Diary: 31 March to 6 April 2008.
April 14, 2008... Monday Usual routine - wake up at 6am and switch on radio. Seems Mugabe has lost the election. Is he really going to go quietly? Wonderful idea. Hope for the best, but can't believe Mugabe won't fight. Leave home 6.30am and arrive work...

COMMENT: When a multi-fund investor sees stars.
April 21, 2008... The growing culture of star fund managers in the multi-manager arena is a cause for concern, and the press has to take some of the blame. Star fund managers within the retail funds industry are nothing new. The pros and cons of managers...

Group unveils offshore Emerging Asia.
April 21, 2008... Fidelity International has launched the offshore Fidelity Funds Emerging Asia fund. The Luxembourg-domiciled fund is managed by Teera Chanpongsang from Hong Kong. It invests in less developed markets in Asia to try to benefit from...

Invesco set to merge funds subject to approval.
April 21, 2008... Invesco Perpetual is planning to combine its #13m US Smaller Companies and #8m US Aggressive Oeics with its #290m US Equity fund, subject to investor approval. The merger, which will take place on May 23, is part of a wider programme to...

Schroders replaces manager on two funds.
April 21, 2008... Schroders has replaced the fund manager on its #340m Income Maximiser fund and recently launched UK Income Defensive fund. John Teahan has taken over as lead manager on both funds after Richard Lloyd, the previous manager, who was co-head of...

IN BRIEF: Morley appoints assets strategist.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... Morley has appointed Haydn Davies to its strategy and multi-asset funds team. Davies, who joins as an asset allocation strategist, is responsible for developing investment models and generating ideas for asset allocation clients. He was...

IN BRIEF: Proposals aim to update practices.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... The Investment Management Association issued a proposal for a revised Statement of Recommended Practice (Sorp) for Authorised Funds last week. The revision is being proposed in response to expansion in the range of investment powers...

IN BRIEF: Skandia launches consultancy.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... Skandia UK has announced the launch of a business consultancy service to help financial advisers who are moving their business model away from a reliance on stand-alone product sales towards holistic financial planning. The new team will...

Firm seeks go-ahead for income fund.
April 21, 2008... WH Ireland, an independent regional stockbroking house, is seeking Financial Services Authority (FSA) approval to launch an income fund. The fund will be the second that WH Ireland has launched as part of its drive to increase its presence...

Manager may leave after new Gartmore shake-up.
April 21, 2008... An internal review of Gartmore's European funds has led to the possible departure of Tim Callaghan as fund manager. Management of the #50m European Growth and #30m European Focus funds has passed to Stephen Jones, head of the European desk,...

Asian portfolio to boost TRI property exposure.
April 21, 2008... TRI Investments, a retail and institutional investment boutique, has launched an Asian Real Estate Fund. The fund aims to give investors exposure to both the residential and commercial property markets in Asia through building up a strategic...

IN BRIEF: Lyxor looks east with new ETFs.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... Lyxor Asset Management has announced the launch of four exchange traded funds (ETFs) targeting Eastern Europe, Hong Kong, Korea and Turkey. Each of the funds will produce returns by tracking the performance of one of four indices - the MSCI...

Managers display deep pessimism over British economy.
April 21, 2008... Global fund managers are taking an aggressively underweight position in British equities, according to the latest monthly survey from Merrill Lynch. It is not clear to what extent the extreme pessimism on the British outlook is motivated by...

Asian giant's economic growth defies global slowdown.
April 21, 2008... China is managing to maintain a rapid pace of economic growth, despite the slowdown in the global economy, but concerns about inflation are mounting. Official figures published last week show GDP growth running at 10.6% year-on-year in...

IN BRIEF: Jupiter appoints product director.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... Jupiter has appointed Juliette Home as product development director. Home, who joined Jupiter last week, will help to develop products for business units in Britain and internationally. She has previously worked at the Investment Management...

IN BRIEF: Upgrade for New Star Balanced.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... Standard & Poor's has upgraded the New Star Balanced Portfolio from A to AA. The fund was reviewed and upgraded after it produced returns of 59.1% against a 37.9% return for the IMA Balanced Managed sector since Mark Harris and Craig Heron...

IN BRIEF: Group unveils protected funds.(Brief article)
April 21, 2008... HSBC Investments has launched capital protected funds linked to HSBC's Global Emerging Markets Titans index. The HSBC Capital Protected Plan and HSBC Capital Protected Isa allow investors to benefit from 100% participation in the...

Fed's Beige Book reports more gloom.
April 21, 2008... America's Federal Reserve released its Beige Book last week, which suggested growing pessimism about the state of the American economy. The report, published eight times a year, uses anecdotal evidence from interviews with market experts...

US firms poised to open funds to British investors.
April 21, 2008... Two North American groups have announced plans to launch funds for British investors. American-based Brown Advisory is to launch a Dublin- based Ucits III US Smaller Companies fund, while DundeeWealth, a Canadian-based wealth management...

Skandia set to unveil six multi-managers.
April 21, 2008... Skandia UK is to launch six funds into its multi-manager range. The new risk-targeted funds will aim to match six different risk profiles allowing investors to match their risk appetite with the expected volatility in each portfolio. The...

Hambi's exit puts spotlight on importance of managers.
April 21, 2008... When a fund manager leaves a group investors are faced with the decision of whether to leave with him or stay with the investment house. When a fund of fund manager leaves the implications are more deeply felt, some argue. Last week, as...

STRATEGY: Bears' ray of light will pierce gloom.
April 21, 2008... Financial machinations masked risk and rendered the overall picture foggy when the credit crunch hit - but recession will pave the way for recovery and produce equity bargains. Rather like a thunderstorm, the credit crisis that broke in...

TRENDS: Long-term security for converted.
April 21, 2008... Market turbulence prompted renewed interest in convertible bonds because they offer security and growth. However, to optimise returns, they have to be managed in a specialised way. It is easy to see why people are attracted to convertible...

Q&A: Jupiter gains energy with familiar theme.(Interview)
April 21, 2008... Charles Thomas, manager of the Jupiter Ecology fund, answers questions from Adam Lewis. Q. The Ecology fund is 20 years old. Although you have managed it for the past four-and-a-half years, how has it evolved? A. There are certain...

BOND MARKET: Judgement day.
April 21, 2008... The bond markets seem to be pricing fixed income investments as if the economy were facing Armageddon. Corporate bond fund managers who judge this view to be overly pessimistic hope to make a killing, writes Simon Hildrey. The economy...