Fund Strategy articles from August 2008

Fund Strategy archives from August 2008

COMMENT: Fresh excuse for the same old puritanism.
August 4, 2008... Has anyone noticed that the credit crunch is the new climate change? Until about a year ago, we were being advised to take such measures as reducing energy consumption, not wasting food and being financially frugal to save the planet. Now...

Axa fund put on hold for IMA review.
August 4, 2008... Fund Strategy understands that Mark Tinker, a fund manager at Axa Framlington, will not be given an absolute return themed vehicle until the Investment Management Association (IMA) carries out a review of counterparty risk. Despite reports...

Liontrust plans to extend global reach of funds.
August 4, 2008... Liontrust is planning to extend the international scope of its fund range. It is particularly interested in running global, European and Asia-Pacific portfolios. Nigel Legge, joint chief executiveof Liontrust, says "When we find the right...

HSBC seeks distributor status for Taiwan fund.
August 4, 2008... HSBC Global Asset Management is seeking UK distributor status for the Taiwan Equity fund it launched last week. The portfolio, structured as a Luxembourg-domiciled Sicav, is managed by Leilani Lam who is part of Halbis, HSBC's active...

Argonaut set to unveil Europe absolute return.
August 4, 2008... Argonaut Capital Partners plans to launch a European Absolute Return Fund later this year with joint venture partner Resolution Asset Management. The fund will be run by Argonaut founding partners Barry Norris and Oliver Russ, who manage...

IN BRIEF: American GDP growth updated.(Brief article)
August 4, 2008... America's gross domestic product (GDP) rose at a seasonally adjusted 1.9% annual rate in the second quarter according to official figures. GDP growth in the first quarter was revised down to a 0.9% rate of increase, from a previous reading...

IN BRIEF: New name for Henderson fund.(Brief article)
August 4, 2008... Henderson Global Investors has re-named the Henderson Enhanced Sterling Liquidity Fund to the Henderson Cash Fund last week to better reflect the fund's investment strategy. The investment objective of the fund remains the same and will...

IN BRIEF: BlackRock hires manger for trust.(Brief article)
August 4, 2008... The board of the BlackRock Greater Europe Investment Trust has appointed Vincent Devlin as co-manager of the trust. Devlin succeeds James Macmillan, who is stepping down from the trust to focus on his European Value and International Value...

IMF anxious on emerging markets.
August 4, 2008... Investors are becoming nervous about the resilience of emerging markets according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In its update to the annual Global Financial Stability Report the IMF says that emerging markets are coming under...

Close venture capital trusts change to Octopus.
August 4, 2008... Three Close Investments Alternative Investment Market (Aim) venture capital trusts (VCTs), with #65m of assets, have moved to Octopus Investments. The boards of the Close VCTs moved the contract to Octopus because fund managers Andrew...

Lead manager departs First State Indian fund.
August 4, 2008... Vijay Tohani, the lead manager on the First State Indian Subcontinent fund, has resigned. His future plans are unknown, although First State says the circumstances were amicable. Tohani joined First State in April 2000 and in 2003 became...

TRENDS: Focus shifts down under for returns.
August 4, 2008... Investors cut exposure to Asia Pacific excluding Japan as the global downturn hits everywhere. China still dominates the region but its trade links with Australia makes the latter a good prospect. East Asian markets have been at the...

STRATEGY: Wide spread covers all conditions.
August 4, 2008... Investors took a punt on the riskier sectors of the fixed income market in the second quarter of this year. But diversification into different bond markets will protect the investor in volatile times. Bond market developments have...

Q&A: New face at new star is lightening the load.(Interview)
August 4, 2008... New Star's Charles Deptford tells Frances Hughes why he has cut the number of holdings in his fund. Q: When you took over the New Star Equity Income fund recently, you said you planned to reduce the number of holdings, which stood at 88 at...

BLAST OFF: Deep impact.
August 4, 2008... The credit crisis blasted off a year ago and as the shock waves reverberated around the world central banks attempted to rescue faltering economies. Sunil Jagtiani reports from Hong Kong on the event's global impact and prospects for recovery....

BLAST OFF: Impact on Europe.
August 4, 2008... The rise in European inflation owing to higher food and energy costs, and the risk that wage increases could follow, have taken centre stage recently as the region's key economic concern. That in turn has pushed the subprime crisis, and...

BLAST OFF: Impact on Asia.
August 4, 2008... Many parts of the world have felt the impact of the subprime crisis, including the Asia-Pacific. The region had been lauded for rapid, China- led economic expansion over recent years, but the fallout from the crisis has led to concerns about...

ANALYSIS: Aberdeen's emerging adventurer.
August 4, 2008... Mark Gordon-James dodged bullets in Iraq at the age of 24. Now his experience of danger zones is informing the choices he makes as part of Aberdeen's emerging markets team. He has slept for months with a Kalashnikov by his pillow and run a...

REVIEW: Call for sacrifice is anti-democratic.
August 4, 2008... Robert Reich Supercapitalism: The Battle for Democracy in an Age of Big Business Icon 2008 Robert Reich blames big business and technological progress for the erosion of democracy. But his flawed thesis is self-serving and -...

AIF: New kid on block reignites interest.
August 4, 2008... Cazenove's UK Absolute Target sparked a flurry of interest when it was launched last month - managers see it as a chance to diversify while retaining exposure to absolute return strategies. The launch by Cazenove of the UK Absolute Target...

FoFs: GHC keeps faith in emerging world.
August 4, 2008... Emerging market indices have fallen this year but GHC's MM Global Equity portfolio has no fears about bucking the trend, having increased its weighting in the area at the end of 2007. The main emerging market equity indices have suffered...

FOCUS: Liontrust process regaining its roar.
August 4, 2008... Liontrust's European investment process has not achieved the assets its joint chief executive made a bet on, but the odds are looking good for a new phase of growth. Adam Lewis reports. Barcelona? Berlin? Paris? Jonathan Harbottle, head...

Fund Manager's Diary: 7-13 July 2008.
August 4, 2008... Monday After last week's heavy selling, the FTSE rallied strongly today, continuing its schizophrenic run. Investors remain perplexed as to the impact of a rising oil price and whether or not we have reached the bottom of the subprime crisis....

COMMENT: Our games of double standards over China.
August 11, 2008... Daniel Ben-Ami, Editor. The Beijing Olympics symbolises the most important and positive development in the world in decades: the rapid economic development of China. Those who whine so noisily about the Olympics and China reveal more about...

Rally amid relief over bank results.
August 11, 2008... Though bad news has swamped Britain's banks this year, better-than- expected results have helped fuel a bear market rally. The latest round of writedowns in Britain's banking industry saw Royal Bank of Scotland post a pre-tax loss of #691m....

Henderson fund's cash takes a passage to India.
August 11, 2008... Andrew Beal, manager of the #226m Henderson TR Pacific investment trust, has reduced his cash position from 10% to zero over the past two months and increased his weighting to India. From a low of 5% in June the fund's weighting to India...

Investors acquire taste for multi-manager.
August 11, 2008... by Will Jackson Investors' appetite for funds of funds has increased sharply, according to the latest statistics from the Investment Management Association (IMA). Total net sales of multi-manager funds reached more than #1 billion...

IN BRIEF: Asia is target in Baring fund move.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... Baring Asset Management has converted its Pacific fund to Baring Asean Frontiers. The new fund is able to invest in smaller markets in South-East Asia. About 80% of the fund will be invested in core markets in the region: Singapore,...

IN BRIEF: PIM to manage new PSigma fund.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... PSigma Investment Management (PIM) is to manage the PSigma Balanced Managed fund of funds. The fund, which will be operated by PSigma Unit Trust Managers, is a unitised version of PIM's multi-asset fund of funds service, Wealth Management...

IN BRIEF: Firm launches as asset manager.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... Matterley has launched itself as a new asset management company. The firm, which specialises in equity fund management and private equity, is a private partnership under British law. The working partners are Ian Dighe, John Head, Henry...

IN BRIEF: M&G poised to adopt Ucits lll.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... M&G aims to adopt Ucits III powers across its bond range on September 1. The changes will affect the firm's Gilt and Fixed Interest Income, High Interest, High Yield Corporate Bond, Real Yield, Corporate Bond, European Corporate Bond,...

IN BRIEF: Asia and Europe funds for Occam.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... Occam Asset Management will launch Ucits III-enabled Europe Focus and Asia Focus funds in September, run by Phil Cliff and Mark Williams respectively. The European fund aims to outperform the MSCI Pan Euro index, with a high conviction...

IN BRIEF: The Bank and ECB hold rates.(Brief article)
August 11, 2008... The Bank of England and the European Central Bank left interest rates on hold last week, at 5% and 4.25% respectively. The most recent change by the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee was a quarter point reduction in April 2008. The...

GDP forecast cut in growth warning.
August 11, 2008... Ajai Chopra, deputy director in the European department and mission chief for Britain at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), says recession remains a strong possibility as projected economic growth figures for Britain are revised downwards....

Gartmore fund merger to create multi-manager.
August 11, 2008... by Frances Hughes Gartmore proposes its first absolute return fund, by merging two of its multi-manager portfolios. Subject to shareholder and Financial Services Authority (FSA) approval, the group plans to merge the Gartmore...

Fidelity International unveils absolute return.
August 11, 2008... Fidelity International has launched a new absolute return fund, the Fast Optimised European Market Neutral fund. The minimum investment in the fund, targeted at professional investors, is $50,000 (#25,300). Managed by Riccardo Curcio and...

Santander UK Growth boosts focus on banks.
August 11, 2008... Richard Moore, the manager of the #1 billion Santander UK Growth fund (formerly Abbey UK Growth), has begun increasing his position in banks as his investment focus shifts from top-down to bottom-up and he prepares to be less defensive. ...

STRATEGY: Private view focuses on big picture.
August 11, 2008... Private equity promises impressive rewards but investors should take care to see the bigger picture as the sector is beset with risk and money usually has to be tied up for a set period. The term "private equity" has seldom been out of...

TRENDS: Timeless appeal of one-top shop.
August 11, 2008... The growth of funds specialising in sectors and countries has mushroomed shifting the emphasis on to tactical asset allocation. But the case for the traditional one-stop shop funds still persist The growth of funds specialising in...

Q&A: Spot-on timing helps promote fresh growth.(Interview)
August 11, 2008... Richard Moore, the manager of the Santander UK Growth fund, talks to Frances Hughes. Q: When you took over the Santander UK Growth fund a year ago you sold out of banks, media and house builders and positioned yourself defensively by...

LEAP OF FAITH: In the air.
August 11, 2008... The popularity of multi-manager products has taken off as opinion shifts in their favour. Regulatory changes have prompted the development of funds that offer access to more and varied asset classes. Will Jackson reports. Funds of funds...

All change as industry expands.
August 11, 2008... The fund of funds industry resembled musical chairs at times last year, as managers switched firms at a dizzying rate. But, in a variation on the traditional party game, the number of available seats steadily increased, as several new...

ANALYSIS: View from America: 'Sell Britain'.
August 11, 2008... While Gary Trudel, of BlackRock in America, says Britain's economy is too dependent on its financial sector, his firm's Global Allocation fund may hold lessons for British fund managers. The New York Times reported last week on how...

INVESTMENT TRUST: Risk of rewards divides the pundits.
August 11, 2008... The number of investment trusts that pay managers performance fees has soared. But does this incentive improve performance or does it encourage managers to take more risks to achieve it? The headline-grabbing element of the Grant Thornton...

AFI: Rejected class still unloved for now.
August 11, 2008... Advisers ditched 12 UK equity funds in the May rebalancing. However, some panellists expect a reversal within the next six months as investors once again fall in love with sidelined stocks. Across all three Adviser Fund Index (AFI)...

FoFs: Cazenove pair stay true to America.
August 11, 2008... Marcus Brookes and Robin McDonald have played defensively as managers of Cazenove's range since last October, but have convincing reasons for remaining overweight in America and Japan. The fund of funds industry has seen wholesale changes...

FOCUS: BlackRock sailing with flagship fund.
August 11, 2008... BlackRock owes much of its exceptional performance over the past year to the success of its UK Absolute Alpha fund. But will the fund's size start to drag on its returns? Tomas Hirst reports. BlackRock's success in the British retail...

Fund Managers Diary: 28 July to 3 August 2008.
August 11, 2008... Monday Apparently, size does matter. Food inflation has led to drastic measures as Pizza Hut in Hong Kong has shrunk its large pizza from 12 to 11 inches. What will be next - a pint is no longer a pint? I receive a call from Singapore to...

COMMENT: Why global recession fears are ill-founded.
August 18, 2008... Daniel Ben-Ami, Editor Many will no doubt see the latest gloomy data from the eurozone and Japan as confirmation that the world economy is heading for a deep recession. Such a view is based on a superficial reading of global developments....

More see global recession as likely.
August 18, 2008... Fund managers see the credit crunch as spreading from a problem centred on the American financial sector to the global real economy, judging by the latest global monthly survey from Merrill Lynch. Their concerns have switched from inflation...

New man to raise profile of Barings fund range.
August 18, 2008... Baring Asset Management has appointed Rodney Aldridge, former head of UK retail distribution at Gartmore, as head of UK retail sales. Aldridge, who will join the group next month, will report to Rob Lay, head of European mutual fund sales and...

Henderson in move to short-sell stocks.
August 18, 2008... The #245m Henderson Smaller Companies trust, managed by Neil Hermon, plans to introduce shorting techniques. It follows in the steps of the Throgmorton investment trust which, as reported in Fund Strategy two months ago (June 16), became the...

IN BRIEF: Gartmore funds set to merge.(Brief article)
August 18, 2008... Gartmore's European Growth fund will merge into Gartmore European Selected Opportunities, if shareholders and the Financial Services Authority approve. Gartmore proposes to merge the #37.6m fund, managed by Stephen Jones, into the #1.9...

CORRECTION: BlackRock.(Correction notice)
August 18, 2008... The Analysis piece in last week's Fund Strategy (August 11, page 20) mistakenly referred to the research vice-president of BlackRock as Gary Trudel. BlackRock's research vice-president is Michael Trudel. Trudel works on the BlackRock Global...

IN BRIEF: Ashburton grows with new recruit.(Brief article)
August 18, 2008... Ashburton, a Jersey-based active investment manager, has expanded its European equities team with the appointment of Veronika Pechlaner as investment manager. Pechlaner joined Ashburton in April from the London office of Goldman Sachs, where...

IN BRIEF: New Star PR set to join rival firm.(Brief article)
August 18, 2008... Ben Robinson, the head of public relations at New Star Asset Management, has left the firm to join another asset management company. Robinson, who joined New Star in 2001 from Jupiter, resigned from his position three weeks ago. Robinson is on...

Fresh fears prompt cuts in exposure.
August 18, 2008... Jupiter's Elena Shaftan and F&C's Gareth Morgan are among managers scaling back their overweight positions in Russia. In a week dominated by news of the conflict between Russia and Georgia, its pro-Western neighbour, the moves could be...

King remains upbeat despite 'painful adjustment'.
August 18, 2008... The British economy is suffering an unavoidable period of "difficult and painful adjustment" in the view of the Bank of England's governor. Mervyn King last week acknowledged at the launch of the Bank's quarterly Inflation Report that...

Latest figures show fall in money raised.
August 18, 2008... New investment trusts raised #3 billion in the first seven months of 2008, according to the latest monthly report from Wins Investment Trusts. Issuance showed resilience in June and July, but the figure was well below the #8.4 billion raised...

Swip looking to launch developed Asia fund.
August 18, 2008... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (Swip) is considering launching a developed Asian market-focused fund in the second half of 2009. Ian Vose, the head of Swip's global developed markets team, says the launch depends on investor demand...

STATESIDE: Vacation freeze means vacant seats.
August 18, 2008... High fuel prices and a weak dollar result in half-empty international flights, the surging popularity of the 'staycation' - and a move to protect purchasing power using exchange traded funds. Dollars buy fewer French fries The 747...

STRATEGY: Sweet taste of emerging assortment.
August 18, 2008... Emerging markets offer myriad rewards for long-term investors - the sector offers as many asset classes as developed countries and a good place to start is emerging local currency debt. To think strategically is to think beyond...

TRENDS: Rare collision drives region's appeal.
August 18, 2008... The high oil price, huge investment programmes and a surge in domestic demand strengthen the Middle East and North Africa region - all factors that increase its appeal to investors. The Middle East and North African (Mena) region offers a...

Q&AS: Team stretches its skills in funds with a twist.(Company overview)
August 18, 2008... David Sheppard, the chief executive of Occam, replies to questions from Will Jackson. Q: Occam Asset Management was established in September 2007. How has the business developed since then? A: The genesis of the idea came from when I...

BOXING CLEVER: Fighting chance.
August 18, 2008... Investors seeking value in battered stocks still risk poor timing and unwise moves. But even though prospects for value stocks are better in the long term, there is a shift to growth as the slowdown strikes, writes Paul Farrow. Ask John...

BOXING CLEVER: Multi-manager view.
August 18, 2008... John Chatfeild-Roberts, Jupiter Asset Management "If you have been a deep value investor over the past 12 months you would have lost a lot of money. On a five-year view it might be the place to be but on a one-year view, who knows, so I...

BOXING CLEVER: Qualifying criteria for deep value.
August 18, 2008... The list (supplemented by three of Rea's own requirements) was published by Rea in a Journal of Portfolio Management article in 1977. To qualify as a deep value opportunity the following criteria must be met: 1) A trailing earnings yield...

ANALYSIS: 'Armageddon is not going to happen'.
August 18, 2008... Since early in the credit crisis - and even after Northern Rock and Bear Stearns - Bill Mott of PSigma has been upbeat about banks. In July, after nine months, he eventually called it right. When I last interviewed PSigma's Bill Mott, back...

INVESTMENT TRUSTS: Global vision sees fund outperform.
August 18, 2008... Murray International's 70 stocks include 27 countries - all uncorrelated assets - which has helped the trust outperform in uncertain times, says Bruce Stout, the manager of the portfolio. Strong outperformance of its peer group and...

AFI: New rules prompt change to line-up.
August 18, 2008... The number of funds of funds in the Adviser Fund Index swelled from five to 13 in the one year since the rules were relaxed as some panellists use them to tap into alternative asset classes. The latest monthly statistics from the Investment...

FoFs: America tips the balance at Architas.
August 18, 2008... Caspar Rock at Architas expects America to sort out its banking problems before Britain does and has adjusted the weightings in his firm's multi-manager balanced portfolio accordingly. Caspar Rock, the deputy chief investment officer at...

FOCUS: AGI builds on Bric fund's success.
August 18, 2008... Allianz Global Investors had a low profile on the British retail scene, but since the launch of its Bric fund in 2006 and an EcoTrends fund in February, that is changing, writes Tomas Hirst. Despite its presence in Europe, Allianz Global...

Fund Manager's Diary: 28 July to 3 August 2008.
August 18, 2008... Monday The week begins with a team meeting where we review our Cautious Managed fund. With all our portfolios, our process is to focus on managers with exceptional stockpicking ability. Within the equity proportion of our fund we have...

COMMENT: Green culture fuels inflationary surge.
August 25, 2008... Daniel Ben-Ami, Editor Although this week's cover story is about oil it also helps explain why inflation is rising so strongly. It is not just that energy prices are rising - such an assertion simply begs the question of why energy is...

JO Hambro prepares to unveil funds.
August 25, 2008... JO Hambro Capital Management is launching its Global Select and International Select funds next month. As reported in Fund Strategy (April 14) JO Hambro appointed Christopher Lees and Nudgem Richyal, formerly of Barings, to manage global...

New product aims to exploit demand for energy.
August 25, 2008... Fundamental Asset Management expects to launch its Fundamental Energy Equipment and Services fund in mid October. The Oeic will mirror a model portfolio run for private clients, with additional powers to short stocks under Ucits III. ...

Shipley chief prompts changes to Solus range.
August 25, 2008... Brown Shipley is undergoing fundamental changes in its multi-manager Solus range following the appointment of Peter Botham as chief investment officer in April. Botham, who joined the firm following its acquisition of Bollin Asset...

IN BRIEF: Morgan Stanley plans five launches.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... Morgan Stanley has announced the launch of five investment strategies following an 85% increase in uptake since their last retail launch in May. The structured products consist of Infrastructure, UK Commercial Property, Asia (ex Japan) and...

IN BRIEF: Rating suspended on M&G fund.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... OBSR announces that it has taken the decision to suspend the OBSR AA Rating on the M&G UK Select Fund following the announcement that fund manager Mike Felton is taking time off for medical reasons. The OBSR team will meet Garfield Kiff, the...

IN BRIEF: F&C recruits head of product team.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... F&C Investments has announced the appointment of Frank Henze as head of product development. Henze joins F&C from Barclays Global Investors where he was head of product development for iShares Europe, the group's exchange traded funds (ETFs)...

IN BRIEF: Promotion for New Star chief.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... New Star has appointed Greg Jones, who joined the firm in 2001, as managing director of its international fund business. The appointment will take effect from next week. In addition, Greg will continue with his sales director responsibilities...

IN BRIEF: Confidence takes another hit.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... Global investor confidence in August decreased by 6.8 points to 77.2 from a revised July level of 84.0, according to State Street's Investor Confidence Index. North American investors confidence declined from 85.8 to 77.7. European investors...

IN BRIEF: GDP growth slow in western world.(Brief article)
August 25, 2008... Gross domestic product (GDP) in the OECD area of developed countries rose by 0.2% in the second quarter of 2008, down from 0.5% in the previous quarter, according to the organisation's figures, published last week. America's GDP grew by 0.5%...

Family firm launches first retail fund.
August 25, 2008... Iveagh, the family office created to manage the Guinness family wealth, is launching its first retail fund, the Iveagh Wealth fund, next week. It is a mirror fund of the portfolio managed for the Guinness family, the Iveagh trust,...