Fund Strategy articles from December 2005

Fund Strategy archives from December 2005

COMMENT: Pressure to conform must be resisted.
December 5, 2005... Hardly anyone seems to have noticed the fundamental changes that are transforming fund management and the financial markets. Whereas they used to be based on maximising returns, they are now under immense pressure to consider environmental,...

Legal negligence threat to managers.
December 5, 2005... Fund groups could face legal action if they do not incorporate environmental, social and governance factors (ESG) into their investment decisions, according to a report published by the United Nations. The report by Freshfields Bruckhaus...

Taylor quits HSBC in wake of shift to high alpha.
December 5, 2005... David Taylor, who has managed the #13m HSBC UK Smaller Companies fund since 1998, has left the group. Taylor left his role at HSBC at the end of last week. His next role has not been announced. According to the group, the decision was...

Britannic aims to add value with team in Asia.
December 5, 2005... Britannic Asset Management is planning to increase its physical presence in Asia, as Far East fund manager Diamond Lee will be spending six to eight months of the year in the region from early 2006. Lee, who manages the #77m Britannic...

IN BRIEF: Kidd-May leaves Jupiter.
December 5, 2005... Giles Kidd-May, head of industry relations at Jupiter Asset Management, has left the group after 16 years. Kidd-May's responsibilities at Jupiter included working on developing relationships with wrap providers. His next role has not been...

IN BRIEF: Property set to find more favour.
December 5, 2005... Nearly half of intermediaries (47%) will advise their clients to increase their portfolio weightings towards the residential property market in the next 12 months, according to research carried out on behalf of Cordea Savills. Meanwhile, 92% of...

IN BRIEF: Survey predicts future for VCTs.
December 5, 2005... Some 70% of IFAs expect investors to opt to invest in existing venture capital trusts that offer immediate access to the original portfolio, according to research from Noble Fund Managers. In contrast advisers estimate 10% of clients will be...

IN BRIEF: Offer opens for Asian Income.
December 5, 2005... The public offer for the Aberdeen Asian Income investment trust opened last week. Managed by Aberdeen's Asian team, headed by Hugh Young, the trust is targeting an initial gross yield of 4.5%. The offer opened following UK Listing Authority...

IN BRIEF: Threadneedle acts to replace retiring Blair.
December 5, 2005... Threadneedle Investments has appointed Lothar Mintel from Barclays Bank as head of product development. Reporting to head of strategy Lorin Gresser, he will initially work with current head of product development Mary Blair, who plans to...

IN BRIEF: S&P gives A (New) ratings to Invesco pair.
December 5, 2005... Standard & Poor's has assigned an A (New) rating to the two new Invesco Perpetual funds, Invesco Global Equity and Invesco Global Real Estate Securities. Despite recently losing two senior members of the global quantitative strategy team,...

Neptune waits for Turkish CGT call.
December 5, 2005... Rob Burnett, manager of the #10.8m Neptune European Opportunities fund, will consider allocating up to 5% of his portfolio to Turkey next year depending on the country's impending capital gains tax. According to Burnett, Turkey is...

Schroders' global property fund opens its doors.
December 5, 2005... Schroders has launched its Global Property Securities fund, in partnership with New York-based real estate investment boutique European Investors Incorporated. The fund, an unconstrained total return vehicle, opens to investors this week...

Specialist sector tops chart as equity fund sales fall to just 20%.
December 5, 2005... Net retail sales of investment funds fell in October compared with the previous month, but were still 75% up on the same month last year, according to figures from the Investment Management Association. October's net retail sales reached...

Emerging markets hit record highs.
December 5, 2005... A slew of emerging market bourses hit record highs last week, indicating investor appetite for risk has yet to diminish despite the rise in American interest rates and oil prices this year. Among MSCI's 27 single-country emerging market...

F&C to launch three UK funds for new arrivals.
December 5, 2005... F&C Asset Management is planning to launch three funds into its range later this month, which will be managed by the new members of the F&C UK equity team. F&C's new head of UK equities, Peter Lees, along with colleagues Phil Doel,...

OECD report highlights risks to world economy.
December 5, 2005... There are substantial risks to the relatively benign outlook for the world economy, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. The think-tank for the world's developed economies identified several key risks...

NEWS ANALYSIS: ECB action sparks fears for fragile economic recovery.
December 5, 2005... The European Central Bank raised the 12-member eurozone's benchmark interest rate for the first time in five years last week. Analysts responded by saying the increase could anticipate a tougher regional investment environment if the bank...

TRENDS: Multi-managers outpace trackers.
December 5, 2005... Tracker funds were the low-risk, high return investment option of the 1990s. But, in the post-millennium world, flexibile multi-manager products hold more allure and higher rewards. Recent Investment Management Association data has...

STRATEGY: Don't doubt happy shoppers' return.
December 5, 2005... Hikes in utility costs, a sluggish housing market and higher taxes have affected retail sales. But pessimism is misplaced because the reversal has begun and the spend trend is on the up. Christmas is by far the most important time of year...

Q&A: The long and the short of absolute returns.
December 5, 2005... Tim Gascoigne, principal portfolio manager of HSBC European Absolute, talks to Helen Burnett. Q: How would you describe your investment process for the HSBC European Absolute fund of hedge funds? A: The investment process as a house...

Distributing the blame.
December 5, 2005... Distribution funds are in the firing line - accused of underperforming. But experts say it is unfair to compare them with others in the Cautious Managed sector and that performance should not be the only driver. Paul Farrow reports. ...

The fund strategists' view.
December 5, 2005... Philippa Gee, investment director at Torquil Clark. "I feel that it is all too easy for people to jump to the wrong conclusion about these funds. If you make performance the only driver with this sector then you will come unstuck, as it is...

CHANNELS: Holistic management with a personal touch.
December 5, 2005... Hilary Coghill, director of City Asset Management, answers questions from Sarah Godfrey. Q: What services do you provide? A: We are primarily a discretionary management service, though we also offer general IFA services such as life...

ANALYSIS: Solid returns with a heart of gold.
December 5, 2005... Merrill Lynch Gold & General has surged ahead since the dark days of 2000, and even though stockmarkets have recovered, manager Graham Birch is still producing gains of 30% a year. The price of gold went through the $500 an ounce level...

Sustainable message adds value.
December 5, 2005... Sales are up at Standard Life Investments and its success is attributed to a tightly choreographed team effort and a 'winning stocks list' that is replicated across all portfolios, writes Simon Hildrey. Standard Life Investments is in an...

FoFs: Flexibility drives exclusive service.
December 5, 2005... Peter Buxtorf and Steve Willmot run the Lacomp World fund. The wealthy international client base has advantages because they know about local trends and can help with asset allocation. Having as much investment flexibility as possible...

Fund of funds performance data.
December 5, 2005... After being ranked second over both one and three years the last time we examined the Global Growth sector (October 31), the #14.9m New Star Tactical Portfolio climbed to first spot in the sector over both periods. Managed by Mark...

Fund manager's diary: 22-28 November 2005.
December 5, 2005... Monday Starting a new job always involves a fair degree of trepidation and it is no different when I arrive at SVM Asset Management's Edinburgh office on a bitterly cold Monday morning. I'd met most of the team during the interview process...

Survive and prosper for tomorrow's sake.
December 12, 2005... For most financial advisers, the big news in last week's pre-Budget report was the U-turn on the inclusion of residential property and other "exotic" (how exotic is a house?) assets in self-invested personal pensions after A-day. Many IFAs...

Funds of funds rush for Nurs status.
December 12, 2005... New Star, Credit Suisse Asset Management and Gartmore have all told Fund Strategy they plan to convert their fund of funds ranges to the FSA's new collective investment scheme rulebook (Coll) and adopt non- Ucits retail status in the new year....

VCT market frustrated by lack of commitment.
December 12, 2005... Gordon Brown's pre-Budget report, delivered last week, contained little to clarify the issue of income tax relief for venture capital trusts. The relief on VCTs currently stands at 40% but there was no guarantee that this will continue...

Ellis and Lodwick bow out at Axa Framlington.
December 12, 2005... Simon Ellis, head of UK retail at Axa Investment Managers, is to leave the firm by the end of the year following its integration with Framlington. Nick Hodgson, sales and marketing director at Framlington, will assume the role of head of...

IN BRIEF: Britannic names new boutique.
December 12, 2005... The new UK boutique from Britannic Asset Management will be named Cartesian Capital Partners. The new company is the second high alpha boutique to be launched by Britannic and will be run by ex-SVM managers David Stevenson and Andrew Kelly. The...

IN BRIEF: Steven leaves L&G for Insight.
December 12, 2005... Insight Investment has appointed Stuart Steven to lead its credit portfolio management team in the UK. Steven is currently director for corporate bonds at Legal & General Investment Management and will join Insight in the new year. Steven will...

IN BRIEF: Summit signs up 50 delegates.
December 12, 2005... Fund Strategy has signed up 50 delegates to its investment summit so far. The summit will be held from March 29 to 31, 2006 at Badrutt's Palace Hotel in St. Moritz, Switzerland and will feature keynote panel discussions, industry speakers...

IN BRIEF: Aberdeen to open three subfunds.
December 12, 2005... Aberdeen is planning to increase the number of subfunds available within its Luxembourg Sicav Aberdeen Global umbrella to 21. The group will add three specialist Asian mandates as well as three fixed income portfolios, transferred from its...

IN BRIEF: Andrews joins Credit Suisse.
December 12, 2005... Credit Suisse Asset Management has appointed Stephen Andrews to the role of head of third-party sales and strategic alliances. Andrews was formerly head of investment partners and IFA sales at DWS Investments. He will be responsible for...

IN BRIEF: Canada Life offers five new funds.
December 12, 2005... Canada Life will introduce five F&C Asset Management funds to its platform at the end of next week - Stewardship Income and the Growth, Balanced, Cautious and Distribution multi-manager funds. These are in addition to 17 of its own funds and...

Allianz poised to launch Bric Stars.
December 12, 2005... Allianz Global Investors will launch the Allianz RCM Bric Stars fund on February 22, giving British retail investors access to the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China. The new fund is to be run by AGI head of global...

Fund mergers drive Aberdeen to increase fees.
December 12, 2005... Aberdeen is to raise the annual management charges on three of its unit trusts as part of the integration of its funds with the DWS fund range. This follows Aberdeen's purchase of DWS Investments earlier this year. The AMCs of the...

Axa multi-manager to focus on total returns.
December 12, 2005... The mandate and underlying investments of the #14m Axa Multi-manager Dynamic fund have significantly altered to reflect a decision to focus the portfolio on total returns. The changes have prompted manager James Hughes to overhaul the...

IN BRIEF: Seymour joins Threadneedle.
December 12, 2005... Threadneedle has appointed Michael Seymour as global equity investment specialist, a new role within the group. Seymour will report to Madeline Forrester, head of UK institutional business, and will be responsible for representing the...

IN BRIEF: Trustnet ties up with Forsyth.
December 12, 2005... Trustnet Adviser has been selected by Forsyth-OBSR to offer the group's fund ratings to the advisory market. The ratings will be available as part of the fund ratings tool on Trustnet Adviser, available at www.trustnet.com. Forsyth-OBSR...

IN BRIEF: New CIO for multi-manager.
December 12, 2005... Investment Solutions has appointed John Greene as its UK chief investment officer. Greene was previously head of international research at Northern Trust Global Advisors, where he was responsible for all of the group's multi-manager strategies...

Dissent holds up F&C trust merger.
December 12, 2005... The board of the JPM Emerging Markets investment trust has postponed its extraordinary general meeting for the vote on the proposed merger with the F&C Emerging Markets investment trust. An EGM for the F&C vehicle was held last week....

Currington wins wider remit for CSAM fund.
December 12, 2005... Since taking over the Credit Suisse European fund on October 1 this year, Jeff Currington has changed almost 50% of the #95.7m portfolio. In addition, the former manager of the #428m HSBC European Growth fund has upped the fund's mid-cap...

Japan trusts reach premium rating as market powers ahead.
December 12, 2005... With dividends in Japanese stocks at their highest since the late 1970s, the JP Morgan Fleming Japanese investment trust has increased its gearing to the maximum 15%, up from 7% a year ago. The discount to net asset value on the fund,...

IN BRIEF: Interest rates unchanged.
December 12, 2005... The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England has left interest rates unchanged at 4.5% for the fourth month in a row. The MPC last reduced interest rates in August, by 0.25 percentage points from 4.75%, where they had remained since...

IN BRIEF: Ecofin makes new role for Chatterton.
December 12, 2005... Ecofin has appointed Denis Chatterton to the new role of chief administrative officer. Chatterton was formerly vice- president and chief administrative officer at Prudential International Investments. His tasks will include budgeting, IT,...

IN BRIEF: Legal & General widens access.
December 12, 2005... Legal & General's funds platform is now available to customers of several building societies including Yorkshire Building Society, Scarborough Building Society and Northern Rock. The platform provides a range of investment products from 12...

Index review exposes hits and misses.
December 12, 2005... Several investment trusts experienced either promotion or relegation last week, following the annual review of the FTSE UK index series. A number of investment trusts were promoted to the FTSE SmallCap index, including the Axa Property...

Upward trend for Isa-invested assets continues.
December 12, 2005... Assets invested in investment trust Isas and savings schemes continued to grow through the third quarter of 2005. Investment trust Isas made up #613m while savings schemes accounted for #2.25bn in assets at September 30, 2005, according...

House prices not yet in bubble, says expert.
December 12, 2005... House prices in Britain are not in a bubble, at least not yet, according to Diana Choyleva, head of the UK service at Lombard Street Research. While house prices will remain stable or climb slightly in the short term, there is a danger of...

NEWS: Turner's timid analysis hinges on host of false beliefs.
December 12, 2005... Anyone listening to selected highlights of Lord Turner's introduction at the launch of the Pensions Commission's final report could be forgiven for thinking that A New Pension Settlement for the Twenty- First Century represented a break from...

TRENDS: Double-edged sword of aiming high.
December 12, 2005... The proliferation of high performance funds does not necessarily mean good returns for the investor. Costs can amount to 3% and a fund will have to outperform that just to break even. The introduction of higher performance target funds is...

STRATEGY: Crude truth of long-term influence.
December 12, 2005... Although prices have dropped, supply has increased and demand has fallen, the importance of oil on returns should not be doubted. Changes in emerging economies could see demand rocket. Crude oil spot prices have fallen over 20% from their...

Q&A: Opportunity knocks for those with global view.(Interview)
December 12, 2005... Jonathan Gibbs, manager the of Standard Life Global Index-Linked Bond fund, talks to Helen Burnett. Q: How does your team-based "focus on change" investment approach work? A: The focus on change philosophy allows us to ensure that all...

CHANNELS: Specialised approach to positive pensions.
December 12, 2005... David Marlow, marketing director at Alexander Forbes Financial Services, talks to Sarah Godfrey. Q: Alexander Forbes is best known for pensions. Is that all you do? A: No. We have different consultants in different areas to provide...

ANALYSIS: Ram acts to restore battered image.
December 12, 2005... Will some high alpha boutiques and a different name help change the fortunes of the floundering Britannic Asset Management? New sales and marketing director Jonathan Polin is resolute. It won't be long before Martin Gilbert, head of...

FoFs: Funds dovetail with healthy results.
December 12, 2005... Gary Potter co-manages the Credit Suisse Multi Manager UK Income Portfolio with Robert Burdett. Following a merger of funds, the performance is already starting to show promise. At the end of October this year Credit Suisse Asset Management...

Fund of funds performance data.
December 12, 2005... The New Star European Portfolio is now the top-performing fund in the Europe excluding UK sector (funds of funds only), over both one and three years. The fund, managed by Mark Harris, has returned over 28% since December 2004 against a sector...

Fund Manager's Diary: 21-27 November 2005.
December 12, 2005... Monday Usual post-weekend banter in the office first thing. Late arrivals greeted with applause and reminded where the kettle is. Spend morning chatting to brokers and investing some available cash in fund before preparing for two company...

COMMENT: That was the year that was - 2005.
December 19, 2005... What were the key events and developments of 2005? A lot happened during the year, but little that stood out. The London bombings of July 7 were a tragedy but not on the scale of September 11, 2001. Nor were there any developments in the...

Reits laws to be unveiled at Budget.
December 19, 2005... Charges applying to companies wishing to join the real estate investment trust regime in Britain will not be announced until the 2006 Budget, according to draft legislation for Reits released by HM Revenue and Customs last week. Final...

Rogoff jumps in as Polar chief takes sabbatical.
December 19, 2005... Brian Ashford-Russell, manager of the #340m Polar Capital Technology investment trust, is to temporarily hand over its management while he takes a sabbatical in the first quarter of 2006. The trust's deputy manager Ben Rogoff will take...

Radcliffe overhauls Jupiter's tech fund.
December 19, 2005... Sebastian Radcliffe, the manager of the #52m Jupiter Global Technology fund, has altered about a quarter of the portfolio's holdings since taking it over in August. Radcliffe, who also manages the group's #15m North American fund,...

IN BRIEF: Urwin set to join Merrill Lynch.
December 19, 2005... Merrill Lynch Investment Managers has hired former Gartmore head of strategic research Richard Urwin to take up the position of head of the asset allocation and economics team at MLIM. Urwin, who joins early in 2006, will report to head of...

IN BRIEF: F&C trust adopts new name.
December 19, 2005... The #360m F&C Smaller Companies investment trust has changed its name to the F&C Global Smaller Companies trust to better reflect its existing remit. The trust is managed by Peter Ewins, who is overall manager for the fund with specific...

IN BRIEF: First State opens offer on VCT.
December 19, 2005... The offer period for new ordinary shares in the First State Investments Aim VCT commenced on December 7, 2005. The trust's board hopes to raise up to #25m with the offer period anticipated to end by May 31, 2006. The trust is managed by Paul...

IN BRIEF: Finsbury Growth & Income up 25%.
December 19, 2005... The net asset value per share of the Finsbury Growth & Income investment trust increased by 24.7% in the year to September 30, 2005, according to preliminary results. The trust's share price rose 30.5% while the total expense ratio reduced...

IN BRIEF: China fund pays off for JP Morgan.
December 19, 2005... The JP Morgan Chinese investment trust recorded a 27% increase in net asset value per share in the 12 months to November 30, 2005. The #51m trust invests in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan and is managed by Ernest Liu. Shareholders of the trust...

IN BRIEF: Templeton roars ahead in interims.
December 19, 2005... Shares in the Templeton Emerging Markets investment trust rose 35.1% in the six months to October 31, 2005, according to the trust's interim results. Net asset value per share increased by 29.3%, with total assets rising to #1.4bn. A...

Cazenove bond head takes on funds.
December 19, 2005... Cazenove Capital Management head of fixed income Peter Harvey has taken over the management of two of the group's bond funds from Christopher Greaves. Harvey now runs the #203m Cazenove UK Corporate Bond fund and the #26m...

Close launches second Japan Accelerated fund.
December 19, 2005... Close Fund Management is adding to its range of Accelerated products with the launch of a second fund linked to the Japanese equity markets. The Japanese Accelerated Return Fund II will provide investors with a return equal to the lower...

Managers sanguine on impact of high oil price.
December 19, 2005... Assuming oil prices average below $70 per barrel next year, fund managers do not anticipate a negative economic impact from the higher price of oil, according to the latest Merrill Lynch monthly global fund manager survey. A net 16% of...

IN BRIEF: Fed raises US rates to 4.25%.
December 19, 2005... The Federal Open Market Committee of the US Federal Reserve has voted to increase interest rates from 4% to 4.25%. The move is the eighth quarter-point increase this year. The committee is next scheduled to meet on January 30 and 31, which...

IN BRIEF: T Bailey joins FundsNetwork.
December 19, 2005... Fidelity Funds-Network has added the T Bailey Growth and T Bailey Equity Income multi-manager funds to its range. The platform is offering advisers a 4.75% initial commission on the funds when they invest through FundsNetwork. Both funds are...

IN BRIEF: New face on AITC board.
December 19, 2005... Rensburg Sheppards head of research Andrew Bell has been elected to the board of the Association of Investment Trust Companies. Bell, also an investment trust director, replaces Simon Colson who retires following a three-year term. Members...

Dunedin Enterprise hits 3% premium.
December 19, 2005... Set to join the FTSE SmallCap index this week, the #137m Dunedin Enterprise investment trust is now trading at a premium to net asset value, according to Ross Marshall, chief executive of Dunedin Capital Partners. The investment trust has...

New Star merges 'converging' financials funds.
December 19, 2005... New Star Asset Management has completed the merger of Guy de Blonay's Financial Leaders and Global Financials funds. The merged fund, which will retain the Global Financials name, has assets under management of #103m and will keep the...

Experts warn of US housing slowdown.
December 19, 2005... Two leading authorities have warned that an American housing slowdown poses a substantial risk to the global economy in 2006. Analysts at Merrill Lynch and a consultant to Legal & General argue that an American housing correction would hit...

TRENDS: Taking stock of the year's surprises.
December 19, 2005... This year has seen a mixed bag of performance, with variations across sectors. Rising commodity prices and strengthening economies in Japan and China have also been a big feature of 2005. It is that time of year when we look back at the...

STRATEGY: A slower pace but impetus retained.
December 19, 2005... Hurricanes and bombings took their grim toll on the global markets, Europe staggered and the ECB raised rates. But the dollar rallied and Japan dramatically turned the corner. This year was yet another poor one for bears of the global...

Q&A: Bottom-up approach aims for solid returns.
December 19, 2005... James Buckley, manager of the Baring European Growth fund, answers questions from Helen Burnett. Q: How would you describe your investment process? A: The fund is driven by a bottom-up stockpicking approach. We look to identify what...