Fund Strategy articles from January 2007

Fund Strategy archives from January 2007

COMMENT: Shrinking market is sign of changing role.
January 8, 2007... What is the significance of the incredible shrinking stockmarket? British companies seem more interested in withdrawing capital from the market than using it as a source of new funds. As Adam Lewis shows in this week's news analysis (page...

Neptune soft-launches three funds.
January 8, 2007... Neptune has soft-launched three new Oeic funds, investing in UK special situations, India and environmentally friendly companies. All three funds, launched on December 29, 2006, have been seeded with internal money from the group. As it...

Isas record #3m net outflow for November.
January 8, 2007... Statistics from the Investment Management Association show a net outflow from Isa plans in November. Gross Isa sales were #614m, with repurchases of #617m, leading to a net outflow of #3m. Repurchases were higher in April and May, but were more...

Fidelity set to change manager on US Oeic.
January 8, 2007... Fidelity International is poised to change the manager of its #1.4bn American Oeic. Aris Vatis, who joined the firm from Pictet Asset Management in June 2006, will take over the portfolio from Jason Weiner on February 1. The move also...

IN BRIEF: Aberdeen to run Guinness VCT.(Brief article)
January 8, 2007... Aberdeen Asset Management has been awarded the management contract to run Guinness Flight Venture Capital Trust. Aberdeen's growth capital team has entered into a minimum four-year contract to manage the fund. Neil MacFadyen, investment...

IN BRIEF: HSBC to open up Bric fund to UK.(Brief article)
January 8, 2007... HSBC Investments is to offer its Luxembourg-domiciled Brazil, Russia, India and China fund to the British intermediary market. Soft-launched in July 2006, the fund has UK distributor status and will be marketed to IFAs after raising $180m...

IN BRIEF: Aegon creates structured role.(Brief article)
January 8, 2007... Aegon Asset Management has hired a head of structured products, a new role within the company. Scott Jamieson joins the group this month from Hymans Robertson. He will develop structured product opportunities and derivative solutions for the...

IN BRIEF: Legal & General launches bond.(Brief article)
January 8, 2007... Legal & General has added to its capital bond series with the launch of Guaranteed Income and Capital Bond 4. The product was opened to investment last week and allows investors to choose between a set income payment at the end of the...

Witan appoints Mellon to run international currency.
January 8, 2007... The board of the Witan investment trust has appointed Mellon Capital Management to manage the fund's international currency exposure. The change, announced to the London Stock Exchange last week, sees Mellon take on half of the #700m...

F&C widens fixed interest mandate.
January 8, 2007... By Adam Lewis F&C has changed the name of its #45m Fixed Interest fund and widened its mandate to allow it to invest more outside of investment grade bonds. From this week the fund, managed by Ian Robinson, is called the F&C Corporate...

Credit Suisse converts Transatlantic Oeic.
January 8, 2007... Credit Suisse has converted its #60m Transatlantic Oeic into the new Credit Suisse US Systematic Alpha Equity fund. As a result the manager of the fund, Steve Kaszynski, has left the group. As revealed in Fund Strategy on November 20,...

IN BRIEF: Axa prepares to host IFA seminars.(Brief article)
January 8, 2007... Axa Investment Managers is to host a series of seminars for IFAs around Britain to promote the launch of its Talents fund. The seminars take place from January 15 to February 9 at 26 locations, starting in Aberdeen and finishing in Newmarket....

De-equitisation trend is shrinking British stockmarket.
January 8, 2007... Two new sets of figures give conflicting impressions of what happened on the London Stock Exchange in 2006. Thomson Financial's figures suggest the market grew, while Citigroup's suggest it shrank. According to Thomson Financial, the...

Q&A: F&C presses on with overhaul of UK select.(Interview)
January 8, 2007... Phil Doel, manager of the F&C UK Select Trust, answers this week's questions from Adam Lewis. Q: How much of the portfolio have you altered since you took it over in November 2006? A: I am in the process of finalising all the...

ANOTHER CORKER: End of the party?
January 8, 2007... Investors who stuck with equities were well rewarded in 2006, with the major stockmarkets finishing the year strongly despite the falls in May and June. Will the good times continue this year? Will Jackson reports. The decorations are...

Product development in 2007.
January 8, 2007... Property funds were the big product story of 2006, with new portfolios from L&G, Franklin Templeton, Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, JP Morgan, Fidelity and First State. As a result, the Investment Management Association's Specialist...

The industry view.
January 8, 2007... Dick Saunders, chief executive of the Investment Management Association, says the fund industry faces several challenges in 2007. The first is ensuring that firms make the most of modern distribution channels. Saunders says: "The industry must...

STRATEGY: Conditions dictate a cautious start.
January 8, 2007... As the new year begins, a cautious approach seems to be the best option for fund managers as the more risky equity markets are likely to offer scant rewards. However, prospects should improve. The new year is an important time for fund...

AFI: 2006 Results exceed expectations.
January 8, 2007... The Adviser Fund Index panellists predicted in the summer that all three indices would perform well in the second half of the year - but their final values were even higher than they expected. In the mid-season questionnaire completed in...

FOCUS: Threadneedle confident for new year.
January 8, 2007... After a period of instability that saw several significant changes to its UK equity and high-yield bond teams, Threadneedle Investments has high hopes for 2007. James Teasdale reports. With #17.5bn in funds under management in UK Oeics...

ANALYSIS: Stirling year does not mask risks.
January 8, 2007... Freddie Stirling, founder of the Gresham House investment trust, is celebrating its best year ever, despite some risky punts and five-year figures that show wild performance fluctuations. He is 70 years old and has been running the same...

Fund Manager's Diary: 4-8 December 2006.
January 8, 2007... Monday Having read a seemingly well-informed article in the Sunday press about one of our larger holdings, Premier Foods, acquiring another company, RHM, I spend Sunday afternoon dusting down a model I produced on this precise transaction nine...

COMMENT: Short-term forecasts are mainly guesswork.
January 15, 2007... The feting of the only economist who correctly predicted the Bank of England's decision to raise interest rates last week is bizarre. No one seemed to make much of the fact that the other 49 economists polled by Reuters got it wrong. No...

Mott returns to retail fund management.
January 15, 2007... Three months after officially retiring from Credit Suisse Asset Management, Bill Mott is to once again actively manage retail money after joining PSigma Investments. Mott will manage a UK equity income fund for PSigma Asset Management, a...

New Star seeks approval for retail property fund.
January 15, 2007... New Star is in discussions with the Financial Services Authority over whether or not it can launch a retail version of an institutionally managed global commercial property fund. Launched in the middle of last year, the $1bn (#516m) fund...

Firms unveil equity income products.
January 15, 2007... Three firms have announced the launch of equity income products. As revealed in Fund Strategy on September 25, 2006, UBS Global Asset Management is set to unveil a UK Equity Income fund at the end of March. Meanwhile, Sarasin Chiswell and JP...

IN BRIEF: Jupiter fund gets new manager.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Chris Watt has replaced Peter Hulse as manager of the #44m Jupiter Environmental Income fund. Hulse, who has managed the fund since 2003 and has worked at Jupiter for 12 years, will leave the firm later this year to pursue other interests. Watt...

IN BRIEF: Fundsdirect opens wrap service to all.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Fundsdirect has opened its Ascentric Wrap service to the whole IFA market. The service has been available to its seven founding IFAs since the end of August, and Fundsdirect says it is the first wrap in Britain owned and developed by IFAs for...

IN BRIEF: Investec renames global portfolio.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Investec Asset Management's Global Strategic Value fund has been renamed the Global Strategic Equity fund. The fund will invest in equities of firms going through strategic change. The $1.7bn (#887m) fund is domiciled in Guernsey and managed...

IN BRIEF: MPC raises rates by quarter point.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee raised interest rates by a quarter point to 5.25% last week. The MPC pointed to growing output and domestic demand as the reasons for the rise, with credit and broad money growth continuing at...

IN BRIEF: L&C appoints fixed interest head.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... London & Capital has appointed Sofia Skalistiri, former manager of the Old Mutual International Bond & Convertible fund, as head of global fixed interest. Skalistiri, former global head of fixed interest at Old Mutual Asset Management, left...

IN BRIEF: Polar Capital to list on Aim.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Polar Capital Holdings, a specialist asset management group, plans to list on the Alternative Investment Market. Admission is expected to take place in February. The firm, founded in December 2000 by Brian Ashford-Russell and Tim Woolley, has...

Cru launches three new Jersey funds.
January 15, 2007... Cru Investment Management has launched three closed-ended Jersey funds, giving investors exposure to the private equity and private finance sectors. The funds, managed in association with Arch Financial products, a specialist multi-asset...

F&C converts Emerging Markets to best ideas.
January 15, 2007... F&C has restructured its #9m Emerging Markets portfolio as a focused best ideas fund. The move follows the appointment of Jeff Chowdhry, head of emerging market equities since last year, as lead manager on the fund. Chowdhry has removed...

Norwich Union and Standard Life create property vehicles.
January 15, 2007... Standard Life and Norwich Union are both launching property funds. This week Standard Life opens two global real estate investment trust funds, one Oeic and one Sicav. Norwich Union's European Property fund opened to investment on December...

IN BRIEF: Santander opens British outlet.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Santander Asset Management has created Santander Asset Management UK, completing an integration process after the acquisition of Abbey. The new business will have 260 staff, joining the Santander Asset Management team of 1,100 worldwide. John...

IN BRIEF: Lawrence House widens Sipp offer.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Lawrence House Fund Managers has extended its free self-invested personal pension offer. Subject to a minimum investment of #150,000, LHFM will pay the initial Sipp fee and the first-year administration fee for clients investing in one or more...

IN BRIEF: Gartmore drops fee on ISAit.(Brief article)
January 15, 2007... Gartmore has launched an enhanced offer for new investors into Gartmore ISAit, its investment trust Isa. For the duration of the 2007 Isa season, the initial fee of 3% will be removed. The lump sum and minimum transfer value will be cut from...

Oil price falls as weather warms up.
January 15, 2007... Oil prices last week fell to their lowest levels since mid-2005, with Brent crude dropping below $54 a barrel. This compares with a high of almost $80 in July 2006. Data from America's Department of Energy shows falls in crude oil...

Bespoke launches British property tracker.
January 15, 2007... The Bespoke IPD UK Monthly Index Tracker fund launched at the end of December to both retail and institutional investors. The fund shadows the performance of the Investment Property Databank (IPD) UK Monthly Index. The index comprises...

Scottish Widows opens Diversified Assets fund for retail investors.
January 15, 2007... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership has launched the Swip Diversified Assets fund for retail investors. The fund aims to provide a return of cash (Bank of England base rate) plus 3.25% a year. It will invest in a broadly diversified...

Discount controls boost investment trust share prices.
January 15, 2007... Several investment trusts in the Association of Investment Companies' Global Growth sector are trading close to their all-time-high share prices. Indeed, 13 trusts celebrated a strong 2006 by hitting their 10- year peaks on December 29. ...

REVIEW: Dense tome challenges the whiners.
January 15, 2007... Drawing on masses of statistics, this rigorously researched analysis of the state of the world challenges the "miserabilist tendency", which perpetuates the myth that life is getting worse. One of the great tragedies of contemporary life...

STRATEGY: A limited slowdown is under way.
January 15, 2007... Global economic growth is slowing as American interest rate rises cause a deceleration in the US. However, growth should pick up later in the year as rates are reduced. As we enter 2007, there are clear signs that the global economy is...

Q&A: F&C increases flexibility on corporate bond fund.(Interview)
January 15, 2007... Ian Robinson, manager of the F&C Corporate Bond fund, answers questions from Will Jackson. Q: The F&C Corporate Bond fund (renamed from Fixed Interest last week) now has the flexibility to hold 20% of its assets in sub-investment grade...

INFLATED CONCERNS: Strong bonds.
January 15, 2007... Fixed income investments performed modestly during 2006, with global economic conditions largely benefiting equities. But with a slowdown widely anticipated for 2007, a bond bubble may be forming. Sunil Jagtiani reports. Last year was a...

INFLATED CONCERNS: IMF on petrodollars and financial markets.
January 15, 2007... Laura Kodres and Frank Warnock, two academics, tackle the question of how recycled oil-export revenues - petrodollars - affect global financial markets in the April 2006 edition of the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook. ...

INFLATED CONCERNS: Barclays Capital on the bond market.
January 15, 2007... Tim Bond and Sree Kochugovindan, strategists at Barclays Capital, argue in Global Outlook, the firm's recent review of financial prospects, that an unusually large amount of global capital flows has ended up in overvalued government bond...

ANALYSIS: Golden years are over for bond funds.
January 15, 2007... The poor returns of 2006 show the glory years of bond investing have ended. Richard Woolnough, manager of M&G's Corporate Bond fund, has been bearish on the market for the past 12 months. Corporate bond funds had a pretty miserable 2006,...

TRENDS: Emerging far east props up returns.
January 15, 2007... Far East ex Japan and Global Emerging Markets were the top sectors in November, despite a fourth consecutive positive month for UK equities, while North America and Japan suffered. The average UK equity sector finished its fourth positive...

FOCUS: GAM flourishes under new ownership.
January 15, 2007... GAM has retained its identity - as a high-performing collection of boutiques - since changing hands in 2005. Now there is talk of extending its range of UK retail funds. Adam Lewis reports. Some 13 months on from its change of ownership...

AFI: Bricks and mortar provide stability.
January 15, 2007... A less positive outlook for commercial property could see some AFI panellists reduce their exposure to the sector. But others say real bricks and mortar are still a portfolio stabiliser. In the last AFI rebalancing in November, the...

FoFs: Axa seeks continuity in year of change.
January 15, 2007... Keith Speck, manager of three of Axa Framlington's multi-manager portfolios, says he is sticking with the same investment process following the funds' transfer over from Axa IM. Axa Investment Managers' range of five multi-manager...

Fund Manager's Diary: 1-7 January 2007.
January 15, 2007... Monday 2007 starts to baby talk and howling winds outside. Great. Waking early is not that bad as the days of partying until the wee hours are well past me. I survey the damage and find several roof tiles missing plus damage to guttering and...

COMMENT: Traditional cycle is no longer relevant.
January 22, 2007... "We've been stuck at 10 past two since February 2005". That is Merrill Lynch's way of saying that fund managers do not see the economic cycle as having moved on for the past two years. Its economic "clock", calculated as part of its monthly...

Newton's fourth equity income fund to focus on Europe.
January 22, 2007... Newton is to open its fourth equity income portfolio when it launches the Newton European Higher Income fund next week. As revealed in Fund Strategy (November 6, 2006, page 8), the fund will be managed by Aaron Barnfather and will employ...

Fidelity unveils global multi-asset class fund.
January 22, 2007... Fidelity is launching a global multiple-asset class fund that mainly invests in the group's own range of funds. The Fidelity Multi-Asset Strategic fund, which launches this week, is primarily a fettered fund of funds. However, it also has...

IN BRIEF: Marlborough pays out to Matrix.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Marlborough Fund Managers has paid #25,000 plus legal costs to Matrix Money Management to settle a dispute over the Marlborough (formerly Matrix) Quantock UK Growth fund. Marlborough took over from Matrix as the authorised corporate director...

IN BRIEF: Morley launches emerging Sicav.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Morley Fund Management has launched the Aviva Morley Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond fund. The Luxembourg-domiciled Sicav fund aims to capitalise on narrowing yield spreads between local currency emerging market bonds and developed bond...

Investors Capital shareholders offered rollover vehicle.
January 22, 2007... Shareholders of the #324m Investors Capital Trust will be given the opportunity to roll over their existing holdings into a new vehicle. Following the liquidation of the split-capital investment trust on February 27, a new ICT, offering...

MPC Investors appoints managers for first long-only funds.
January 22, 2007... Miles Geldard and Lee Manzi, both former JP Morgan fund managers, are to manage two new Luxembourg Sicav funds for MPC Investors. The MPC Strategic Reserve and MPC Global Convertibles funds are the first long-only funds to be offered by...

IN BRIEF: Jupiter to change Growth Exempt.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Jupiter plans to alter its #14m UK Growth Exempt fund, managed by Justin Seager. The proposals, which are subject to FSA approval, involve removing the fund's exempt status and increasing both the annual charge and minimum investment amount....

IN BRIEF: Swip CEO to join Morley.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Chris Phillips, the current chief executive officer of Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, is to join Morley Fund Management as CEO in the summer. Phillips is also chairman of the Association of British Insurers investment committee and...

IN BRIEF: Aegon appoints distribution head.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Mark Savage has been appointed as head of distribution (retail) at Aegon Asset Management. Savage is responsible for developing and maintaining key strategic third-party clients, including life offices and national IFA accounts. He joined Aegon...

IN BRIEF: Unicorn to issue #20m of shares.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Unicorn Asset Management is issuing #20m of series 3 shares. The capital raised will be managed as a separate pool of funds. The S3 shares will be issued at 100 pence per share and the offer, which is expected to start on February 19, will be...

Premier wins bid to run Acorn Income.
January 22, 2007... Premier Asset Management has taken over as investment manager on the #18m Acorn Income fund, a Guernsey-domiciled investment trust. As well as advising on the management of the fund, Premier has assumed responsibility for its income...

New Star shuffles managers on Japan portfolios.
January 22, 2007... New Star's Japan equity funds have undergone a change of management, with Amanda Gold taking over the onshore Japan fund and Chris Burlington the offshore mandate. Gold, who joined New Star three years ago after graduating from Oxford...

Investec launches Balanced Managed fund.
January 22, 2007... Investec Asset Management has launched a fund in the IMA Balanced Managed sector that invests in a combination of internally-run and third-party funds. The Investec Balanced Managed fund, run by Max King and Philip Saunders, will have a...

Melchior Asian to soft-close to new investors.
January 22, 2007... The Melchior Asian Opportunities fund will soft-close to new investors on February 1. Managed by Henrietta Luk of Dalton Strategic Partnership, the $355m (#180m) portfolio will implement a 5% front-end load on new money invested into the fund...

IN BRIEF: Investec hires two for four-factor team.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... Jonathan Parker and Sue Xu have joined Investec Asset Management's four- factor team. Parker, formerly a fund manager at M&G, joins the team as a UK equity analyst, while Xu is an analyst on the global team. She has previously worked for...

Fidelity Global Special Situations takes defensive stance.
January 22, 2007... Jorma Korhonen has adopted a defensive stance in his Fidelity Global Special Situations fund following the completion of the transition from the Fidelity Special Situations portfolio. He now has his highest ever weighting in the utilities...

Fund managers favour returning cash to shareholders.
January 22, 2007... A record number of fund managers want companies to return cash to shareholders, according to the latest monthly survey from Merrill Lynch. Some 53% of managers say they would most like companies to return cash to shareholders in the form...

IN BRIEF: AIC begins roadshow tour.(Brief article)
January 22, 2007... The Association of Investment Companies is hosting a series of free private investor roadshows, starting in the West Midlands this week. The roadshows, to be held around Britain, will give investors an opportunity to engage with the fund...

TRENDS: Management fees make a difference.
January 22, 2007... Active managers have criticised index funds for potentially missing out on returns. But over the long term, tracker performance is generally superior once charges are taken into account. Users of index funds are often accused by active...

STRATEGY: Equity markets can continue to rise.
January 22, 2007... After four years of rising returns, some commentators expect equities to disappoint this year. However, the overall market is not expensive, especially compared with bonds and property. Investment strategy since 2003 has been quite simple...

Q&A: Investec finds balance in hybrid structure.(Interview)
January 22, 2007... Philip Saunders, manager of the Investec Balanced Managed fund, answers questions from Adam Lewis. Q: When was the fund launched? A: The fund has been up and running since January 1. So far we have raised about #12m in assets under...

PORTFOLIO BUILDING: Hot property.
January 22, 2007... Real estate investment trusts finally became a reality in Britain on January 1, with nine property companies having converted to Reits so far. Frances Hughes explores the impact they will have on the investment industry. Many people in...

PORTFOLIO BUILDING: Reits in America.
January 22, 2007... Reits have existed in America since 1961. Initially most interest in the sector came from institutional investors, but over the past five years it has become increasingly popular with the retail market. "Retail interest did not really...

ANALYSIS: SVM debunks the large-cap myth.
January 22, 2007... Neil Veitch, manager of the SVM UK Opportunities fund, the top UK All Companies performer of 2006, takes a contrarian stance on British companies, seeing little value in the largest firms. Almost every fund manager and asset allocator will...

CHANNELS: Fundsdirect opens wrap service to whole market.
January 22, 2007... Hugo Thorman, executive managing director of Ascentric, answers questions from Simon Hildrey. Q: What is Ascentric? A: Ascentric is a wrap service that has been established by Fundsdirect. It was offered to seven founding IFAs in...

FOCUS: Polar aims for next stage of growth.(Company overview)
January 22, 2007... Polar Capital has grown rapidly since it was launched six years ago and now plans to boost its growth further by issuing shares on the Alternative Investment Market. Simon Hildrey reports. Polar Capital Partners has come a long way since...

AFI: Demand grows for UK Equity Income.
January 22, 2007... UK Equity Income has performed well over the past five years, with rising retail sales. This is reflected in the Balanced and Cautious AFIs, which have boosted their exposure to the sector. While property funds grabbed the headlines last...

FoFs: Fund of funds performance data.
January 22, 2007... The recent launch of the Scottish Widows Investment Partnership Diversified Assets fund (see Fund Strategy, January 15, 2007, page 8) means the removal of one fund in the IMA Balanced Managed sector (fund of funds only). The new Swip fund,...

Fund Manager's Diary: 5-12 January 2007.
January 22, 2007... Friday Five days into the new year, the detox designed by my wife is killing me. I have had a headache for four days and feel I am on the brink of going mad. Besides that, the day starts well, with a 7.30am meeting with Philip Glaze, our...