Fund Strategy articles from January 2008

Fund Strategy archives from January 2008

COMMENT: Rebalancing means more than finance.
January 7, 2008... This year is expected by some to be one of global rebalancing. But the conception of what such rebalancing means is generally too narrow. The common understanding is that production will be brought more into line with consumption. What...

Fidelity plans aggressive Asia fund.
January 7, 2008... Fidelity is in the planning stages of launching a more aggressive version of its #1.1 billion South East Asia fund. Fund Strategy understands that the new fund, will invest in fewer stocks than the existing South East Asia Oeic, which was...

Swip makes its multi-manager entry a double.
January 7, 2008... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (Swip) has launched two multi- manager funds to mark its entry into the fund of funds market. The Swip Multi-Manager Diversity fund aims to provide long-term capital growth above inflation. To achieve...

Deep pessimism over growth in 2008.
January 7, 2008... Expectations of economic growth and corporate profits for the next 12 months are among the worst ever recorded, according to the latest Merrill Lynch global survey for December. A net 62% of fund managers expect the global economy to...

IN BRIEF: Santander fund of funds launch.(Brief article)
January 7, 2008... Santander Asset Management has launched the Emerging Markets fund. The portfolio is an actively managed fund of funds, investing in companies from developed markets where most earnings come from emerging markets. It uses specialised regional...

IN BRIEF: Swip appoints investment head.(Brief article)
January 7, 2008... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (Swip) has appointed Stephen Hall as an investment director in its global developed markets team. Hall is responsible for managing portfolios and researching the utilities, financial and consumer...

IN BRIEF: Be patient, Reita tells investors.(Brief article)
January 7, 2008... Reita, the organisation created to promote real estate investment trusts (Reits), has called for patience from investors. Patrick Sumner, its chairman, says investors will return to the market when conditions are more stable. The trusts,...

IN BRIEF: Offshore domicile for new firms.(Brief article)
January 7, 2008... All 19 of the new investment companies listed in 2007 were domiciled overseas, according to the Association of Investment Companies. The funds were mainly domiciled in Jersey and Guernsey, with 23% of new issues by value coming from the...

Boom fuels growth in African bonds.
January 7, 2008... Although much investor attention has focused on African equities, few have noticed the growth of African debt as an asset class. The same factors that are bolstering African equities - notably an economic boom fuelled by rising commodity...

Surprise at scale of fall in British fund sales.
January 7, 2008... Net retail sales of British-domiciled funds fell sharply in November, according to statistics from the Investment Management Association (IMA). Gross retail inflows of almost #6 billion were more than offset by repurchases of #6.3 billion,...

Oil hits $100 on first day of trading in 2008.
January 7, 2008... The price of oil reached $100 a barrel last week during the first day of trading in 2008. The cost of crude reached $100 for the first time since it rose by over 58% in 2007, ending the year at $87 a barrel, up from an average of $50.79 the...

INTERVIEW: Merging? Then mind the culture gap.(Interview)
January 7, 2008... Four big "Cs" traditionally matter to merging companies - competencies, content, channels and customers - but Tim Galpin tells Tsering Namgyal that a fifth should be added: culture. Given the cross-border nature of so many mergers and...

STRATEGY: Bulls look forward to brighter climate.
January 7, 2008... Investors should seek sanctuary in climate change themes, but the prospects for global growth are not as gloomy as some bears predict - particularly as emerging markets develop further. Before the equity markets took a tumble in late...

TRENDS: Clean-up offers a world of promise.
January 7, 2008... Environmental technology is growing. Investment in the sector is forecast to rise 650% by 2016 as governments, businesses and individuals respond to pressure to clean up the globe. Investors and fund management groups always seem to strive...

Q&A: Lazard seeks fortune in America and financials.(Interview)
January 7, 2008... Patrick Ryan, manager of Lazard Global Equity Income, answers questions from Adam Lewis. Q. The Lazard Global Equity Income fund launched on October 22. Is it fully invested yet? A. It was fully invested within days of the launch....

UNCHARTED WATERS: All at sea.
January 7, 2008... Uncertainty laps at the bows of the investment industry in the wake of last year's turbulence. But although the year will not be plain sailing, few experts predict a global recession, writes Frances Hughes. Getting ready to be tested in...

UNCHARTED WATERS: Correction hits all - especially property.(Correction notice)
January 7, 2008... Away from equities, the biggest concern for many investors will be the performance of British commercial property funds in 2008. The funds attracted huge amounts of retail money as investors chased the double- digit returns of 2006, and the...

UNCHARTED WATERS: Year of "boring" funds to test stockpickers.
January 7, 2008... Last year was one of innovation in product terms and this trend is expected to continue in 2008. However, according to Robin Stoakley, managing director at Schroders, whereas 2007 saw funds launched for bull market conditions, 2008 will see...

AFI: Is it too soon to go back into banks?
January 7, 2008... Some investors expect the market to bounce back while others play safe - but with financial stocks at low valuations, the question of when to reinvest in the sector grows more pressing. Financials have plummeted in both performance and...

ANALYSIS: Star china fund's recipe for success.
January 7, 2008... Charlie Awdry made Gartmore China Opportunities the best-performing investment fund of 2007 by focusing on good domestic consumer companies - a strategy he continues to back. This year's City bonus season is going to fall a long way short...

FOCUS: Lincoln set to drive into the spotlight.
January 7, 2008... It is "not the name on every IFA's lips". But Lincoln Unit Trust Managers aims to raise its profile among intermediaries this year. Will Jackson finds that it will have much work to do. Lincoln Unit Trust Managers is poised to take its...

Fund Manager's Diary: 8-14 December 2007.
January 7, 2008... Saturday It is a Christmas tradition that my wife and I dine out with my cousin and his wife at this time. This year I suggest that, rather than eating in one of London's restaurants one evening, we should make a day of it and have a...

COMMENT: Long-term view is best kind of caution.
January 14, 2008... The record outflow of assets from retail equity funds shown by the recent Investment Management Association (IMA) statistics (see news analysis, page 12) is a worrying trend. While investors may be nervous about the state of global...

Analyst to co-manage HSBC fund.
January 14, 2008... HSBC is to promote Cara MacGregor to co-manager status on the HSBC Open Global Return fund, subject to Financial Services Authority approval. The group has also announced the launch of a Russian equity fund, which is managed by Halbis,...

Marlborough brings failing growth fund in-house.
January 14, 2008... Marlborough Fund Managers has taken its UK Equity Growth fund in-house after terminating the contract of MD Barnard. As Fund Strategy reported on November 13, 2006, the fund has suffered an extended run of underperformance. Keith...

Newton adds to range with diversified fund.
January 14, 2008... Newton has launched its third target return fund, which aims to achieve the London interbank offered rate (Libor) plus 3.5% percentage points a year. The Newton Diversified Growth fund, managed by Phil Collins, who also runs the #115m Newton...

IN BRIEF: Bank keeps rate unchanged at 5.5%.(Brief article)
January 14, 2008... The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted to maintain the official bank rate paid on commercial bank reserves at 5.5% last week. The move comes despite the market pricing in a 60% chance of a rate cut. The Bank last cut its...

IN BRIEF: Company unveils World Equity fund.(Brief article)
January 14, 2008... Investment Solutions has launched the Select World Equity Fund and appointed four global managers to run its $400m (#200m) of assets. T Rowe Price Global Investment Services, Pzena Investment Management, Axiom International Investors and...

Wins loses five of its trusts team to Numis.
January 14, 2008... Five members of the Wins Investment Trust team have left to join its rival, Numis. They are researchers Charles Cade and Simon Elliot, Chris Gook of Wins' sales team, and David Benda and Nathan Brown from corporate finance. The...

Chorus of American woe intensifies.
January 14, 2008... Discussion of the American economy is becoming increasingly gloomy. There is a growing consensus that it is already in recession or about to enter one. Those who argue that recession is nigh include many of Wall Street's top economic...

New Star changes Asia manager in reshuffle.
January 14, 2008... New Star Investment Funds has announced that Robert Jeffree will take over management of the New Star Asia Portfolio from Mark Harris, New Star's head of funds of funds. Jeffree has worked with the New Star fund of funds team since...

IN BRIEF: Axa wrap platform goes live.(Brief article)
January 14, 2008... Axa's wrap platform, Elevate, has gone live. Initial capability allows for investment in General Investment Account (Gia), Isa and Pep wrappers only. Development of the proposition will continue with further product wrappers being introduced...

Top-performing sectors lose in the popularity stakes.
January 14, 2008... The best selling funds and IMA sectors over 2007 bore little correlation to the best performers, according to separate figures released last week by Lipper and Fidelity FundsNetwork. Asia Pacific excluding Japan and Global Emerging Markets...

Growth in developing countries will cushion slowdown.
January 14, 2008... Strong economic growth in the developing countries should offset the impact of a slowdown among high income countries this year, according to the World Bank.* Although developed economies are expected to grow by only 2.2% the developing...

IN BRIEF: Gartmore hires head for UK retail.(Brief article)
January 14, 2008... Gartmore has appointed Richard Pursglove from Cazenove Capital Management as head of UK retail. He will report to Phil Wagstaff, global head of distribution, who joined Gartmore from New Star last October. At Cazenove Pursglove was sales...

Property gloom prompts outflows.
January 14, 2008... The Investment Management Association's (IMA) announcement of a record net outflow of more than #600m from equity funds in November was widely seen by analysts as a sign of the continuing impact of the subprime crisis on the fund market. The...

TRENDS: Europe opens door to brighter offices.
January 14, 2008... British commercial property shares tumbled but investors should seek more global exposure - especially in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands - where interest rates are not as harsh. Last year saw several predictable developments in the...

STRATEGY: Maturing markets lift robust region.
January 14, 2008... South-East European markets have soared since five countries shrugged off state control - Romania's currency is the strongest in Europe - making the region attractive to investors. The markets of South-East Europe (Romania, Bulgaria,...

Q&A: Milestone price boosts investment in sector.(Interview)
January 14, 2008... Francisco Blanch, director of commodity research at Merrill Lynch International, talks to Tomas Hirst. Q. The price of crude reached $100 a barrel on January 2. Does this constitute a milestone? A. I think it is certainly an important...

MISSING LINK: Weakest link.
January 14, 2008... Asia's burgeoning economies - buttressed by strong export demand from Europe and massive foreign exchange reserves - protect it from slowdown in the West. Sunil Jagtiani reports from Hong Kong on the region's partial decoupling from America....

MISSING LINK: Capital Economics on decoupling.
January 14, 2008... Experts at Capital Economics pose the question as to what would happen to emerging Asia if the rich economies of the West slow amid heated debate about whether Asia's economy has decoupled from that of America. "The strong performance of...

MISSING LINK: Asia after the financial crisis.
January 14, 2008... Asia is set to emerge as a third pillar of the global economy behind America and Europe over the next decade after recovering from its 1997 financial crisis, but it must still embrace change, according to Dominic Barton, a director of the...

ANALYSIS: Demolished fund prepares to rebuild.
January 14, 2008... Aberdeen Property Share toppled by more than 38% last year - but Ben Ritchie, manager of the fund, is sanguine about 2008 and says now is a good time to buy shares in the sector. Aberdeen Property Share featured in almost every newspaper...

CHANNELS: General service values face-to-face approach.
January 14, 2008... Mike Robinson, managing director of Clarkson Hill, answers this week's questions from Frances Hughes. Q. What does Clarkson Hill group do? A. We do a bit of everything. We provide financial advice across the spectrum, from life...

AFI: Caution on bonds after 2007 surge.
January 14, 2008... The performance gap between equities and bonds closed significantly as stockmarkets were hit by the credit crunch. But managers appear reluctant to increase bond weightings further. Bond funds have done little to excite investors over the...

FoFs: Growth is a value call for Jupiter.
January 14, 2008... The Jupiter Merlin Growth Fund has long sold out of its British small cap exposure and has a bias towards value-orientated managers. But it is heavily weighted to emerging markets growth. Despite its name, the #738m Jupiter Merlin Growth...

FOCUS: Newton's solid defence pays off.
January 14, 2008... Newton Investment Management has worked a transformation in its performance over one year, thanks to a defensive strategy that paid off in the second half of 2007. Adam Lewis reports. In the year since Fund Strategy last profiled Newton...

Fund Manager's Diary: 2-8 January 2008.
January 14, 2008... Wednesday My diary at the beginning of a week is usually packed with meetings. But, as I return to the office following the two-week break, the only thing in my diary is a reminder to write this journal. Few companies are on the road at this...

COMMENT: Recession obsession has pantomime feel.
January 21, 2008... The discussion of the prospect of an American recession often smacks of pantomime. In response to the question of whether America is already in or about to enter a recession some chant "oh yes it is" while others respond with "oh no it...

Liontrust reacts to pessimism with early fund review.
January 21, 2008... Jeremy Lang, manager of the #1.1 billion Liontrust First Income fund, brought forward his annual review of the portfolio by a month in response to market conditions. Lang changes the portfolio once a year and the changes he has made were first...

Modified rules aim to simplify yield calculations.
January 21, 2008... The Investment Management Association (IMA) has changed the requirements for funds in its UK Equity Income and UK Equity & Bond sectors. The modified criteria aim to simplify the calculation of yields in both sectors and allow a fairer...

IN BRIEF: New Star shares take a tumble.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Shares in New Star Asset Management fell 44% last week on news that the firm had net outflows of assets of #500m in the second half of last year. As a result assets under management had fallen 6.5% to #23.1 billion by December 31 from #24.7...

IN BRIEF: New chief at HSBC Investments.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... HSBC Investments has appointed Simeon Brown as its chief executive officer (CEO). Brown had been acting CEO since September and acting CEO for Asia Pacific from April to July, 2007. Brown, who joined HSBC in 1996, reports to Caroline Brousse,...

IN BRIEF: Maia adds to investment team.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Maia Capital Partners has recruited Vincent Ropers to its investment team from Fidelity International, where he was a research assistant. Maia was set up as a joint venture with Resolution Asset Management in October 2007. Copyright:...

IN BRIEF: Aegon property appointment.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Aegon Asset Management has appointed Sarah Cockburn to its property team. She joins as a fund manager and reports to David Wise, the team's investment director. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

Fifth of managers expect recession.
January 21, 2008... Almost a fifth of managers say that a global recession is either "likely" or "very likely", Merrill Lynch's Global Survey of Fund Managers for January reveals. About 19% of respondents said they thought recession was possible in the next...

Virgin's climate change fund opens to investors.
January 21, 2008... The new Virgin Money Climate Change Fund is launched this week. The fund, which Fund Strategy reported in October, will concentrate on high- performing environmentally focused companies across all industry sectors. The portfolio is managed...

JP Morgan asks trust shareholders to roll over into renamed fund.
January 21, 2008... The board of JP Morgan Income & Capital Investment Trust has proposed a voluntary winding up and reconstruction of the company. Under the proposals, shareholders will be able to roll over all or part of their investment into a new fund...

IN BRIEF: Fidelity waives fees on Sipp.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Fidelity FundsNetwork announced plans to reward IFAs who make pre- retirement investments into platform mutual funds within their Defaqto rated Self Invested Personal Pension. Administration charges will be dropped for IFAs who invest #150,000...

IN BRIEF: Liquidity funds see positive inflows.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Liquidity funds were the only asset class to see positive inflows across Europe in November, according to Lipper Feri. Redemptions from all other asset classes left European fund sales E26 billion (#19.5 billion) in deficit. Copyright:...

IN BRIEF: Aegon defers withdrawals.(Brief article)
January 21, 2008... Aegon has announced that withdrawals from any of its Scottish Equitable funds with investments in property will be deferred by 12 months. The company blames a change in sentiment towards the property market since last summer. Copyright:...

Oil peak fears are false, study says.
January 21, 2008... An authoritative study published last week suggests that perceptions of a quickly approaching peak of oil production are based on incorrect assumptions. Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA), an international energy adviser based...

Collins Stewart focuses on value in British firms.
January 21, 2008... Collins Stewart Fund Management has announced the launch of the Collins Stewart UK Focus Fund, managed by David Shapiro. The fund aims to outperform the FTSE All-Share index by investing in good-quality companies that trade at a discount...

Threadneedle unveils emerging markets fund.
January 21, 2008... Threadneedle has launched a fund that invests in local emerging market debt and currencies. The Threadneedle Emerging Market Local fund is managed by Richard House, who has 15 years' experience of local emerging market debt. The fund...

Low demand and cost hit real estate investment trusts.
January 21, 2008... Real estate investment trusts (Reits) were launched in Britain just over a year ago - a time when investors were still celebrating double- digit property returns. A year on and the story could not be more different, with investor sentiment...

STRATEGY: Volatile markets prompt gold rush.
January 21, 2008... Demand for gold has soared as investors seek safety and, coupled with no increase in supply, its value will continue to rise and provide some stability in a volatile environment. The rise in the gold price has been rarely out of the...

Q&A: Sovereign wealth funds as heroes and villains.(Interview)
January 21, 2008... Paola Subacchi, head of the international economics programme at Chatham House, talks to Tomas Hirst. Q. What are sovereign wealth funds (SWFs)? A. Countries with sovereign wealth funds can be divided into two distinct categories. The...

TRENDS: America holds value for the faithful.
January 21, 2008... A weak dollar drives exports up and, despite the global slowdown and fears of a recession, the American stockmarket still holds global giants and investors ignore the region at their peril. Given that it is the world's largest economy and...

TROUBLED TIMES: Battle of wits.
January 21, 2008... Some investors abide by the buy "when there is blood in the streets, or to the rumble of cannons" rule, while others argue against this unscientific approach. But markets often rally after a crisis, writes Vanessa Drucker from New York. ...

TROUBLED TIMES: Gamblers and hot hands.
January 21, 2008... The science of behavioural finance deals with inappropriate reactions and predictions, both in overly optimistic and excessively pessimistic directions. "You need to be clear how much information you have at your disposal," says Hersh...

TROUBLED TIMES: Reading the tape.
January 21, 2008... Technical analysis goes in and out of fashion. It is an ongoing debate how significant a role it should play, in conjunction with the fundamentals. There is a strong case to be made at least, that a chart can illustrate optimism or pessimism,...

ANALYSIS: Irish stocks offer food for thought.
January 21, 2008... Gartmore's Irish Growth trust fell, as Ireland, the world's second- worst performing market nosedived. But Gervais Williams, the manager of the trust, is optimistic about growth. Which was the world's worst performing stockmarket in 2007?...

CHANNELS: Axa elevates quality of new platform service.
January 21, 2008... Martin Jennings, director of marketing for Axa Distribution Services, talks to Frances Hughes. Q. When and why was it decided to develop Elevate? A. We started this journey about 15 months ago. Axa has been monitoring and evaluating...

AFI: IFAs in dramatic flight from caution.
January 21, 2008... Figures released late last year revealed Cautious Managed as the most popular retail sector, yet in the latest AFI rebalancing, panellists ejected four funds from the Cautious Managed sector. Cautious managed funds have become...

FoFs: Fruits of staying absolutely focused.
January 21, 2008... The HSBC Open Global Return portfolio looks for funds with an absolute return focus as well as a global investment universe - a strategy that has gained it a ranking near the top of its sector. The #22.6m HSBC Open Global Return fund,...

FOCUS: Cazenove cycles past the pitfalls.
January 21, 2008... Cazenove Capital Management aims to benefit from reaching a turning point in the global economy as markets undergo a correction sparked by the credit crisis. Adam Lewis reports. Robin Minter-Kemp, managing director of specialist investment...

Fund Manager's Diary: 5-11 January 2008.
January 21, 2008... Saturday It is the last weekend of the holidays for me after a refreshing two weeks off. I make blueberry pancakes topped with Vermont maple syrup for breakfast, take a walk on windy Dartmoor with the family to clear the cobwebs, and then we...

COMMENT: State stimulus feeds an unhealthy habit.
January 28, 2008... It has become widely accepted that America is in a better position to counter recessionary tendencies than Britain. America's stronger public finances give it more leeway, so the argument goes, to bolster the economy with a fiscal stimulus....

Fed rate cut crowns eventful week.
January 28, 2008... As weeks in the markets go it was probably the most eventful for years. It started with equities plummeting around the world and ended with a rally after concerted action on several fronts by the American authorities. For good measure it also...

Bond markets await further cuts to Fed rates.
January 28, 2008... Bond markets are pricing in further significant cuts in American interest rates, despite the 75 basis point cut by the Federal Reserve last week. The chaotic reaction in global markets to the news suggested that the Fed's announcement had...

Market slide prompts financials rethink.
January 28, 2008... The sharp drop in equity valuations early last week has prompted fund managers to buy back into stocks they see as undervalued. Alex Lyle, fund manager at Threadneedle and deputy to Sarah Arkle, chief investment officer at the group, says...

IN BRIEF: Group soft-closes agriculture fund.(Brief article)
January 28, 2008... Schroders has soft-closed its Alternative Solutions Agriculture fund after it hit $3.3 billion (#1.7 billion) in assets under management. According to the firm, demand has been strong since last summer as investors sought alternative asset...

IN BRIEF: Threadneedle recruits specialists.(Brief article)
January 28, 2008... Threadneedle has appointed two new senior investment specialists. Francis Ellison joins the European equities team while Douglas Cairns will focus on Asia Pacific and emerging market equities. Both Ellison and Cairns will report to Angus...

Close suspends dealing in property portfolio.
January 28, 2008... Close Investments announced last week that it was suspending dealing in its Property Investment Portfolio (Closepip). The firm has also temporarily suspended trading in one of its sub- funds, Active Commercial Estates. Close...