Fund Strategy articles from May 2006

Fund Strategy archives from May 2006

COMMENT: Chancellor is wrong on so many levels.
May 1, 2006... Gordon Brown likes to portray himself as a man of urbane sophistication with a fine grasp of the complexities of global finance. In reality, as his views on international monetary reform show, he is as parochial as the most provincial bank...

M&G changes managers on equity income desk.
May 1, 2006... M&G has made several changes on its equity income desk, with two managers leaving the group as a result. Following the continued underperformance of the #285m M&G Income fund, Alex Odd has taken over the management of the portfolio from...

Harrison to manage UK Equity Alpha Income.
May 1, 2006... Threadneedle has finalised the details of its UK Equity Alpha Income fund, to be launched this week. The new fund, first reported in Fund Strategy on February 27, will be run by UK Equity Income manager Leigh Harrison. Harrison aims to...

IN BRIEF: T Bailey waives charges on fund.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... T Bailey, a Nottingham-based multi-manager firm, will boost the performance of its new Cautious Managed fund by paying its fixed costs until the fund is "sufficiently large". The only operating costs paid directly by the fund, launched this...

IN BRIEF: Deadline nears for trusts merger vote.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The deadline for voting on the proposed merger of Alliance Trust and Second Alliance Trust is this week. The trusts have 60,000 private investors and a combined #2.8bn in assets under management. If the merger is agreed, it will create the...

IN BRIEF: Jupiter to rename investment trust.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Jupiter is to rename its soon-to-be-launched Jupiter Green Century investment trust at the request of an American mutual fund group. The trust will be called Jupiter Green to avoid confusion with an American mutual fund. Prospectuses for the...

IN BRIEF: Aberdeen fund converts to Oeic.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Aberdeen Far East Emerging Economies, which invests in the Asia Pacific ex Japan region, has converted to an Oeic structure, along with the DWS Asian Growth fund. It has been renamed Aberdeen Asia Pacific, while the existing Aberdeen Asia...

IN BRIEF: Rathbone plans IFA roadshow.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... In conjunction with its launch on May 15, Rathbone is to hold a roadshow for its new High Income fund for IFAs in England and Scotland during May and June. Managers Julian Chillingworth, Carl Stick and Hugh Yarrow will attend. The roadshow...

Fidelity reveals fund split timetable.
May 1, 2006... Fidelity will name the manager of the new fund created by the proposed Special Situations split in June. The firm revealed its timetable for the changes in a letter sent to investors and advisers last week. According to the letter,...

Best season for Isa sales since 2002, says IMA.
May 1, 2006... Figures from the Investment Management Association released last week show it has been the best Isa season since 2002. From March 1, 2006, to April 5, 2006, net Isa sales totalled #897m, the highest since 2002's figure of #1.4bn and an...

SVM to launch Global Opportunities Oeic.
May 1, 2006... SVM Asset Management is to launch a new Oeic fund, Global Opportunities, later this month. The fund, available from May 15, will be run by Colin McLean, managing director of SVM, and Donald Robertson, finance director. McLean and...

IN BRIEF: Isa and share plan from Aberdeen.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Aberdeen Asset Managers has launched an Isa and share plan for its Edinburgh investment trust trackers. The group has three trusts withTERs below 1%: UK Tracker, US Tracker and UK Smaller Companies Tracker. Stocks are reviewed on a quarterly...

IN BRIEF: OMAM bond fund gets AAA rating.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The #590m Old Mutual Asset Managers Corporate Bond fund has been awarded a AAA rating by Forsyth-OBSR. The fund has been managed by Stephen Snowden since February 2004. In addition, OMAM has announced that Kate Thompson will join its UK sales...

IN BRIEF: Neptune dates for IFA roadshow.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Neptune Investment Management has announced the dates for its first regional IFA roadshow of 2006. Speaking at the roadshows, which begin on May 16 in Harrogate, will be European Opportunities manager Rob Burnett and CIO Robin Geffen. Burnett...

AITC changes tack to attract members.
May 1, 2006... The board of the Association of Investment Trust Companies has approved the inclusion of Alternative Investment Market-listed companies into its member- ship for the first time. In a move designed to boost member numbers, venture capital...

Close and BlueCrest team up for fund launch.
May 1, 2006... Close Fund Management and BlueCrest Capital Management are to join forces to launch the Close AllBlue fund. The fund aims to bridge the gap between traditional fund of hedge funds and single strategy/manager products. It will offer access,...

Douglas rejoins Morley to run fund with Lis.
May 1, 2006... Mervyn Douglas is to rejoin Morley Fund Managers some 15 months after leaving the group to join Legal and General Investment Management. Douglas, a UK fund manager, will join Morley next week and will focus on running retail and...

IN BRIEF: Tigue made AITC deputy chairman.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... The board of the Association of Investment Trust Companies has elected Jeremy Tigue as deputy chairman. He replaces George Kershaw, who stepped down on rotation after three years but will remain on the AITC board. Tigue, who has been involved...

IN BRIEF: Cartesian unveils UK hedge fund.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Britannic Asset Management's Cartesian boutique has launched a new hedge fund: UK Equity Long Short. The Irish-domiciled fund is aimed at funds of hedge funds, institutions, high net worth individuals and certain American investors. It is run...

IN BRIEF: American fund wins AA rating.(Brief article)
May 1, 2006... Standard & Poor's has assigned an AA (New) rating to the Merrill Lynch American fund, following a qualitative evaluation of its investment process and management. Bob Doll, the group's chief investment officer, took over the fund's...

Stocks dip after rate rise in China.
May 1, 2006... Global stocks fell last week following a rate rise by the People's Bank of China. Stocks in Asia and Europe lost value following the central bank's increase of China's benchmark one-year lending rate from 5.58% to 5.85%. Mining stocks,...

More scope for European small-caps, says Williams.
May 1, 2006... Williams says, large-caps themselves are not particularly expensive. "Large-caps are trading on 12-13 times earnings, while small-caps are on about 16-17 times, both of which are below their historical average price/earnings ratios," he...

Aegon to launch global bond fund for Roberts.
May 1, 2006... Aegon Asset Management is to launch an Investment Grade Bond fund on June 1, 2006. Managed by David Roberts, the stockpicking fund will invest in investment-grade bonds globally. Roberts will be supported by a 14-strong team in Britain, as...

IMF moves towards a multilateral approach.
May 1, 2006... It looks like the world's most powerful financial institution could be about to undergo substantial reform. At the International Monetary Fund's recent spring meeting there was a broad consensus that the organisation needs to be brought into...

History of the International Monetary Fund.
May 1, 2006... The International Monetary Fund was conceived at a conference of 45 nations in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in July 1944. Its stated aims included promoting international monetary cooperation, facilitating the expansion of international trade...

TRENDS: Emerging bulls run out of energy.
May 1, 2006... The high returns from emerging market equities and bonds looks to be diminishing and, as central banks tighten their monetary policies, caution is now the watchword for investors. Buoyant returns in emerging markets over the past three...

STRATEGY: Diversification can beat ghost of 1999.
May 1, 2006... Although the current investment climate has similarities with the situation at the turn of the millennium, changes have taken place that allow investors to avoid making the same mistakes. Mark Twain once said that history does not repeat...

Q&A: Experience pays in hunt for Japanese nuggets.(Interview)
May 1, 2006... Philip Whittome, manager of the Investec Japan and Japan Equity funds, speaks to Frances Hughes. Q: Why is now a good time to launch the onshore Investec Japan fund? A: We are optimistic about Japan in more of a structural way than...

Do it yourself.
May 1, 2006... Changes to the pensions regime introduced on A-Day will open up self- invested pension plans to a wider range of investors, enabling more and more people to construct their own investment portfolios. Simon Hildrey reports. To achieve the...

Choosing a Sipp provider.
May 1, 2006... Once a client has decided to set up a Sipp, it is not the end of the work. The next step is to choose a provider, of which there are more than 55. The difficulty in selecting a Sipp provider is that the comparison is not on a truly...

A-Day changes and Sipps.
May 1, 2006... As with other pensions, the rules governing Sipps changed from A-Day, April 6, 2006. One of the rule changes has enabled a greater number of people to access Sipps. Before A-Day, people could not contribute to a Sipp if they were a member of...

REVIEW: From turbo options to toxic waste.
May 1, 2006... This comprehensive guide to financial markets should prove a useful reference source for all those involved in the industry - though at times it does risk getting bogged down with detail. Marc Levinson The Economist Guide to Financial...

ANALYSIS: Rathbone wins the global challenge.
May 1, 2006... By seeking out undiscovered and misunderstood plays, the Rathbone Global Opportunities fund, managed by James Thomson, has outperformed its rivals by 20% on average over the past year. Just how do you go about choosing stocks for a global...

FOCUS: Axa plans launches after integration.
May 1, 2006... While its immediate focus is on the mergers that are a result of its Framlington purchase, Axa IM is also weighing up the launch of a Japan smaller companies fund. Will Jackson reports. Axa Investment Managers has focused on the...

AFI: Aggressive AFI equity risk may rise.
May 1, 2006... In the first portfolio rebalancing of the year, several AFI panellists are increasing risk in their British equity portfolios on the back of strong performance over the past six months. This week sees the first Adviser Fund Index series...

FoFs: Schroder reaps benefits of freedom.
May 1, 2006... Exposure to a resurgent Japan, as well as emerging markets such as China and Latin America, has enabled the Schroder S&P Cautious Managed fund to beat its competitors over the past year. Schroder's S&P Cautious Managed fund, launched in...

Fund Manager's Diary: 10-17 April 2006.
May 1, 2006... Monday It has been a little over three months since the launch of the F&C Special Situations fund and I get back in the early hours of the morning from my first well-earned break spent skiing with friends in Courchevel, France. Spot...

COMMENT: Central bankers are no supermen.
May 8, 2006... Central bankers are widely seen as the supermen of the economic world. They have the most power to influence the world economy for good or bad. But a closer examination would show their influence is not as great as it seems. Critics of...

HL adds to multi-manager offering.
May 8, 2006... Hargreaves Lansdown is to launch a cautious managed multi-manager, taking the number of fund of funds it runs to four. Launching on June 5, the HL Multi Manager Cautious Managed Trust will principally hold underlying funds that invest in...

Funds dropped as AFI panellists conduct portfolio rebalancing.
May 8, 2006... With 21 funds ousted from the Adviser Fund Index series and 23 new entrants, last week's rebalancing of the three indices saw heavy turnover of constituent funds. Almost 20% of the Aggressive AFI constituents left the index following...

IN BRIEF: Fun loses rating as manager quits.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... Fund loses rating as manager quits Christopher Metcalfe, manager of Schroder's #600m UK Equity fund, has resigned from the firm. As a result, Forsyth-OBSR has removed the fund's AA rating and Simon Brazier has taken over the portfolio....

IN BRIEF: F&C set to change two fund names.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... F&C is proposing a name change for two funds in June, subject to Financial Services Authority approval. UK Prime and European Prime, originally Royal & SunAlliance, will be renamed UK Dynamic and European Dynamic. The changes aim to reflect...

IN BRIEF: Employee stakes increase at Majedie.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... Employees at Majedie Asset Management have increased their ownership of the business to 70%. Assets under management at the UK equity boutique have grown from #2.3bn as at December 30, 2005, to more than #3bn. This has enabled Majedie to...

IN BRIEF: JS&P completes Towry takeover.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... JS&P has finished its acquisition of the Towry Law Group. The completion follows the #37m sale of Towry Law's UK operations by the Henderson Group to the JS&P Finance Company. JS&P and Towry Law combined have more than 200 qualified advisers,...

IN BRIEF: Collins Stewart opens Aim service.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... Collins Stewart has launched an Aim Portfolio Service, which has been designed to reduce inheritance tax liabilities and achieve equity- related returns. Sean O'Flanagan, who joined the group earlier this year, will run the portfolios, which...

Henderson launches property fund.
May 8, 2006... Henderson Global Investors is launching a Global Property Companies closed-ended fund. Marketing begins this month and the fund's prospectus will be published mid-June. A placing and offer for subscription is expected to close by the end...

Statistics reveal mixed fortunes of fund sales.
May 8, 2006... While gross first-quarter fund of funds sales were up by 6% compared with the final quarter of 2005, net sales fell by 17% to #921m, according to statistics from the Investment Management Association. The period also appears to have seen...

Sarasin exploits Ucits III changes through product launches.
May 8, 2006... Sarasin Chiswell has unveiled a range of investment products designed to take advantage of the enhanced powers available under Ucits III. Two funds, GlobalSar IIID and EquiSar IIID, have been available since May 2 and May 8 respectively....

IN BRIEF: HSBC reopens two alpha funds.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... HSBC Republic Investments has reopened Alpha AdvantEdge and Leveraged Alpha AdvantEdge, its global long-short products. Both vehicles were closed when their asset targets were exceeded in February 2004. The funds aim to achieve attractive...

IN BRIEF: Credit Suisse widens availability.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... Two Credit Suisse multi-manager funds have become available to life and pension investors through the Standard Life sigma bond and pension product. Availability of the Cautious Managed and Constellation multi- manager funds, along with Credit...

IN BRIEF: Cautious Managed data correction.(Brief article)
May 8, 2006... In the last issue of Fund Strategy (May 1, 2006) the one-year statistics used in the Top 10 Cautious Managed funds (page 29) were incorrect. The three-year figures shown in the right hand column were printed twice, hence the exclusion of the...

Wall Street bear changes into a bull.
May 8, 2006... Wall Street's most notorious bear has turned bullish. Stephen Roach, the chief economist at Morgan Stanley, has publicly taken an optimistic view on the world economy for the first time since 1999. One of the main reasons for his change...

JP Morgan appoints emerging markets manager.
May 8, 2006... JP Morgan has announced the appointment of Chris Morrell as an emerging markets portfolio manager. He joins from Merrill Lynch, where he was a managing director responsible for global emerging markets equity sales. Morrell, who has 19...

Scottish trust unveils first results since hostile takeover bid.
May 8, 2006... The Securities Trust of Scotland (STS) investment trust has announced its first set of results since reconstructing last June, following a failed hostile takeover bid. From June 24, 2005, to March 31, 2006, the Martin Currie managed...

Market reforms spur China on to overtake Indian rival.
May 8, 2006... The Indian stockmarket hit another record high last week, but its great rival China threatens to deliver superior returns for portfolio investors over 2006 after a period in the doldrums. The MSCI China index, which comprises shares...

TRENDS: Bumpy ride can be a fortuitous trip.
May 8, 2006... The absolute return investment route is peppered with pitfalls and does not deliver consistent results. The wise investor should diversify across different asset classes for a smoother ride. Forward-thinking investors are establishing and...

STRATEGY: Dividends key to emerging markets.
May 8, 2006... Emerging markets have produced strong gains over the past three years but are likely to be hit particularly hard by global recession. So how should investors offset the risks of any slowdown? The bulls are running rampant in emerging...

Q&A: Fund platform benefits from isa sales boost.(Interview)
May 8, 2006... Mark Jones, marketing and development director at Cofunds, answers questions from Frances Hughes. Q: The Investment Management Association recently released statistics showing that the 2005/6 Isa season was the best since 2002. How has...

FEATURE: Title fight.
May 8, 2006... Since achieving Isa status in January, commercial property has proven popular with investors, and funds are now being launched that invest in residential property too. But how do the two sectors match up? Adam Lewis finds out. Given the...

The retail and pension views.
May 8, 2006... Retail: Mark Dampier, head of research at Hargreaves Lansdown. "While I admit to calling commercial property wrongly for the past two years, I limit our IFAs to only investing about 10% of client portfolios in the asset class. While those...

Funds investing in residential property.
May 8, 2006... In addition to several UK commercial property funds, investors can now invest in a growing number of global property securities funds and global real estate investment trusts (Reits). Fidelity, Hendersons, Morley, Schroders, Skandia and...

CHANNELS: Commercial focus helps build private client base.
May 8, 2006... Charles Bailey, managing director of Jelf Private Clients, answers questions from Simon Hildrey. Q: What is the structure of the Jelf Group? A: There are four arms. There is a general insurance arm that has moved into the top 10 in...

ANALYSIS: New star's star gets down and dirty.
May 8, 2006... New Star UK Special Situations manager James Ridgewell favours stocks that are simply out of favour with the market or have suffered profit warnings but have turnaround potential. Good news: You are a fresh-faced young fund manager and...

FOCUS: Launches give Schroders sales lift.
May 8, 2006... Following record inflows in the first quarter of 2006, Schroders has no firm plans to add further funds to its range, says Robin Stoakley, managing director of UK retail. Will Jackson reports. Schroders added two retail funds - Income...

FoFs: Consistency leads to a fine romance.
May 8, 2006... John Kelly, head of client investment at Abbey, says that fund manager loyalty, transparency and risk budgets are key to the long-term success of the Abbey Multi-Manager Equity fund. The Abbey Multi-Manager Equity fund, which launched in...

AFI: Rebalancing brings significant change.
May 8, 2006... Last week's rebalancing of the AFIs saw 23 new funds included in the panellists' recommendations across the three indices, with 21 dropping out of the AFIs on the back of performance concerns. The rebalancing of the Adviser Fund...

Fund Manager's Diary: 21-27 April 2006.
May 8, 2006... Friday Great start to the end of the week with the commute I prefer: six miles by bike. Emails and phone calls interrupt the drafting of reports for next week's Matrix Income & Growth VCT boards and AGMs, and the update for our group board....

COMMENT: Big business still in thrall to state power.
May 15, 2006... It is widely believed that the power of modern multinational corporations dwarfs that of the state. Giant companies can, it is argued, easily cajole or simply bribe governments to do what they want. Developments in the energy industry, often...

Shareholders of Alliance trusts rubber-stamp merger.
May 15, 2006... Shareholders in the Alliance and Second Alliance investment trusts have approved proposals to merge the two companies. With combined assets of #2.8bn, this will create the largest trust listed on the London Stock Exchange. The merger...

L&G chief denies reports of Mithras run-off.
May 15, 2006... Adrian Johnson, chief executive of Legal & General Ventures, has dismissed reports that the #27m Mithras investment trust, run by LGV, will be put into "run-off mode". The trust's board announced last week that it had decided to conduct...

IN BRIEF: Aegon poaches from Resolution.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Aegon has poached a fixed income manager from Resolution Asset Management (formerly Britannic Asset Management). John McNeill, who managed a global bond pension mandate, international bonds and securities at Resolution has left the company....

IN BRIEF: Fund Strategy writer wins award.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Adam Lewis, the deputy editor of Fund Strategy, has won the 2006 Headline Money investment writer of the year (trade) award. Lewis, who joined Fund Strategy in October 2004, is responsible for news editing on the magazine and is a regular...

IN BRIEF: Old Mutual names Dynamic manager.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Old Mutual Asset Managers has appointed Chris Higham as joint manager of its Dynamic Bond fund. He will jointly manage the fund with Andrew Tunks, head of fixed Interest at Omam. Higham joined the group in June 2005 from Morley Fund...

IN BRIEF: Atlantis founder dies in accident.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Peter Irving, co-founder and chief executive of Atlantis Investment Management, has died in a boating accident. Irving also managed the Atlantis Korean Smaller Companies fund. James Cameron, who has worked as deputy on the Korean fund since...

Aberdeen launches UK ethical Oeic.
May 15, 2006... Aberdeen Asset Management has launched the Ethical Engagement UK Oeic. The fund, available since last week, is run by the firm's Edinburgh- based socially responsible investment team, led by Andrew Preston. The fund does not exclude...

Henderson renames funds in Coll conversion.
May 15, 2006... Henderson Global Investors has converted its Oeic range of funds to the FSA's new collective investment schemes rulebook (Coll). As a result of this conversion, all the funds in the Oeic have become Ucits III-compliant, although it has...

Marlborough appoints manager to turn around UK Equity Income fund.
May 15, 2006... Marlborough Fund Managers has appointed Greg Bennett as lead manager of its #30m UK Equity Income fund. Bennett, manager of UK Large Cap Growth, took over the portfolio from Michael Barnard on May 10. The move appears to be a response to...

IN BRIEF: L&G announces investment plan.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Legal & General has announced the launch of the Growth Investment Plan Plus 3. The plan is available until July 7 and provides investors with 100% of capital growth in the FTSE 100 over a six-year term. An early payment feature will close...

IN BRIEF: F&C appoints chief officer.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... F&C has announced the appointment of David Logan as chief financial officer. Logan, a partner at Deloitte since 2002, will also join the board as an executive director. Logan is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland...

IN BRIEF: Threadneedle offers reduced fee.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Threadneedle is offering a reduced charge on two of its emerging markets equity funds. Investors can now access the #900m Threadneedle Latin America and Threadneedle Global Emerging Markets Equity funds at a reduced charge of 3%. There will be...

SGAM appoints head of UK equities.
May 15, 2006... Societe Generale Asset Management has appointed Harinder Sandhu as head of UK equities following the recent departure of Hugh Sergeant. Sergeant and Sandhu joined SGAM together in July 2002, both arriving from UBS Global Asset Management....

Artemis Capital ups British large-cap weighting.
May 15, 2006... The Artemis Capital fund has increased its weighting towards British larger companies to 79%. Jacob de Tusch-Lec, co-manager of the #777.8m fund with Mark Tyndall, says this represents a large shift from a year ago, and it has...

NDF Admin launches investment plan offering 9.75% per year.
May 15, 2006... NDF Administration is to launch a new investment plan, offering investors a potential 9.75% a year. The NDF Growth Kick Out Plan May '06 has a maximum investment term of six years, with returns being linked to the performance of both the...

IN BRIEF: FundsNetwork set to expand.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... FundsNetwork has announced plans to expand fund choice for Pep and Isa investors. The move is largely in response to the increase in demand from advisers and investors, which saw FundsNetwork Isa season sales up by 57% on last year....