Investment Adviser articles from February 2007

Investment Adviser archives from February 2007

New VCT rules scare investors elsewhere.
February 5, 2007... Byline: The number of new offerings is being reduced following Treasury tightening of rules regulation Tighter rules on venture capital trusts have resulted in a sharp reduction in new offerings this year, experts have warned. ...

Investec goes on safari.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Asset manager says Africa offers a wealth of untapped, uncorrelated opportunities emerging markets Investec Asset Management is talking up Africa, reminding high net worth investors that a considered approach to investing in an...

Correlation of assets rising.
February 5, 2007... market forecast Advisers have praised the FSA for warning investors about the increasing correlation between asset classes. In the City watchdog's Financial Risk Outlook report, Callum McCarthy, chairman of the FSA, said the...

Insight fund to offer constant proportion portfolio insurance.
February 5, 2007... Engage Mutual Insurance has teamed up with Insight Investment to put forward a progressive bond proposition for the IFA market. The AGBP92.5m Insight Diversified Target Return fund, managed by Patrick Armstrong and Ana Cukic Munro, will now...

Fidelity tips India growth to continue.
February 5, 2007... Unlike other Asian nations, India is relatively immune to the global slowdown led by the US, according to Fidelity International. Arun Mehra, manager of the Fidelity Funds India Focus fund, said it was likely that economic growth would...

Aberdeen plans EM small companies fund.
February 5, 2007... launch Aberdeen Asset Management is forging ahead with plans to launch a global emerging markets smaller companies fund. The fund will be managed by the global emerging markets team, which is headed up by Devan Kaloo. It will aim...

M&G credits performance with record fund inflows.
February 5, 2007... Strong fund performance pushed M&G retail and institutional business inflows to record levels in 2006, the asset house has claimed. Its gross inflows were AGBP13.5bn last year, an increase of 70 per cent from 2005. External funds under...

SEI expands MoM.
February 5, 2007... SEI has launched an enhanced income fund to boost its existing manager-of-managers offering. The fund consists of three strategies which independently provide a source of return, managed by specialist managers selected by SEI. The...

Credit Suisse set to lower MM charges.
February 5, 2007... charges Credit Suisse has reduced charges for its multi-manager funds. The Swiss asset manager, however, insisted the decision was unrelated to advisers' view that the range was the company's only shining beacon following the departure...

MLC diversifying into global arena.
February 5, 2007... MLC has pulled more than half of its exposure to an international equities mandate as part of a new strategy to diversify into the global arena. This includes a shift of AGBP78m from UK equity into global equity within the company's...

Advisers need to brush up on multi-manager knowledge.
February 5, 2007... Advisers must better understand the multi-manager sector or risk regulatory censure for giving bad advice, a research group has said. Rayner Spencer Mills, which has published a report covering more than 130 multi-manager funds, said full...

IFAs show property fund bias.
February 5, 2007... property Investment advisers have been slated for ploughing the bulk of property-obsessed investors' cash into just two funds. At the Association of Investment Companies roundtable, Elliot Caldwell, manager of the ING UK Real Estate...

Axa Framlington Multi-Manager Income.
February 5, 2007... The AGBP214m Axa Framlington Multi-Manager Income fund has had a facelift. The fund, with the rest of Axa's UK fund of funds operation, was absorbed into the Axa Framlington business last summer following a full review. Caspar Rock, Axa's...

M&G banks on Ucits III.
February 5, 2007... Byline: M&G Optimal fund manager calls for investors to increase their Ucits III knowledge Ucits III Investors need to get to grips with Ucits III before funds using the powers offered by the regime will truly take off, according to...

Islamic finance to get boost from UK.
February 5, 2007... Islamic finance is to be given a hand by the UK government, according to a speech given by economic secretary Ed Balls last week. The government will be instrumental in removing barriers to the development of the sector, he said....

F&C sales for UK retail open ended funds spike in 2006.
February 5, 2007... F&C Investments has seen a 98 per cent increase in net sales of UK retail open ended funds in 2006 over the previous year. This compared to an industry wide increase of 87.5 per cent in net retail fund sales, according to data released...

Rensburg says mid caps remain strong.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Flux of FTSE250 disproves claims mid caps are in cycle downturn, manager claims uk equities The large number of FTSE250 entries and exits last year debunks claims mid caps have hit a downturn, according to Rensburg. Paul...

Positive Solution's Platform to be made available to IFAs.
February 5, 2007... Positive Solutions is to make its successful electronic back office platform available to all IFAs and providers. The online administration service, which will come on stream in about six months, is designed to strip out high administrative...

Healthcare rated as a new IFA favourite.
February 5, 2007... IFAs have tipped healthcare as the most likely specialist sector to produce good returns this year. In a survey, backed by Noble Fund Managers, about 65 per cent of IFAs said healthcare offered good opportunities for returns, and ranked...

Morley clarifies cause of CIO exit.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Fund manager says Katherine Garrett-Cox was not overlooked for promotion to CEO position because she did not apply manager move Morley Fund Management has rejected claims chief investment officer Katherine Garrett-Cox is...

Scottish relaunches Select offshore bond.
February 5, 2007... Scottish Provident International has re-launched its Select offshore bond, which is available exclusively through financial intermediaries. Since Thursday, the Select offshore bond has been enhanced to include the payment of annual...

Resources-hungry nations buoy South African market.
February 5, 2007... The South African market delivered yet another massive 40 per cent plus return in 2006, according to Investec Asset Management. Jeremy Gardiner, director of Investec, said the market had been boosted by the continued Chinese and Indian...

Axa Talents paves way for possible new EM offering.
February 5, 2007... launch Axa Investment Managers could bring another of its top performing French funds to the UK later this year if Axa Talents takes off. Charles Firmin-Didot, manager of the French-registered AGBP120.8m Axa Talents - and the UK...

Liontrust wounded.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Struggling index and poor stock-picking hit Intellectual Capital trust where it hurts performance A struggling index and poor stock-picking was to blame for Liontrust's AGBP111.5m Intellectual Capital trust underperformance in...

Jersey listed fund guide is released.
February 5, 2007... The Listed Fund Guide by the Jersey Financial Services Commission was introduced on 8 January following final consultation with the industry. The guide ensures that closed ended investment funds that are listed on European and other...

Balanced funds often not balanced at all, claims 7IM.
February 5, 2007... Too many investment houses are offering ostensibly balanced portfolios that are woefully underbalanced for investor's needs, according to Seven Investment Management. Justin Urquhart Stewart, managing director of 7IM, said not a week went...

Winterthur gets SRI.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Two new funds give Tailored Selection platform its first glimpse of social responsibility SRI Winterthur has added two socially responsible vehicles to its Tailored Selection platform - the only ethical funds so far. The...

Place your trust in Winnie The Pooh.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Henry Maxey's Ruffer Equity & General fund shows the benefits of optimism F rom hero to zero - from first over five years to last in the last year. That was the recipe for my tip in one sector for last week's column. This week I...

Property still strong.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Threadneedle managers forecast more double-digit returns for commercial property property The managers of Threadneedle's first authorised property unit trust accessible to the retail market forecast another year of double...

7IM wrap result for Paradigm Norton.
February 5, 2007... Barry Horner, founder of Paradigm Norton and vice president of the of the Institute of Financial Planning, said using a wrap saved his company AGBP350,000 a year and 7800 man hours. Since moving onto the Seven Investment Management wrap...

Fund supermarkets soar ahead.
February 5, 2007... ISAs Fund supermarkets have become the preferred distribution channel for Isas for the first time, representing 38 per cent of gross Isa business in 2006, according to new figures released by the IMA. Richard Saunders, chief executive...

Inflation fight may lead to UK recession.
February 5, 2007... Determination to reduce inflation could lead to a recession in the UK, Baring said. In the meantime, the fund house has predicted the US could experience further interest rate rises this year. The Bank of England's struggle to bring...

Cheap debt helps foreign companies to buy British.
February 5, 2007... Strong markets and cheap debt spurred foreign buying of British companies to record levels in 2006, according to Baillie Gifford. In its monthly market review, the fund manager noted: "From BAA and Scottish Power to BOC Group and the London...

Commodities' domination wanes.
February 5, 2007... economy Commodity sectors' domination of global equity markets is waning, according to State Street Global Markets. A report from the investment research specialist said the underperforming telecom, health care and consumer...

Barclays targets emerging Europe with new deposit.
February 5, 2007... Barclays has launched a deposit designed to gain exposure to the European equity markets via the CECE Composite index, which tracks the capital performance of the largest companies in Poland, Czech Republic and Hungary. The new product...

Fidelity discounts to boost Isas and Peps.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Lower transfer charges will encourage dissatisfied account holders to switch before April isas Fidelity International has put new discounts for Pep and Isa transfers into six of its managed funds. The initial charges on...

New Abbey issue capital guaranteed.
February 5, 2007... Abbey has launched a new issue of capital guaranteed structured deposit accounts with an extended offer period. They will allow investors to take advantage of Mini Cash Isa allowances for both this tax year and next. The four bonds offer...

Norwich and Peterborough raises its Isa interest rates.
February 5, 2007... Norwich and Peterborough Building Society will increase the rates of interest paid on its Fixed Rate bonds, Loyalty bonds and Fixed Rate Mini Cash Isas. In the first year the gross interest for the Fixed Rate Cash Isas will rise from 5.2...

HSBC predicts rise in infrastructure trusts.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Manager says surge in projects across the UK will open door for more competitors fund launch HSBC Investment Company, the first infrastructure-focused investment trust company to list on the London Stock Exchange, is expecting...

appointments.
February 5, 2007... - Neptune Investment Management has named Mike Woolley (pictured) as business development manager. Reporting to Adam Hughes, head of intermediary sales,Mr Woolley is responsible for developing Neptune's distribution across the south-east...

Investors earn a cap.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Henderson Smaller Companies trust investors will benefit from "generous" fee limit INVESTMENT TRUSTS Investors in the Henderson Smaller Companies investment trust have negotiated a cap on performance fee arrangements. The...

Temple Bar trust customers moved.
February 5, 2007... Alliance Trust Savings has completed the transfer of Isa and Pep plans of at least 750 Investec Asset Management customers invested in the Temple Bar investment trust. Investec Asset Management is the latest investment company to select...

Shareholders to flee Investors Capital trust before wind-up.
February 5, 2007... Shareholders in the AGBP325.4m Investors Capital trust will desert the fund en masse when it winds up on 28 February rather than rolling over their investments into the new vehicle, according to analysts at WINS investment trust research. ...

Transfer fees waived.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Charles Stanley's pensions arm is hoping to capitalise on Sipp providers leaving market SIPPs Charles Stanley's pension division is hoping to capitalise on self-invested personal pension providers leaving the market by waiving...

Invista offers investors alternate property path.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Residential investment product will diversify away from crowded commercial property space property Invista Real Estate Investment Management is preparing to unveil a UK residential property real estate investment company this...

L&G fattens its Sipp with 17 fresh funds.
February 5, 2007... Legal & General has added 17 new funds to its Portfolio Plus Sipp, taking the total fund choice to more than 270. The additional funds will also be available on Portfolio Plus Trustee Investment Plan and 15 of them will be on the Portfolio...

IFAs putting in more hours for clients as choice grows.
February 5, 2007... Investment advisers are spending more time researching the right pension investment choices for their clients compared to five years ago, a survey by GE Life suggests. Three quarters of the advisers surveyed said the growth in choice of...

Precious metals take year's top performer award.
February 5, 2007... results Clerical Medical calculates that precious metals were the best performing asset class in 2006, with a 28 per cent return for the year. The provider said precious metals beat UK shares - which returned 17 per cent - and...

Brandywine hits US.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Global Equity fund goes against grain to invest 43.5 per cent of portfolio in North America NORTH AMERICA While most global equity and multi-manager funds continue to shun the US, the Legg Mason Brandywine Global Equity fund is...

Growth of world's economy to slow.
February 5, 2007... Annual global economic growth will slow from 5 per cent to 4.2 per cent this year, according to Scottish Widows Investment Partnership. Developed nations, including the US, UK, Europe and Japan, will perform moderately below trend,...

Chinese indices defy forecast of lacklustre growth in 2006.
February 5, 2007... China's leading stock market indices have confounded sceptics by posting spectacular growth in 2006, according to asset manager Fidelity International. Martha Wang, manager of Fidelity's China Focus fund, said: "Having performed well in...

Buy-to let returns are strongest in south-east.
February 5, 2007... PROPERTY The south east boasts the UK's strongest performing buy-to-let market, property investment specialist Inside Track Group has found. Allsops LLP carried out an independent valuation of 265 developments throughout the UK last...

Standard Life ready for rollout of wrap.
February 5, 2007... Byline: One year after its soft launch, the service proposition is only lacking a trust wrapper wraps Standard Life has revealed its wrap is now close to completion and being rolled out to a greater number of advisers. Almost a...

Isa shakeup deadline brought forward.
February 5, 2007... Isas The government's shake up of the Isa regime will come into effect a year earlier than originally planned. Ed Balls, economic secretary to the Treasury, announced last week that Isas were extended indefinitely, with the limit...

Corporate profits to buoy index.
February 5, 2007... UK EQUITIES Leigh Harrison, head of UK Equities for Threadneedle Investments, claims the FTSE All-Share could rise by up to 10 to 14 per cent over the next year as corporate profitability remains strong. A 7 per cent rise in earnings...

JPM fund to mirror existing.
February 5, 2007... fund launch The new global equity income offering from JPMorgan, to be unveiled on 7 February, will mirror an existing fund that has been available for the Japanese retail market since late 2005. The Japanese product, which has...

Stephen Harker.
February 5, 2007... Investment Adviser: Since taking over this fund from the successful Neiloy Gosh in 2006, you have maintained your ranking despite a difficult year. What investment decisions contributed to this? Stephen Harker: I have been managing money in...

Wrap up warm.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Pushing advisers to turn their backs on tried and tested products could backfire As the January sales become a dim and distant memory, the race to sell you the latest hot financial services fashion item is heating up. And what is...

Sound too good to be true? It probably is.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Common sense rarely prevails in investment markets, even in the face of extreme volatility Just like being a British sporting star, investment markets can radically change from hero to horror at the toss of a coin: feted one moment...

Biting the hand that feeds you can pay off.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Wall Street bete noir Henry Blodget has reinvented himself, providing a cautionary tale Say the name "Henry Blodget" to the man on the street and you will likely meet with a vague sense of bafflement. Do the same on Wall Street,...

Making the most of currency anomaly.
February 5, 2007... Byline: A select range of investment products stand to benefit from the weakening US dollar I do not know how many of you have travelled to the US in recent months. If you have crossed the pond, you will know that goods and services in...

Diary.
February 5, 2007... Fuzzy logic from Royal London To publicise their 'rational' risk assessment, Royal London Asset Management sent Diary a picture of a tarantula and asked us if we were afraid of toasters. RLAM's somewhat abstract point was that to suffer...

Rockin' Robin's festival excursion.
February 5, 2007... There's nowhere like the rolling hills of Avon to illustrate the benefits of eco-investing, so maybe this is why Neptune will be launching its Green Planet fund out west. But instead of a quiet barnyard, Robin Geffen and pals will be rocking...

Investec parties on regardless.
February 5, 2007... We thought we had seen and heard it all in press conferences, but last week Alistair Mundy likened his Investec Cautious Managed fund process to a party. Wishing to appear contrarian, Alistair said his fund likes to turn up early while the...

A case of smart thinking at HSBC.
February 5, 2007... In order to assess the vast universe of funds available to a multi-manager, HSBC produces regular asset correlation matrices for diversification. This is no mean task and the best woman for the job is petite Italian Simona Paravani, whose...

The da Vinci Code it certainly ain't.
February 5, 2007... There's nothing like a little self-promotion to make you cringe, but utilising a fund brief to plug your new book takes the biscuit. Russell Cleveland of Renn Capital Group has written Finding Midas: Investing In Entrepreneurial CEOs With The...

FTAdviser Gym delves into Wraps arena for a workout.
February 5, 2007... wraps The FTAdviser Gym has added yet another subject to its growing range with a set of questions on wraps. The Norwich Union-sponsored workout was added to the online training tool's investment section last week and has already...

Going down the gears.
February 5, 2007... For those invested in UK property, whether residential or commercial, the Monetary Policy Committee's decision to further increase the base rate to 5.25 per cent in January came as a real blow. Banks, building societies and mortgage lenders...

Nurturing the UK market.(Industry overview)
February 5, 2007... Byline: The newest of the Reits countries is expected to increase its share of the wider property market As of January this year, the investment universe expanded significantly with the emergence of UK real estate investment trusts. But...

Why not take the direct route?
February 5, 2007... Byline: As people become more financially aware, investment bonds are becoming less popular among many UK investors Investment bonds have long been a mainstay for UK investors wishing to get a taste of the fund industry without the research...

Navigating the ethical maze.
February 5, 2007... Byline: When even ostensibly ethical funds hold suspect stocks, where do investors turn? There is no denying the growth of ethical investing. Moral consumption has moved rapidly out of the domain of hemp-sporting vegans and into the wider...

The benefits of belonging.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Members enjoy many economic advantages and their potential for property investment skyrockets The economic story which is gaining increasing momentum this decade is the expansion of the European Union. In this information age, there...

Vikings of the wild frontier.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Finland and Sweden are leading the charge as commercial property investors sit up and take notice of Nordic territories According to the Investment Property Databank, the Nordic real estate market accounts for around 17 per cent of...

Location, location.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Picking the right country in which to invest is crucial to success Have you heard about the latest Eastern European property investment hotspot? No, it is not Poland, Bulgaria or Lithuania. In fact, there seems to be some confusion...

Preparing yourself for adventures in foreign lands.
February 5, 2007... Byline: A raft of taxes and liabilities await investors buying property abroad, so understanding the pitfalls is vital As the cost of UK housing continues its upwards climb, more people are casting their eyes towards the overseas property...

The cash cows may be closer than first thought.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Investors should should not overlook the West as property opportunities in Eastern Europe dwindle If you want to follow the herd, Eastern Europe is probably your best bet in the property sphere. For the last five years, the region...

Having an eye for property.
February 5, 2007... Byline: The nation's property market holds excellent opportunities, but investors must be shrewd to be successful Property prices in Bulgaria have tripled in the last three years, yet the investment potential remains outstanding. As the...

Barclays to do two structured products.
February 5, 2007... Barclays Stockbrokers is to launch two structured products, one linked to infrastructure and one linked to alternative energy, on 18 January. The Global Infrastructure Investment note will return 140 per cent on the upside of a basket of...

Finding a fresh route onto the ladder.
February 5, 2007... Byline: There are a number of options for first time buyers if they are flexible about how they get on the ladder Consistent house price increases, combined with rising interest rates and the willingness of mortgage providers to cater for...

Investors' new favourite tool.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Property derivatives have gained popularity in recent years and are an effective tool for canny property investors Real estate investment trusts are not the only recent addition to the armoury of fund managers accessing the UK...

Mothers set to nurture growth.
February 5, 2007... Byline: All the signs point to small and medium-sized stocks providing the best growth and value prospects in the year ahead Having almost doubled between early 2003 and the end of 2005, the stock markets in Japan have now had a period of...

Obstacles blocking the way.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Political concerns and lower consumption are holding back Japan's investment potential Patience seems to be a vital quality for Japanese fund managers. There is light at the end of this tunnel, they claim, but we are going to have...

sector comment.
February 5, 2007... Byline: Rate rises would put managers under siege at small cap corral Style exposure Managers are playing a "will they, won't they" game with interest rates in Japan. An interest rate rise would hit small cap investors , as it...

Japan has good neighbours but it still needs a little understanding.
February 5, 2007... Time and time again, Japan has proved reggae legend Jimmy Cliff's mantra, "the harder they come, the harder they fall". As the second largest economy in the world, it has often caught investors out with its tendency to outstrip expectations...