Fund Strategy
20 October 2008
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America represents significant opportunity, says UBS
20 Oct 2008
UBS says the American market offers one of the most attractive investment opportunities in recent history despite the market volatility. It says American equities have priced in most of the liquidity and credit concerns and that a strengthening dollar should help to make equities even more attractive. As a result it is making available an onshore version of an offshore fund, which will be launched on November 10, after a fixed price offer period, which starts on November 3 (subject ...
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Another World War?
23 Oct 2008
The default by Iceland – the country rather than the food store – could be a sign of a coming world war. That is the serious conclusion of an opinion piece in the Washington Post by two eminent economists.
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Banks' central role critical to growth
20 Oct 2008
Many commentators blame ""greedy"" banks for the global financial crisis and argue that tighter controls are needed - but faith in their vital role in economic growth should be restored.
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Board votes to blitz F&C fund to repay investors
20 Oct 2008
The board of the F&C Event Driven fund of hedge funds has proposed liquidating the portfolio to repay investors
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Bold moves to restore gem's lustre
20 Oct 2008
"When the market's imploding, it's time to invest," says the lead manager of Resolution Hexam Global Emerging Markets after a decision not to be defensive set the fund on a rollercoaster.
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Bonham Carter downgraded
22 Oct 2008
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has downgraded Edward Bonham Carter’s Undervalued Assets fund at Jupiter from AAA to AA. It attributes the move to his extra duties since Jupiter’s buyout last year.S&P analysts say Bonham Carter – who is both chief executive officer and chief investment officer at Jupiter – could have less time for hands-on fund management. Performance could suffer as a result.The downgrade was part of S&P’s annual
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Counter-trader flourishes on frisson
20 Oct 2008
Bill McQuaker adopts a defensive stance to protect the Henderson Multi-Manager Growth fund by selling equities and buying bonds - however, he also injects risk when things look desperate.
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Demand for group's financial portfolio
20 Oct 2008
At a time when banks worldwide are being recapitalised, a fund management group has decided to launch a specialist financial fund, which it says will target undervalued shares.
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Economists clash over how correction became crisis
20 Oct 2008
After much political wrangling and sleepless nights for Hank Paulson, the American Treasury secretary, the bail-out package designed to reassure investors and bring confidence back into the market was unveiled last week.
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Emerging economies slow
20 Oct 2008
A key question facing the global economy is the likely trajectory of the developing world. The quicker the emerging economies continue to grow the more resilient the world economy is likely to be overall.Against this backdrop the growth figures for China, the largest developing economy, are particularly important. Today the National Bureau of Statistics of China published a release ...
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Exports threatened as dollar rallies
20 Oct 2008
A weak dollar has coincided with a narrowing American trade deficit but relying on exports to salvage the economy may prove challenging.
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Fund flows take a turn for the better in Europe
20 Oct 2008
Fund flows to European equity funds turned positive in August despite risk aversion and bearish sentiment among investors, according to figures from Lipper Feri. However, after weeks of rapid falls across global stockmarkets the positive mood is not expected to last.
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Fund Manager's Diary
20 Oct 2008
Monday:I wait with my daughter for her school bus at 7:30am. Luckily it is still light at this time of year and not raining, but winter is coming. This means I get to the office at about 8:30am and it already looks like a down day in the markets. I have only one meeting this morning - the average is between two and three a day. Today's meeting is with a new company that is hoping to reverse into another public company.
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Fund managers see equities as cheap
20 Oct 2008
The highest proportion of global fund managers in over a decade - a net 43% - see equities as undervalued, according to the latest monthly survey from Merrill Lynch.
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Governor gloom and professor boom
22 Oct 2008
Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, did not say anything path-breaking in his speech in Leeds yesterday. Its importance lies more in giving official endorsement to opinions that are already becoming pervasive. It was already widely accepted that “the banking crisis dealt a severe blow to the availability of credit” and “the UK economy is entering a recession”. Few ...
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Guessing game over geared funds
20 Oct 2008
Two investment trusts have breached their covenants in recent weeks and more are likely to follow suit. But lack of information about covenant terms makes breaches difficult to predict.
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Impax appoints chief operator
20 Oct 2008
Impax Group has announced the appointment of Charlie Ridge as chief operating officer. He will be responsible for finance, operations, compliance and administration.
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Japan fund managers turn bullish on equities
20 Oct 2008
Japan fund managers are upbeat on the outlook for equities despite poor returns this year, according to Standard & Poor's (S&P). In its Japan sector update, S&P found that managers are positive on valuations and Japan's limited exposure to credit problems. Thames River Capital, however, has closed its Japan fund.
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Jupiter managers top Alpha league
20 Oct 2008
Jupiter was awarded top ranking of 40 British managers in the Alpha League Table. EDHEC's final alpha scoring system combines outperformance with the frequency of that outperformance across a fund range.
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Manager slams 'out of touch' central banks
20 Oct 2008
Mistakes made by central bankers have led to broken bond markets, according to Nick Gartside, the manager of the Schroder Strategic Bond fund.
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Mixed reaction as some banks bow to 'no dividends' rule
20 Oct 2008
Equity income fund managers have given a mixed response to the inability of certain banks to pay dividends to shareholders.
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Multi-manager head leaves after sabbatical
20 Oct 2008
Katy Gladstone, a co-head of Henderson Global Investors' multi-manager range, has left her post after a five-month sabbatical. She was to return last month, but Henderson has confirmed that she will not be coming back.
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New manager to trim Omam fund's holdings
20 Oct 2008
Richard Watts, the deputy manager of the Old Mutual UK Select Mid Cap fund since July 2006, will reduce the portfolio's holdings when he takes over as lead manager in January.
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Norwich Union changes tack
20 Oct 2008
Norwich Union has reverted to valuing its property funds on a twice-monthly basis. The funds this applies to are the Norwich Property trust, Norwich Property Investment fund and Norwich Union Linked Life Property fund.
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Pair link up to launch fund firm
20 Oct 2008
Spike Hughes, formerly of Skandia and Hargreaves Lansdown, has joined up with James Caan, the chief executive officer of Hamilton Bradshaw, a private equity house, to launch Insynergy Investment Management.
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Paul Krugman wins Nobel prize
20 Oct 2008
Paul Krugman has won this year's Nobel economics prize. Krugman, professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University and a columnist for the New York Times, was awarded the $1.4m (810,000) for his contribution to the understanding of international trade.
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Positive signs point to new sunrise
20 Oct 2008
Japan will prosper from its neighbours' growth and, with its pared banking sector, the investment world has already been through the worst pain, so good valuations cannot be ignored for long.
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Pragmatic style arises from clear view
20 Oct 2008
Richard Watts, the deputy manager of the Old Mutual UK Select Mid Cap fund, talks to Frances Hughes.
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Prudential set to unveil fund range
20 Oct 2008
Prudential last week announced the launch of the guided architecture extended fund range, PruSelect.
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Revamped tool offers high quality and depth
20 Oct 2008
Last week saw the launch of Fund Strategy's revamped website. It is designed to be used as a research tool rather than simply an online version of the magazine.
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Scam
20 Oct 2008
The chairman welcomes moves by the Financial Services Authority to tighten pay structures as the guilt about the tidy bonuses he bagged weighs heavy in the face of widespread disapproval.
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Shady image
20 Oct 2008
Short selling came under fire in the wake of the collapse of financial institutions, and high-profile investors were berated as prominent public figures sought to point the finger. Will Jackson examines whether the criticisms are justified.
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Skandia plans two more specialists
20 Oct 2008
Skandia Investment Group announced plans to add two more specialist funds to the three America funds set to be launched this month.
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Standard Life’s economic outlook
21 Oct 2008
Standard Life Investments has published its outlook for the financial markets and the economy in its quarterly Global Outlook (PDF). Andrew Milligan, its head of global strategy, outlines three broad conclusions for the period ahead:* Financial markets will remain volatile for some time.* A moderate recession is expected in the developed countries in 2008-9 followed ...
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Switch to bonds waits on inflation
20 Oct 2008
International banking bail-outs have prompted hopes of a recovery in bond markets. But some AFI panellists are holding back from fixed interest investment while inflation remains high.As the credit crunch seeps into the real economy, some Adviser Fund Index (AFI) panellists are looking with increasing focus at the fixed interest sector.
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Time to launch?
23 Oct 2008
Following a turbulent few weeks, in which fund groups have either pulled or delayed launching funds, this week has seen some groups be more proactive. Earlier in the week UBS announced it was to launch a US Growth fund (see October 20 post). Now L&G has confirmed details of an absolute return fund it is launching next week.
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Veritas stays true to global themes
20 Oct 2008
Veritas produces "real returns" through a philosophy of themed investment based on research by a small team of analysts focused on global and Asian companies, writes Neal Underwood.
