Fund Strategy
21 July 2008
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Agency reinstates ratings on Credit Suisse funds
21 Jul 2008
Old Broad Street Research (OBSR) reinstated its ratings on most of the Credit Suisse multi-manager range with the exception of the regional specific funds, which have had their ratings removed.
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Balanced route to absolute returns
21 Jul 2008
The CF Arch cru Balanced fund has outperformed with an absolute return focus, partly as a result of using investment via private rather than public markets, says Jon Maguire of cru.
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Barings poised for Mena launch
21 Jul 2008
Baring Asset Management has unveiled plans for the Baring Mena (Middle East and North Africa) fund, subject to regulatory approval. The fund will aim to provide long-term capital growth by investing in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa. It will be managed by Ghadir Abu Leil-Cooper, head of the emerging Europe, Middle East and Africa equities team.
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Black gold-rush days are numbered
21 Jul 2008
The cost of oil attracts investors to funds focusing on energy and natural resources, but some analysts argue that commodities are overvalued, which may stem the strong flow of returns.
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Change-over has ring of confidence
21 Jul 2008
Old Mutual Asset Managers' reputation and top-drawer managers allay any concerns about Ashton Bradbury relinquishing control of its flagship portfolio. James Phillipps reports.
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E.Tr@der
21 Jul 2008
Just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. Surely the banks are a steal at this level, though candidly I no longer know when the bottom might be reached. There are a lot of long faces. I wouldn't put much money on bonuses this year.
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EC set to ditch 'complex' handbook
21 Jul 2008
The European Commission (EC) has proposed to ditch the simplified prospectus and replace it with a simple one-page document to be called Key Investor Information (KII).
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Fund Manager's Diary
21 Jul 2008
Monday The day starts at 7am. I work mainly from home, so I slope downstairs, grab a cup of tea and check company news and emails. The news from consumer companies is worsening. A profit warning from Trinity Mirror shows the problems of a business whose structural decline is being compounded by weak demand. Car retailer Pendragon is also suffering. After a shower, a dog-walk and breakfast, I return to my desk at about 9am. The endless stream of emails has reloaded and ...
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Global forces bring oil to the boil
21 Jul 2008
Many commentators blame speculators for soaring oil prices, but surging demand for energy and the rising cost of other commodities are also factors - and further price hikes are possible.
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Growth prospects remain gloomy
21 Jul 2008
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released its World Economic Outlook last week showing global growth forecasts continue to be gloomy. Although growth slowed to 4.5 percent in the first quarter of 2008 from 5 percent in 2007 the drop was less severe than the IMF said in April. As a result while global growth is expected to slow to 4.1 percent over the year the outlook for Britain has been raised from 1.6 percent to 1.8 percent.
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Jupiter slides along on french oil
21 Jul 2008
Investment funds struggle, but Jupiter European Special Situations fares better than most. Cédric de Fonclare, the manager, favours French and Swiss stocks, such as Total, an oil giant.
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Jupiter unveils India Sicav
21 Jul 2008
Jupiter has announced the launch of the Jupiter India fund (Sicav), which is managed by Avinash Vazirani. The Jupiter India fund is a sub-fund of the Luxembourg-domiciled Jupiter Global Fund which is registered for distribution in Britain. Vazirani joined Jupiter in 2007 as head of the South Asia Equities team. He also manages the Jupiter India fund, a unit trust launched in February 2008.
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M&G launches dividend fund
21 Jul 2008
M&G launched the M&G Global Dividend fund last week. It is managed by Stuart Rhodes, and has a total return objective that combines income and capital growth to outperform the FTSE World index as well as other global equity income funds. Dividend yield and dividend growth are used as measures of income in a portfolio of typically 40-60 stocks.
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Managers lose faith in 'safe' asset class
21 Jul 2008
The notion that emerging market equities are a safe place to hide from the credit crisis has fallen away among fund managers.
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Premier fund focuses on China as manager quits
21 Jul 2008
Premier has changed the investment mandate and name of its Eastern Enterprise fund following the impending retirement of Richard Muckart as its manager in September.
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Recovery time
21 Jul 2008
Bond markets tumbled when the global turmoil kicked in, but they look set for a comeback, which has renewed investor interest in them as an asset class as the hunt for value begins, writes Neal Underwood.
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Rescue prospects for fannie and freddie
21 Jul 2008
Leigh Skene of Lombard Street Research talks to Tomas Hirst about the American mortgage companies.
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Scam
21 Jul 2008
The chairman brushes off a business optimism poll as he directs Second Coming's marketing budget on wooing investors "who count" - the filthy-rich who live in Dubai and Hong Kong.
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Sell-off helps Electra stay on track
21 Jul 2008
Electra Private Equity's long-term investments made handsome returns, including $72m from the sale of its stake in a railtrack operator, but tighter credit could undermine its strategy.
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Social policy turned into a peeing contest
21 Jul 2008
Last week's oddest spectacle was probably Richard Thaler, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago, talking about knife crime on the BBC Newsnight programme. Thaler probably knows as much about knives as the average street fighter knows about Sharpe ratios. Yet the venerable professor was expected to speak with authority on the recent spate of teenage stabbings in Britain.
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The roads less travelled to recovery
21 Jul 2008
The American downturn shows signs of recovery and Britain looks set to follow. Meanwhile, the Specialist sector has some interesting funds, ranging from gold to ecological forestry.
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Two billion 'could join' middle class
21 Jul 2008
Another two billion more people could join the global middle class by 2030 according to a new report by Goldman Sachs*.
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UK Equity Income sales drop by three-quarters
21 Jul 2008
Sales of UK Equity Income funds to IFAs declined by three-quarters in the second quarter of 2008, according to Cofunds data. The sector achieved just 2 percent of total net sales, down from 8 percent in the first quarter.
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Untangling the heated debate on surging oil price
21 Jul 2008
The big debate in relation to surging oil prices is whether speculators are to blame. There is a sharp divide between those who see speculation as a key factor in rising prices and those who point to more fundamental forces.
