Fund Strategy
7 September 2009

  • "More support" needed for developing economies

    8 Sep 2009

    Developing economies hit by the global downturn need greater financial support, according to a report from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad).

  • A hedge fund with a difference

    7 Sep 2009

    An advert in a one of the nationals caught my eye this morning. It read: “Once upon a time a hedge fund was just that”. In what has been a quiet summer for news I read on.

  • American consumer credit plummets

    9 Sep 2009

    American consumer credit fell 0.9% in July, the second largest monthly fall since World War II.

  • American trade deficit widens to $32 billion

    10 Sep 2009

    The American trade deficit widened by 16.3% in July to $32 billion (£19.5 billion), the biggest increase in 10 years, the Department of Commerce announced today.

  • Analysis: British retail sales slump

    8 Sep 2009

    Retail sales slumped in August, suggesting hopes of a recovery are premature, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) retail sales monitor. The survey revealed year-on-year growth in retail sales fell to 2.2% in August from 3.6% in July and 3.2% in June. On a like-for-like basis retail sales dropped down by 0.1% year-on-year in August after growth of 1.8% year-on-year in July and 1.4% in June.

  • Analysis: Taiwan's trade falls

    7 Sep 2009

    Taiwan’s exports fell 24.6% in August over the same month last year according to figures from the Ministry of Finance. Imports also fell, down 32.3%, although the ministry reported that the trade balance for the month was “healthy”, standing at $1.96 billion (£1.2 billion).

  • Analysis: Tempting Taiwan

    8 Sep 2009

  • Asset management M&A to rise

    9 Sep 2009

    Weaker American banks and other financial institutions will continue to sell off large asset management operations to raise capital, according to a new report from Freeman, an investment bank.

  • Auf Wiedersehn to the crisis

    7 Sep 2009

    Germany, the largest economy in Europe, has seen optimism surrounding its recovery further fuelled by the recent release of some impressive figures. So, has the time come to say “Auf Wiedersehn” to the economic crisis, asks Rodrigo Amaral, or is it too early to say?

  • Badminton anyone?

    10 Sep 2009

    Is there going to be a boom in the number of people playing badminton? Are long skirts going to come into fashion?

  • Bank debt ruling may hit bond funds

    7 Sep 2009

    Bond managers with holdings in Royal Bank of Scotland and Nat­West debt could see their performance hit after a shock Financial Services Authority (FSA) and European Commission ruling last week.

  • Bank debt ruling may hit bond funds

    7 Sep 2009

    Bond managers with holdings in Royal Bank of Scotland and Nat­West debt could see their performance hit after a shock Financial Services Authority (FSA) and European Commission ruling last week.

  • Barings plans retail Indian equity portfolio

    7 Sep 2009

    Baring Asset Management expects to unveil a retail Indian equity portfolio in the first half of 2010. The planned launch follows the appointment last week of Kommera Chakradhar Reddy as the firm’s head of India equities.

  • Barings plans retail Indian equity portfolio

    7 Sep 2009

    Baring Asset Management expects to unveil a retail Indian equity portfolio in the first half of 2010. The planned launch follows the appointment last week of Kommera Chakradhar Reddy as the firm’s head of India equities.

  • Brain death in Venice

    8 Sep 2009

    Over to Venice where it sounds like a revolution is breaking out.

  • Britain the only G7 country downgraded

    7 Sep 2009

    Britain was the only G7 economy to be downgraded when the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) revised its growth forecasts last week.

  • Britain the only G7 country downgraded

    7 Sep 2009

    Britain was the only G7 economy to be downgraded when the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) revised its growth forecasts last week.

  • British exports rise 5% in July

    9 Sep 2009

    British export volume rose by 5% in July to reach £19.2 billion, according to figures released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) today.

  • British GDP rises by 0.2%

    8 Sep 2009

    British GDP rose by 0.2% in the three months to August 2009, according to figures from the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, (NIESR) released today.

  • British interest rates on hold

    10 Sep 2009

    The Bank of England has held interest rates at the record low of 0.5% for the sixth consecutive month.

  • Brooks Macdonald acquires Lawrence House

    7 Sep 2009

    Brooks Macdonald, a wealth management firm, has acquired Lawrence House Fund Managers.

  • Brooks Macdonald hires trio of fund managers

    10 Sep 2009

    Brooks Macdonald Asset Management (BMAM) has hired three fund managers for its Edinburgh office.

  • Car manufacturers drive output growth

    8 Sep 2009

    Car production helped British manufacturing output increase by 0.2% in the three months to July, according to the Index of Production released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) today.

  • Chinese production up, but exports fall

    11 Sep 2009

    China's economy continued to grow rapidly throughout August, according to several major economic indicators released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China today.

  • Clavis Walden launches British business

    7 Sep 2009

    Clavis Walden will launch its UK business with the industry’s first Property Authorised Investment Fund (PAIF), it announced today.

  • Commercial property back in favour

    7 Sep 2009

    There are signs of a turnaround in commercial property as groups report rising valuations on their portfolios and money begins to flow back into the sector.

  • Commodities thrive despite downturn

    7 Sep 2009

    Several cyclical and structural factors are beginning to play an increasingly important role in driving the strong performance of commodities. But can this positive trend continue?

  • Corporate bonds are fixed income favourite

    9 Sep 2009

    British fixed income managers are favouring the corporate bond sector, according to Standard and Poor’s UK Fixed Interest review.

  • Corporate bonds top sales again

    9 Sep 2009

    Corporate bond funds remained at the top of the best seller list in August, with Cautious Managed in second place, according to the latest sales figures from Cofunds.

  • Date set for new Richard Pease fund

    10 Sep 2009

    Henderson New Star has confirmed that Richard Pease’s European Special Situations fund will be launched on October 1. The vehicle is the first product launch from the group since Henderson acquired New Star in April.

  • European fund flows hit two-year high

    10 Sep 2009

    Net inflows into European mutual funds hit a two-year high in July, reaching €46 billion (£40 billion), according to the latest data from Lipper FMI.

  • F&C relegated to mid-cap

    9 Sep 2009

    The F&C Investment Trust has been relegated from the FTSE 100 and has returned to the FTSE 250 index.

  • Fed says America stable

    10 Sep 2009

    The latest Beige Book report from America’s Federal Reserve says economic activity in the 12 districts it surveys continued to stabilise in July and August.

  • Flawed diagnosis from doomsayers

    7 Sep 2009

    It is widely accepted that few economists anticipated the economic crisis of the past year. But what about the small minority who predicted imminent doom? Many are being given undue credit for their apparently accurate predictions.

  • Flows into Cazenove Absolute UK Dynamic to be restricted

    8 Sep 2009

    Cazenove’s newest launch, the Absolute UK Dynamic fund, has raised almost £100m and the group is now planning to restrict further flows into the fund. It launched yesterday but has already seen a level of subscriptions in excess of expectations, Cazenove says.

  • Fund Managers Diary

    7 Sep 2009

    Richard Penny manages the UK Alpha Trust at Legal & General Investment Management. His diary runs from July 27 to August 2.

  • Garratt launches property fund

    9 Sep 2009

    Garratt Property Group is bringing a residential property fund to the market, in the latest of several new launches in the property sector.

  • Gilliat launches first structured product

    7 Sep 2009

    Gilliat has launched the first structured product within its Income Series. The product, which has a five-year term, offers investor three choices of income linked to three different asset classes—British equities, commodities and property.

  • Happy to be relegated

    10 Sep 2009

    If the F&C Investment Trust was a football club it could conceivably be likened to the team that has its investment managers name—F&C Investments—across the shirt, Birmingham.

  • Has China come too far too fast?

    7 Sep 2009

    An OECD report shows that the recovery is arriving sooner than expected and China is leading the way. However, concern is growing that the market may have come too far too soon.

  • Henderson fund turns to industrials

    7 Sep 2009

    Neil Hermon, the manager of the Henderson Smaller Companies investment trust, favours industrials over consumer stocks, and says small-caps will lead the way out of the recession.

  • Holding fast in the face of adversity

    7 Sep 2009

    The Premier Multi-Asset Growth fund is finally seeing good results. Manager, David Hambidge, says refusing to panic sell his structured products in turbulent times was key to performance.

  • Ideal climate for Polar expansion

    7 Sep 2009

    "Determined to build a brand in the boutique space", Polar Capital is on the hunt for managers or teams who can make an impact on the retail market from day one, writes Muriel Oatham.

  • Impax launches Asian Environmental Investment Trust

    7 Sep 2009

    Impax Investment Management is launching a new investment trust, Impax Asian Environmental Markets, on the London Stock Exchange.

  • Japanese exports fall and confidence declines

    8 Sep 2009

    Confidence in the Japanese service sector fell to 41.7 in August, the first drop in eight months, according to the Economy Watchers Index released today.

  • Keydata Aim VCT to be renamed

    8 Sep 2009

    The board of Keydata Aim Venture Capital Trust (VCT) has appointed Hargreave Hale as its company administrator and propose to change the company’s name to Hargreave Hale Aim VCT, it announced today.

  • Korean interest rates kept at record low

    10 Sep 2009

    The central bank in South Korea has kept interest rates frozen at 2.0% for the seventh successive month.

  • L&G launches new guaranteed bond

    11 Sep 2009

    Legal & General (L&G) has announced the launch of a new capital guaranteed bond, the first product in its new series of guaranteed equity bonds.

  • L&G revealed as main investor of First State fund

    7 Sep 2009

    Legal & General’s multi-manager team has revealed itself to be the main seed investor in First State Investment’s Latin America fund, which was launched on April 14.

  • L&G revealed as main investor of First State fund

    7 Sep 2009

    Legal & General’s multi-manager team has revealed itself to be the main seed investor in First State Investment’s Latin America fund, which was launched on April 14.

  • Macleod leaves Skandia

    10 Sep 2009

    Jamie Macleod has left his post as chief executive officer of Skandia Investment Group (SIG).

  • Manager focus: Guillaume Rambourg

    9 Sep 2009

    Gartmore’s Guillaume Rambourg has positioned his European Absolute Return fund for a steady improvement in markets towards the end of this year and into 2010, but cautions against excessive optimism.

  • Manager focus: James Donald

    11 Sep 2009

    “A lot of the biggest names in the index are nowhere to be seen,” says James Donald, managing director and manager of the Lazard Emerging Markets and Emerging Markets Equity funds.

  • Manager focus: Katharina Hoyland

    10 Sep 2009

    Invesco Perpetual’s Katharina Hoyland says the rebound in equity markets has boosted the prospects of European equity income stocks, although she is still wary of the region’s banking sector.

  • Manager focus: Shingo Sugiura

    7 Sep 2009

    "Putting peoples' lives first," is how Shingo Sugiura, the manager of the Melchior Japan Opportunities fund, explains the policy of the recent landslide election victors, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ).

  • Merchant Securities buys Cavendish Young

    7 Sep 2009

    Merchant Securities has announced that it will buy Cavendish Young, an IFA and fee-based wealth management company, for an initial consideration of £65,000.

  • Mixed fortunes for the latest raft of ‘trendy’ funds

    7 Sep 2009

    Nightmarish market conditions in parts of 2009 have not stemmed the flow of product launches from the major fund groups. Since January, 83 new funds have opened to retail investors, according to Morningstar data up to August 24.

  • New signs of German economic recovery

    8 Sep 2009

    The German economy showed further signs of recovery with 12% increase in the trade surplus, which reached €13.9 billion (£12.1 billion) in July, according to German federal statistics released today.

  • No V-shaped recovery on way, says Mott

    7 Sep 2009

    PSigma’s Bill Mott has rejected suggestions that the British economy is going to experience a V-shaped recovery, although he says action by central banks has prevented “financial Armageddon”.

  • OBSR awards winners announced

    10 Sep 2009

    Paul Read and Paul Causer, co-managers of the £4.8 billion Invesco Corporate Bond fund, won the accolade of outstanding fund manager at tonight’s Old Broad Street Research (OBSR) investment awards.

  • Russell Investments appoints new MD

    10 Sep 2009

    Russell Investments has appointed Irshaad Ahmad as managing director in Britain. Ahmad, who will take up his new position on September 15, joins Russell Investment’s Europe Middle East and Africa (EMEA) team from the firm’s Canadian business, which he joined in 2004. Prior to joining Russell Investments, Ahmad was at Mercer, where he held a senior position in its Canadian investment consulting business, specialising in institutional investments. ___________________

  • SCAM

    7 Sep 2009

    The chairman is impressed, despite his initial doubts, by research indicating that the level of testosterone in the brain affects a person’s attitude to risk aversion and career choices.

  • SEI appoints new equity head

    9 Sep 2009

    SEI has announced the appointment of Jason Collins as its head of UK and European equities.

  • Seven Dials launches commercial property fund

    7 Sep 2009

    Seven Dials has launched a commercial property fund focusing on prime retail properties on British high streets.

  • Simon Ellis to head L&G Unit Trusts

    11 Sep 2009

    Simon Ellis has been appointed managing director of Legal & General’s (L&G) unit trust business.

  • Swip tops August fund performance

    11 Sep 2009

    Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (Swip) led the Lipper Fund Performance tables for August.

  • The crisis of economics

    8 Sep 2009

    Paul Krugman, winner of the 2008 Nobel prize for economics, gave his take on why mainstream economics has gone horribly wrong in an article Sunday’s New York Times magazine.

  • The Democratic Party of Japan has a lot to prove

    7 Sep 2009

    Sarah Hyde is a lecturer in the politics and international relations of Japan at the University of Kent. Her book—The transformation of the Japanese left: from old socialists to new democrats—is published by Routledge this month.

  • Timber is coming out of the woodwork

    7 Sep 2009

    Few British retail investors look to timber as a commodity and it is a complex market. But with tropical timber offering both consistent prices and stable growth, it may be worth considering.

  • Wind of change for climate funds

    7 Sep 2009

    Big fund groups such as Schroders have recognised a mega-trend in companies set up to fight the effects of global warming. But investment in them may suit only the more adventurous.

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