Fund Blog
More sales, fewer funds
As with any survey that totals over 100 pages, there is lots to digest in the Investment Management Association’s (IMA) annual survey of 2009.
The case for total return
Absolute return funds have come in for a bit of kicking in recent weeks, with many commentators questioning their purpose as several offerings have failed to deliver on their promise.
Back in time
Try as I may I can’t find any major events that happened in March 2009. In sport England won the women’s world cup of cricket and Spurs lost the Carling Cup final to Manchester United (sob).
American bank closures stink
Stewart Cowley, the head of fixed income at Old Mutual, admits in his latest investment note to having a bad smell in his kitchen.
Investors ditch Asia
Having started the year as the eighth top net selling sector, it would seem investors’ love affair for Asian funds has diminished going by the latest Investment Management Association (IMA) statistics.
The search for income widens
In years gone past British investors were often accused of only searching for income in this country and that was mainly because it was British companies best known for paying out dividends.
City shutdown
And so it has come to this. I am already nervous and desperately trying to think of something to blog from yesterday’s budget but all I can think of is a certain game which kicks off at 3pm.
Bring on the good news
Bad news seems to be everywhere at the moment. If it’s not BP getting hammered by the Americans, it’s the ever deepening eurozone crisis, or it’s Rob Green spilling the ball (again against the Americans).
World Cup fever, times two
And so it continues. I may dedicate the next month of blogs to World Cup related stories. Today’s entry comes from Société Générale which today announced the launch of a tracker fund related to a basket of European shares related to the World Cup.
World Cup fever
As the World Cup rapidly approaches and expectations of England’s chances increase to ridiculous levels I am looking forward - or not - to a glut of fund-related world cup tie-ins.
Mapping out the FTSE
The focus on one-day movements in the FTSE 100 and other global stockmarket indices seems to have hit new highs recently in the wake of the eurozone crisis.
Cult of the fund manager dispelled?
“We have never, NEVER, encountered any good fund, which we recommended, becoming bad due to a fund manager change,” writes Brian Dennehy, the managing director of Dennehy Weller, in response to the departure of the Nick Purves and Ian Lance from Schroders.
Time to take a contrarian stand?
The main findings in the latest Bank of America Merrill Lynch Fund Manager Survey were hardly a great surprise. The Greek crisis, which then turned into a eurozone crisis, has resulted in global fund managers running back to cash and taking money out of Europe.
Gasping at Garp
In an industry that just loves its jargon, I would like to get a term into the dictionary courtesy of Alliance Trust Asset Management.
UK investors start looking overseas
British retail investors have often been accused, and rightly so, of having too much of a domestic bias when it comes to buying funds.
Less interesting
Outspoken, controversial and being vigilant on costs are just three things which spring to mind when summing up Peter Hargreaves’ stewardship of Hargreaves Lansdown.
Catch-22 for investment trusts
For the past decade investment trusts have made a concerted effort to make themselves more appealing to retail investors.
Waiting for a star to fall
Staring at the stars in a clear night’s sky it is often impossible to imagine that some of those shining back at you are no longer there, such is the time it takes light to travel back to earth. A breed of stars who are not light years away from earth however are the so-called “star fund managers”.
Out of office
I am out of the office this week, returning Monday, April 12.
Contrasting fortunes for bond funds
Investor appetite for strategic bond funds seems to be continuing apace after today’s announcement from the Investment Management Association (IMA) that the sector was the most popular among retail investors in February.
