Tuesday
Rise and shine! Up early to catch up after the Bank Holiday weekend, I hit the desk at 7:15am to catch up with brokers in Indonesia to get their take on the recent results from a couple of portfolio holdings.
The morning was spent on fundamental research across our frontier markets universe – earnings season is in full swing in Vietnam, Kazakhstan, and Nigeria. In the afternoon, I joined our daily research meeting, which had more of a macro focus; recently reported inflation numbers in the Philippines surprised to the upside and we discussed implications of this.
Wednesday
Another early start as we are right in the thick of earnings season. Today we reviewed results from companies in Georgia and Chile, one set beat, while the other was a bit disappointing. We spent some time digging through and understanding where the results differed from our expectations and whether we needed to adjust these.
The morning research meeting was followed by time reviewing the board pack for the BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust ahead of next week’s board meeting – going through positioning, attribution and risk in detail. Getting the numbers right matters.
See also: Fund manager diary: Chris Tennant
I’ve recently got back into the gym and the lunchtime class did wonders for my focus. During the afternoon the team spent some time discussing and planning future trips to Uzbekistan, Georgia and a “virtual trip” to Argentina coming up in the next couple of weeks. The listing of UzNIF, which will happen in the next few weeks, will present the first direct opportunity we have had to invest in Uzbekistan directly.
Thursday
The morning was spent in meetings – first up was a portfolio company, followed by a session with an economist focused on MENA markets, which is always useful for stress-testing our macro views in a region that is core to the Frontiers Trust. This combination is really at the heart of how we invest. Our process is built on marrying bottom-up fundamental research with a strong macro framework. In frontier markets, where the macro can move fast, getting that overlay right is critical.
Later, we had our daily research meeting. The team debated topics spanning AI supply chain dynamics to consumer trends in South East Asia. I also put out a buynote on a name where we see demand tightening from a low-utilisation base, with pricing likely to emerge through 2027.
Friday
Working from home – phew, no Northern Line!
The morning research meeting was followed by time spent on fundamental research and preparing for two upcoming conferences next week, one focused on Vietnam and the other on Saudi Arabia.
See also: Fund manager diary: Alex Ralph
I also used the quieter environment to step back and reflect on the Frontiers portfolio and what might affect it going forward – the evolving geopolitical backdrop, the AI infrastructure build-out reaching frontier economies, and how we are positioning to capture opportunities while managing risk. Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is just think.
Saturday
A quieter day away from the screens. Spent the morning watching my son play cricket – a nice change of pace after a busy week.
Sunday
Used some of the quieter time to get organised ahead of next week’s Vietnam and Saudi conferences. I like to set aside a bit of time over the weekend to map out the week ahead, especially when the diary is as packed as this one.
Monday
Board day!
The BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust board meeting ran from 9am through to mid-afternoon at Drapers Gardens. We covered the half-yearly results, positioning, attribution, risk, and outlook. Great engagement from the directors on topics including the Middle East conflict, frontier market diversification, and the competitive landscape across Thai telecoms and Turkish equities.
Tuesday
Back to the regular rhythm. Our afternoon research meeting was followed by the monthly hedge fund call, where we discussed positioning across the Emerging Frontiers hedge fund – another fund I manage together with my colleagues Sam Vecht and Gordon Fraser. In between, company research and following up on action items from the board meeting. The work never stops, but that is what makes this job so exciting.
