There are just four IMA sectors that have produced negative returns so far this summer (at the time of writing there are still twelve days until St Leger's Day*):
- European Smaller Companies -5.39%
- Europe ex UK -2.99%
- UK Smaller Companies -2.34%
- Europe inc UK – 2.03%
Italy is my destination of choice for the summer but the market was one of the worst in the region, down 7%. Draghi's Jackson Hole speech on 22nd August reassured markets (to some extent) that he would actually put his money where his mouth is and European markets have picked up a little in the past 10 days. However, in my view, the easy money has been made for now, so I expect the asset class to struggle until some of the policies start taking effect.
The real winners have been:
• China/Greater China 14.51%
• Global Emerging Markets 11.63%
• Asia Pacific ex Japan 11.35%
• Japanese Smaller companies 11.23%
Its been an Indian summer for emerging markets (excuse the pun). The Indian market reacted well to the election of a new leader in May and the rest of the region has benefited from investors looking for value opportunities.
Click here for the three best performing funds
*All performance data is sourced from FE Analytics, total returns from 1st May 2014 to 31st August 2014. Past performance is not a reliable guide to future returns. You may not get back the amount originally invested, and tax rules can change over time. Juliet's views are her own and do not constitute financial advice.
