EMERGING MARKET DEBT FUNDS
ABERDEEN GLOBAL – EMERGING MARKETS BOND FUND
Launched in August 2001, this fund is managed by Aberdeen’s emerging markets bond team and has $531.1m in assets under management. It aims to create long-term total return by investing in fixed interest securities issued by emerging market firms and government-related bodies. It is a Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV with a minimum investment of $1,500 and a total expense ratio (TER) of 1.74 per cent. 60 per cent of the fund is allocated to government bonds, 24.6 per cent to corporate bonds and 6.8 per cent to quasi-sovereign bonds, with the remainder in cash. It has outperformed the benchmark so far this year and over the past five years. Its biggest country weighting is to Mexico at 11.2 per cent, followed by Brazil with 8.7 per cent.
ASHMORE EMERGING MARKETS LIQUID INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO
Launched in October 1992, this is Ashmore’s flagship emerging market debt fund and it is managed by an experienced team of analysts, researchers and economists. Assets under management are just over $3.5bn and the fund has outperformed the benchmark JP Morgan EMBI Global Diversified Composite index since inception, up 17.2 per cent compared to 12.23 per cent. Investments are mostly dollar-denominated bonds and loans. In terms of country weightings, 14.12 per cent is allocated to the Cayman Islands, 10.2 per cent to Indonesia, 9.78 per cent to Russia, 8.47 per cent to Mexico and 7.55 per cent to Brazil. More than four-fifths is invested in external debt while 28.16 percent is in special situations. The minimum investment is $100,000 and the yield is 7.8 per cent.
TEMPLETON EMERGING MARKETS BOND FUND
Franklin Templeton is well-known for its quality emerging markets investment team and the performance of its Emerging Markets Bond Fund, led by Michel Hasenstab, is no exception. Since its inception in July 1991, the fund has gained 89.91 per cent compared to 65.89 per cent for the benchmark. The weighted average credit quality of the investments is BBB and the fund now has £4.1bn of assets under management. The total expense ratio (TER) is 1 per cent and the average number of holdings is 150. The Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV is overweight Asia ex-Japan, particularly South Korea and Malaysia. Almost half of the fund is allocated to dollar-denominated assets, with another 40 per cent to emerging Asian currencies. Morningstar gives the fund a five star rating.