UK small companies funds surge as government bonds sink Investing Funds invested in tech stocks and UK small companies jumped significantly last month, while government bond-focused funds failed to make returns amid tremors in the Treasury market. Tech funds returned nine per cent during May, while UK smaller companies funds rose 7.3 per cent, making them the two best performing sectors, according to data from [...]
Tech funds plummet in March while gold soars Investing Technology funds plummeted ten per cent in March as UK investors dumped risk assets as fears started to grow about US president Donald Trump’s handling of the American economy. Tech funds were the worst performing UK investment fund category in the month, followed closely by North American small company funds (nine per cent drop) and [...]
Precious metals funds boom as investors seek safe haven assets Investing Indian investment funds tanked during January, as gold and Latin America-focused UK funds led the way in the first month of 2025. 47 of the 49 Investment Association sectors delivered a positive return last month, with only India funds (-5.2 per cent) and UK smaller companies funds (-0.9 per cent) losing out, according to data [...]
How St James’s Place is changing its opulent image December 9, 2024 St James’s Place is working to overhaul the ‘cruise and cufflink’ image that it has long been saddled with, including dropping its annual conference for advisers at the 20,000-capacity O2 Arena. The wealth manager giant, which will be re-promoted to the FTSE 100 later this month, has dropped the opulent gathering with its 4,852 advisers [...]
US funds soar in November while gold prices sink December 2, 2024 US-focused funds topped the charts in November following Donald Trump’s presidential victory, while gold and precious metal funds struggled to maintain their previously strong performance. The average North America-focused fund grew by 7.2 per cent throughout the month, with North American Smaller Companies growing by a whopping 11.9 per cent. This led the best performing [...]
China funds dominate September as London’s AIM slumps October 1, 2024 China funds dominated performance tables in September following Beijing’s economic pledges, while UK smaller companies funds sagged over rumours that taxes on AIM may rise. The average China fund grew by more than 16 per cent throughout September, with almost all that growth coming in the last week of the month. “The top 44 funds [...]
What’s causing the decline in UK investment fund launches? September 19, 2024 The number of actively managed funds launched in the UK is dropping, fast. While the number of passive funds, which track indexes, has been fairly consistent recently, the number of active ones has almost halved in the last five years, from 146 in 2018 to just 79 last year. What’s worse, only 32 have been [...]
The best and worst performing funds in August 2024 September 2, 2024 Funds focusing on North American smaller companies were the worst performing in the UK last month, as a weakening dollar and fears over a US recession shook the market. North American Smaller Companies funds fell by 3.3 per cent in August, followed by funds focusing on China (-2.9 per cent), commodities (-2.3 per cent) and [...]
St James’s Place takes on Vanguard, but charges 350 per cent more August 13, 2024 St James’s Place is no stranger to high fees. Britain’s largest wealth manager has been pilloried for its high costs, from its controversial exit fee (now being phased out) to the high fees on its pension funds. Now, St James’s Place has earned a new accolade and a new issue with fees. The group’s Polaris [...]
Which were the best and worst performing funds in July? August 2, 2024 Smaller company funds were the best performing on the market in July, as the cheapest assets on the market finally started to bounce back.