Diversified Absolute Return Fund

Key Points

• Investment management responsibility for the fund was taken over by John Husselbee of North Investment Partners on 13 September 2006
• A truly MultiAsset portfolio
• A diversified portfolio of uncorrelated asset classes reduces volatility and provides opportunity to access returns in a variety of market conditions
• The objective is to offer investors consistent, positive returns in excess of LIBOR +2% over a 3-year rolling period
• Sector: IMA Global Growth

Current Views

There is no doubt that October has given investors a ‘white knuckle’ ride to a point that would test anybody’s faith in the financial markets. With a recession almost a foregone conclusion, not only in the US but also here in the UK and Europe, it is reassuring to know that governments and central banks worldwide have woken up to the realisation that this is a global crisis requiring a global solution.

We have already seen and will continue to see concerted efforts to alleviate this financial turmoil in the form of bailouts and rescue packages totalling in the trillions of dollars. The US TARP legislation was dramatically passed at the beginning of October and interest rates around the world have been cut as a result.

Until now, sentiment had been extraordinarily negative in the financial markets. Nobody expected Lehman Brothers to fail or the domino effect of major financial institutions that followed in its wake.

In the short-term it is most important for the credit markets to begin to function properly again; for it is credit that lubricates the engines of the financial markets, without which everything would seize up. Banks need to be recapitalised and this is now taking place in an effort to reduce the degree to which they are leveraged. This, in turn, will lead to the credit markets normalising and the restoration of investor confidence.

The worst does, however, appear to be over and the bear market has led to attractive valuations and buying opportunities across several asset classes. What investors must struggle to avoid is selling out of the market near, or at, the bottom, where they would realise a large loss and sacrifice any potential recovery participation and future growth.

Asset Allocation