Fund Objective

The Schroder Institutional American Fund aims to achieve steady capital growth by investing in the shares of established companies in the United States and Canada.

View on Past Performance

North American equities declined in the first quarter. Risk aversion continued to rise against the background of worsening US economic conditions and significant weakening of the US dollar.Markets became less thematic and focused on particular sectors than they had been in the second half of 2007, value stocks stopped underperforming and quality began to command a premium consistent with past periods of rising risk aversion. Fund turnover increased as heightened market volatility continued to create a large number of opportunities.We added to the financials sector, especially cheap real estate stocks and high quality banks and insurance stocks. We also maintained exposure to the technology sector where large cap stocks offer a good combination of value and high quality.We continued to take profits in the energy sector and reduce consumer staples in favour of healthcare stocks, which typically perform relatively well in a difficult economic environment and offered value having lagged behind other defensive stocks.

Future Expectations

Ongoing uncertainty over the outlook for US economic growth suggests that the current volatile market environment may continue in the coming months. We are able to take full advantage by analysing over 3,000 North American stocks every day.Our quantitative approach identifies stocks with value, quality and momentum characteristics. Core portfolios are constructed to perform well in all major market environments, with multiple investment strategies spread across many small stock positions and rigorous risk control.

Fund Details