Fund Objective

The Fund aims to provide long-term capital growth.

View on Past Performance

It was a challenging time for investors in emerging markets with stock markets selling off sharply as the influence of the credit crisis was increasingly felt beyond the world's developed markets. The Fund performed in line with the peer group average.Strategy remained focused on providing investors with access to our best investment ideas through a concentrated, aggressively managed portfolio of shares in emerging markets.At the sector level the Fund has been underweight oil and resources and overweight financials. Stock selection has been positive in the oil sector (Petrobras and CNOOC) but negative in the resources sector (New World Resources and Evraz).The impact of our stock choices within financials has been neutral. At a country level our decision to increase exposure to India earlier in the year proved positive as the market has held up well relative to others. Exposure to both Czechoslovakia and Mexico was negative.

Future Expectations

Despite current uncertainties we remain positive on the outlook for the emerging markets as they are structurally stronger than developed markets and will continue to benefit from domestically oriented growth. In addition, valuations now look compelling on a historical basis.

Fund Details