Fund Objective

The Fund aims to provide long-term capital growth.

View on Past Performance

The outlook for equities in Japan has been tempered by the recent financial crisis and the effects of slowing global growth are likely to affect progress over the shorter term.However, it is clear that the domestic financial system in Japan has been affected less significantly than that of many developed countries and financial companies such as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group are now seeking to take advantage of market falls and capitalise on the opportunities afforded by share-price weakness.Fund performance was aided by holdings in Bridgestone, Terumo and Sysmex. Our positions in Mitsui & Co, Sumitomo Metal Industries and Yaskawa Electric Corp detracted from overall performance.

Future Expectations

Investor sentiment remains weak, however, and markets appear oversold. Economic data looks set to deteriorate as the downturn in the global economy accelerates and we ultimately expect another leg down for global stock markets before the year end - forecasting the timing of a recovery remains difficult. Against this backdrop appealing valuations remain and we will focus on buying companies with strong balance sheets on a medium-term horizon.

Fund Details