Hepworth claims that while stimulus measures have caused a short-term rally in developed markets, they will not resolve the underlying problems that caused prices to crash in the first place.
As a result, he has moved to a significant overweight position in regions he deems to be insulated from the fallout, such as Asia.
"I have a very cautious outlook for the western macro-economic environment. High levels of debt in western countries are a serious concern for me," he said.
"I also think policy responses, like the Fed’s liquidity measures and the ECB’s plan to lower interest rates through their bond-buying scheme, will not succeed in boosting growth in the long-run."
The manager is positive on emerging markets and China in particular, which he says has all the right credentials to offer sustainable long-term growth.
"Financially, China is very strong and unlike western markets, it has a good savings culture and sturdy balance sheets," he added.
Asia Pacific is Hepworth’s biggest regional position in his Ecclesiastical Amity International portfolio, accounting for 27.5 per cent of assets under management (AUM). The average Global fund has only 4.9 per cent.
"I like to access the emerging markets through Singapore – it is becoming the regional hub of Asia, because through Singapore you get high levels of western corporate governance along with in-depth exposure to the emerging markets," he continued.
"Singapore is the most cosmopolitan area in Asia and gives investors good exposure to Chinese and Indian markets in particular."
Among the fund's biggest holdings are Ezion, a Singapore-listed shipping company, and Hong Kong-listed tech firm VTech.
It has only a 15.6 per cent weighting to the UK, but 22.7 per cent in Europe and 8.7 per cent in the US.
The fund's overweight position in the Asia Pacific has dragged down its performance in the past year, and it is up only 11.91 per cent compared with 13.5 per cent from the average Global fund.
However, the fund’s medium- to long-term record remains strong and Hepworth is confident his Asia Pacific bias will pay off before long.
Performance of fund, sector and index over 10-yrs
Source: FE Analytics
Ecclesiastical Amity International has a minimum investment of £200 and a total expense ratio (TER) of 1.58 per cent.
It has an ethical focus and seeks to invest in companies that make a positive contribution to society and the environment.
Hepworth also heads up the five crown-rated Ecclesiastical Higher Income fund, which must invest at least 80 per cent of its assets in the UK at any given time.
Unsurprisingly, the manager has adopted a cautious position in this portfolio and has moved into areas that he believes can deliver strong returns in a low-growth environment.
"The fund is very defensively weighted and we have a high exposure to companies that are largely immune to macro-economic headwinds," he explained. "We like sectors such as pharmaceuticals, telecoms and the oil sector."
"We are currently underweight the banking sector, except for our holding in Standard Chartered. This is because we want low exposure to corporates geared to play the domestically focused markets," he added.
Performance of fund vs sector and index
| Name | 3-yr returns (%) | 5-yr returns (%) | 10-yr returns (%) |
| Ecclesiastical - Higher Income | 33.88 | 35.6 | 159.37 |
| FTSE All Share | 31.29 | 9.2 | 129.14 |
| IMA UK Equity & Bond Income | 27.21 | 10.81 | 90.83 |
Source: FE Analytics
Ecclesiastical Higher Income has consistently outperformed its sector average and FTSE All Share benchmark, with less volatility. It is currently yielding 4.4 per cent, has a minimum investment of £200 and a TER of 1.33 per cent.