This means that, over the 10-year time period, it is the second most consistent sector of all those studied in the series so far, behind the similarly sized IMA UK All Companies.
The £5bn M&G Global Basics fund topped the charts in the IMA Global sector between October 2002 and October 2007.
FE Alpha Manager Graham French (pictured) has also managed to keep the fund in the top-quartile over the vastly different market conditions in the five years since 2007.
Other notable retail funds to achieve top-quartile rankings over both periods include the M&G Global Growth and Invesco Perpetual Global Smaller Companies funds, both run by FE Alpha Managers.
Alongside these standout names is the little-known £37.5m McInroy & Wood Smaller Companies fund, headed up by FE Alpha manager Tim Wood, and the £136m Newton Falcon fund, run by Robert Hay – also an FE Alpha Manager.
The McInroy & Wood fund is not listed on any platforms, but is available directly with a minimum investment of £10,000.
It delivered the second-best returns between 2002 and 2007 and outshone the M&G Global Basics portfolio over the latter five-year period, bringing in 41.99 per cent compared with a sector average of 4.91 per cent.
Performance of funds over 10-yrs
| Name | Returns Oct 2002 - Oct 2007 (%) | Returns Oct 2007 - Oct 2012 (%) | 10yr return (%) |
| M&G Global Basics | 243.57 | 16.27 | 297.22 |
| McInroy & Wood Smaller Companies | 176.19 | 41.99 | 292.15 |
| FF Global Industrials | 168.49 | 14.99 | 204.06 |
| M&G Global Growth | 166.96 | 17.62 | 210.36 |
| Inv Perpetual Global Smaller Companies | 162.86 | 23.42 | 220.18 |
| Newton Falcon | 146.28 | 28.52 | 216.51 |
| Ecclesiastical Amity International | 143.72 | 20.98 | 192.65 |
| CF Odey Opus | 133.24 | 18.17 | 175.63 |
| Jupiter Merlin Worldwide Portfolio | 131.9 | 16.23 | 167.38 |
Source: FE Analytics
The four crown-rated fund carries a TER of 1.61 per cent, while the M&G fund is more affordable for retail investors, with a minimum investment of £500 and a TER of 1.67 per cent.
There was also a place for the highly rated Jupiter Merlin Worldwide Portfolio, and the ethically focused Ecclesiastical Amity International fund, headed up by Robin Hepworth.
Richard Troue, investment analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, says M&G Global Basics has been a consistent outperformer over the long-term, in spite of occasional periods of increased volatility due to exposure in the mining sector.
He says the fund has had a harder time recently, but points out that it is poised to bounce back on the heels of QE3.
“We like it quite a lot actually,” Troue said.
“The manager is doing something quite simple in that he is investing in companies that benefit from global economic development. On the whole it is a good core fund you need to tuck away for the long-term.”
Troue adds that the McInroy & Wood Smaller Companies fund has an excellent track record in an area in which it has been traditionally difficult to choose consistently outperforming stocks.
“Smaller companies funds are generally underowned by the majority. Often those with a long-term horizon turn to emerging markets and forget smaller companies are capable of equally spectacular returns.”
Of the 243 funds in the sector, 107 have a 10-year track record.