First State Indian Subcontinent had the lowest volatility, with 28.9 per cent, and achieved returns of 44.4 per cent. The second-least volatile was Franklin Templeton Franklin India, with 30.3 per cent volatility and returns of 29.2 per cent.
Jupiter India was the third in the volatility stakes with 30.4 per cent. It returned 42.5 per cent to investors over the three years.
Performance of least volatile funds over 3-yrs
| Fund | Volatility (%) | 3-yr returns (%) |
| First State Indian Subcontinent | 28.9 | 44.4 |
| Franklin Templeton Franklin India | 30.3 | 29.2 |
| Jupiter India | 30.4 | 42.5 |
Source: Financial Express Analytics
Managed by David Gait and Sashi Reddy, First State Indian Subcontinent is also the best performer over one year, returning 10.7 per cent. It achieved this feat with 20.2 per cent volatility, the second-lowest behind Jupiter India. The fund has a diversified portfolio across the subcontinent of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
Jupiter India is managed by Avinash Vazirani, who said in a recent Trustnet interview that India will have a more stable rate of growth over the next 10 years.
Performance of funds vs sector average over 3-yrs
Source: Financial Express Analytics
Of the 10 India-focused investment vehicles in the study, First State Indian Subcontinent has the highest weighting to the telecoms, media and technology sector, with 25.1 per cent exposure.
It also has the lowest exposure to financials, with just 5.4 per cent of its £229m assets under management (AUM) invested in the sector. The fund’s benchmark, MSCI India, has a 25 per cent weighting to financials.
At the other end of the scale the most volatile funds were also the worst performing.
Performance of most volatile funds over 3-yrs
| Fund | Volatility (%) | 3-yr returns (%) |
| HSBC GIF Indian Equity | 42.2 | -0.9 |
| Fidelity India Focus | 39.1 | 0.4 |
| Invesco India Equity | 37.9 | 2.9 |
Source: Financial Express Analytics
HSBC GIF Indian Equity was the riskiest with 42.2 per cent volatility over three years. It is the only fund to have lost investors money over the period, with negative returns of 0.9 per cent. The second-most volatile, Fidelity India Focus, has a volatility of 39.1 per cent and returned just 0.4 per cent to investors.
Headed up by Sanjiv Duggal, HSBC GIF Indian Equity has more of its fund exposed to industrials than any other in the study, with 13.1 per cent of its $6bn AUM invested in the sector.
Performance of funds vs sector average over 3-yrs
Source: Financial Express Analytics