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FER Monthly Roundup: February 2009 | Trustnet Skip to the content

FER Monthly Roundup: February 2009

04 March 2009

The chill experienced in February was mirrored in the markets. The FTSE continued to fall as the extent of the problems at the banks were shown in their annual results.

By Sarah Beasley,

Analyst, Financial Express

Fund sector summary: Biggest risers and fallers

We saw just one rising sector this month



 % Return
 IMA UK Gilt
 2.05
 IMA Japan Smaller Companies
 -14.72
 IMA Japan
 -12.72
 IMA Europe ex UK
 -9.37
 FTSE All Share Index
 -6.52
 MSCI The World Index
 -9.23

ALT_TAG

Source: Financial Express Analytics

Fund summary: Biggest risers and fallers

   % Return
 Close Special Situations
 11.97
 Neptune Russia & Greater Russia
 9.12
 Manek Growth
 8.21
 FF&P Japan Equity
 -21.68
 JPM Japan
 -20.05
 Skandia IM Global Property Securities
 -19.32
 FTSE All Share Index
 -6.52
 MSCI World Index
 -9.2

ALT_TAG

Source: Financial Express Analytics

News
  • Yet more reason for Equity Income funds to minimise their holdings in banks came as dividend yields for the FTSE UK Indices were adjusted to include forecasts of zero dividends from the banks receiving government support.
  • In order to reduce volatility M&G has reduced foreign government bond exposure within its cautious multi-asset fund in favour of sterling index-linked and sterling corporate bonds.
  • Further bad news for the troubled asset managers, New Star were forced to wind up their much publiced Heart of Africa fund amid problems with liquidity. Last August the fund had £86m under management but this fell to £29m.
Month Ahead
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee is likely to cut interest rates to a new unprecedented low of 0.5 per cent at its meeting this week, with some anticipating that it may reduce them to a nominal point just above zero.

As fiscal stimulus plans in the UK begin to take effect and the European Central Bank take a more laissez-faire approach we can expect some recovery of the pound against the euro. 

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