Three funds for Australia Day

Sam Slator 27/01/2017 in Asia/Emerging Markets

Yesterday the ‘Aussies’ celebrated their national day. As my Australian colleague in the office reminded us (at regular intervals), the day should have been spent lying in the sun, cracking open a few ‘cold ones’, and popping some shrimps on the barbie.

That option not being available to us, however, we’ve settled for popping a few funds with Aussie exposure in the spotlight. Being all the way ‘down under’, Australia is a market that not many UK investors would probably ever think about – yet it has been one of the best performing developed economies since the global financial crisis.

A commodity boom fuelled by Chinese demand helped Australia sail comfortably through most of the past decade and, although the country has recently struggled to maintain its rate of growth, its stock market nonetheless returned 33% in sterling terms (12% in local currency) in 2016.

So how could you gain access to the region? In fact, Australian and New Zealand equities and bonds are held in many Asia Pacific-focused funds – particularly those with an income bias, given Australian companies’ strong dividend paying track record.

Here are three Elite Funds that offer some Australian exposure.

Schroder Asian Income

As the name suggests, the Schroder Asian Income fund focuses on income-paying stocks in the Asia region, and currently has just over 20% of the portfolio invested in Australia and New Zealand. Its manager looks for companies that he believes are not overvalued and have the ability to make sustainable dividend payments.

Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders

Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders has around 10% of the fund in Australia and among its ten largest holdings are CSL Limited, a large-cap Australian biotech firm, and Brambles, a logistics and packaging firm. The boutique team behind this fund have reaped enormous rewards for their investors over the years by investing in sustainable, high quality companies across the region.

Jupiter Strategic Bond

This flexible bond fund can invest anywhere around the world, but its manager takes a cautious approach, with a focus on preserving investors’ capital over chasing yield. That said, the fund currently has an annual historic income at 4.4%. Both Australian and New Zealand government debt feature among its top ten holdings, comprising around 12% of the fund.

 

This article is provided for information only. The views of the author and any people quoted are their own and do not constitute financial advice. The content is not intended to be a personal recommendation to buy or sell any fund or trust, or to adopt a particular investment strategy. However, the knowledge that professional analysts have analysed a fund or trust in depth before assigning them a rating can be a valuable additional filter for anyone looking to make their own decisions.Past performance is not a reliable guide to future returns. Market and exchange-rate movements may cause the value of investments to go down as well as up. Yields will fluctuate and so income from investments is variable and not guaranteed. You may not get back the amount originally invested. Tax treatment depends of your individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. If you are unsure about the suitability of any investment you should seek professional advice.Whilst FundCalibre provides product information, guidance and fund research we cannot know which of these products or funds, if any, are suitable for your particular circumstances and must leave that judgement to you. Before you make any investment decision, make sure you’re comfortable and fully understand the risks. Further information can be found on Elite Rated funds by simply clicking on the name highlighted in the article.