Objective
The fund aims to provide a combination of capital growth and income of 5-10% on average per year over any three-year period.
Investment policy and strategy
Core investment: The fund typically invests indirectly via derivatives in a mix of assets from anywhere in the world within the following net allocation ranges:
• 0-80% in fixed income securities (including bonds and asset-backed securities)
• 20-60% in company shares
The fund may also invest in the above assets directly or through other funds. The ranges shown above are on a net basis, that is, 'long' positions (investments that profit from a rise in asset prices) net of 'short' positions (investments held via derivatives that profit from a fall in asset prices). The fund may invest in China A-Shares and in Chinese bonds denominated in Renminbi. A minimum of 60% of the fund is typically invested in assets denominated in euro, US dollar and sterling.
Other investment: The fund may invest up to 20% in convertibles, contingent convertible debt securities, property-related securities, other funds and cash or assets that can be turned into cash quickly.
Derivatives: The fund invests via derivatives and may use derivatives with the aim of reducing the risks and costs of managing the fund.
Strategy in brief: The fund is actively managed with a highly flexible investment approach. The investment manager has the freedom to allocate capital between different types of assets in response to changes in economic conditions and asset prices. The approach combines in-depth research to work out the 'fair' value of assets over the medium to long term, with analysis of the market’s short-term reactions to events, to identify investment opportunities. The fund seeks to manage risk by investing globally across multiple asset classes, sectors, currencies and countries. Where the investment manager believes opportunities are limited to a few areas, the portfolio may be very concentrated in certain assets or markets.
Risks associated with the fund
The value and income from the fund's assets will go down as well as up. This will cause the value of your investment to fall as well as rise. There is no guarantee that the fund will achieve its objective and you may get back less than you originally invested.
Investing in emerging markets involves a greater risk of loss due to greater political, tax, economic, foreign exchange, liquidity and regulatory risks, among other factors. There may be difficulties in buying, selling, safekeeping or valuing investments in such countries.
Investments in bonds are affected by interest rates, inflation and credit ratings. It is possible that bond issuers will not pay interest or return the capital. All of these events can reduce the value of bonds held by the fund.
Investing in bonds from China, denominated in Renminbi and traded on the China Interbank Bond Market, may be subject to greater clearing, settlement and counterparty risk. These factors could cause the fund to incur a loss.
The fund can be exposed to different currencies. Movements in currency exchange rates may adversely affect the value of your investment.
The fund may use derivatives to profit from an expected rise or fall in the value of an asset. Should the asset’s value vary in an unexpected way, the fund will incur a loss. The fund’s use of derivatives may be extensive and exceed the value of its assets (leverage). This has the effect of magnifying the size of losses and gains, resulting in greater fluctuations in the value of the fund.
In exceptional circumstances where assets cannot be fairly valued, or have to be sold at a large discount to raise cash, we may temporarily suspend the fund in the best interest of all investors.
The fund could lose money if a counterparty with which it does business becomes unwilling or unable to repay money owed to the fund.
Further details of the risks that apply to the fund can be found in the fund's Prospectus.
Other information
The Fund allows for the extensive use of derivatives.