While the stock markets climbed to new record highs in the first half of the year, the first central banks also initiated a turnaround in monetary policy by cutting interest rates. Will the environment remain positive?

In the Funds exclusive series, the fund managers of selected funds look back on developments in the first half of 2024 and give their assessment of what the markets could expect in 2024. (Note: Prognoses are not a reliable indicator of future performance).

"We do not expect any significant changes to the market drivers that we saw in the first half of 2024." 

Markus Jandrisevits, fund manager ERSTE BEST OF WORLD

Fund & Performance

ERSTE BEST OF WORLD is a fund of funds that invests in global equity funds. The funds are selected on the basis of both qualitative and quantitative criteria. A broad diversification of investment styles and an overall balanced risk-return ratio are decisive for the weighting of the funds. The maximum weighting of a subfund is 20%. 

Note: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

Performance since start of the fund. The performance is calculated in accordance with the OeKB method. The management fee as well as any performance-related remuneration is already included. The issue premium which might be applicable on purchase and as well as any individual transaction specific costs or ongoing costs that reduce earnings (e.g. account- and deposit fees) have not been taken into account in this presentation.

Commentary by fund manager Markus Jandrisevits

How did the fund perform in the first half of the year?

The fund recorded gains of 15.6% in the first half of 2024. The allocation hardly changed during this period, with only a few alterations made at sub-fund level. Due to the switch to Article 8 in accordance with the Disclosure Regulation, one fund in the value segment (quality shares, no growth) had to be replaced. In the quality segment (quality shares, growth) we implemented one switch due to the relative performance.

 

What was the focus of the fund this year so far?

Given that the relative performance of active funds had steadily improved in recent months, our focus at the beginning of the year was increasingly on active funds in the mixed segment (value and growth, mixed), while we reduced index trackers. We will be pursuing this strategy increasingly again in future. We completely abstained from Investments in the mid-small cap segment.

The most important purchases were Guinness Global Innovators, Invesco Quant Strategies Global, MFS Contrarian Value, and JPM Global Select Equity. UniValue Global, Xtrackers MSCI World ETF, SPDR MSCI World ETF, and Xtrackers MSCI World Quality constituted the most important sales.

Note: Please note that an investment in securities entails risks in addition to the opportunities described.

 

What does the fund management team expect for the second half of the year in terms of global economy and trends?

For the second half of the year (HY), the fund management team does not expect any significant changes to the market drivers that we saw in the first half of 2024, i.e. inflation trends and the associated global monetary policy, geopolitical tensions, elections in the USA, and the megatrend of artificial intelligence.

Note: Prognoses are not reliable indicator of future performance.

ERSTE BEST OF WORLD

Disclaimer

This document is an advertisement. Please refer to the prospectus of the UCITS or to the Information for Investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG of the alternative investment fund and the Key Information Document before making any final investment decisions. Unless indicated otherwise, source: Erste Asset Management GmbH. Our languages of communication are German and English.

The prospectus for UCITS (including any amendments) is published in accordance with the provisions of the InvFG 2011 in the currently amended version. Information for Investors pursuant to Art  21 AIFMG is prepared for the alternative investment funds (AIF) administered by Erste Asset Management GmbH pursuant to the provisions of the AIFMG in connection with the InvFG 2011. The fund prospectus, Information for Investors pursuant to Art  21 AIFMG, and the Key Information Document can be viewed in their latest versions at the website www.erste-am.com within the section mandatory publications  or obtained in their latest versions free of charge from the domicile of the management company and the domicile of the custodian bank. The exact date of the most recent publication of the fund prospectus, the languages in which the Key Information Document is available, and any additional locations where the documents can be obtained can be viewed on the website www.erste-am.com. A summary of investor rights is available in German and English on the website www.erste-am.com/investor-rights as well as at the domicile of the management company.

The management company can decide to revoke the arrangements it has made for the distribution of unit certificates abroad, taking into account the regulatory requirements.

Detailed information on the risks potentially associated with the investment can be found in the fund prospectus or Information for investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG of the respective fund. If the fund currency is a currency other than the investor's home currency, changes in the corresponding exchange rate may have a positive or negative impact on the value of his investment and the amount of the costs incurred in the fund - converted into his home currency.

Our analyses and conclusions are general in nature and do not take into account the individual needs of our investors in terms of earnings, taxation, and risk appetite. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of the future performance of a fund.