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Investors shift interest towards global and income funds

Paloma Kubiak
Written By:
Paloma Kubiak
Posted:
Updated:
11/08/2016

Star manager Neil Woodford topped The Share Centre’s list of most bought funds in July but investors are moving towards more overseas exposure in their portfolios.

Investors have continued to flock towards well-respected fund manager Neil Woodford’s CF Woodford Equity Income fund post-Brexit as it ranks in first place in a list of the top 10 purchased funds in July.

Here are the top 10:

  • CF Woodford Equity Income fund
  • Fundsmith Equity fund
  • Jupiter India fund
  • BlackRock Gold & General fund
  • Legg Mason Japan Equity fund
  • Newton Global Income fund
  • Investec Global Gold fund
  • Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders fund
  • Lindsell Train Global Equity fund
  • Axa Framlington Global Technology fund

Sheridan Admans, investment research manager at The Share Centre, said investors have shifted attitudes towards funds, with a global as well as income focus post-Brexit.

Admans said the CF Woodford Equity Income fund continues to be the most popular by a clear mile among The Share Centre investors. “Investors stuck with the reliable and trusted Neil Woodford post-Brexit. This could be because the manager indicated before the referendum that there are ‘bigger concerns affecting the global economy than Brexit’.”

Woodford’s fund offers a portfolio with a core nucleus of blue chip companies, as well as a number of young businesses just starting out.

In second place is the Fundsmith Equity fund which offers investors exposure on a global basis and “is managed by the highly acclaimed founder of the business, Terry Smith”.

The Jupiter India fund was a new entrant last month and it comes in third position in July “demonstrating investors’ shift towards funds geared to other regions post-Brexit and perhaps following the surprise announcement that Raghuram Rajan, India’s governor of the Reserve Bank of India, will be resigning when his term ends in September 2016”. He added that investors could therefore be seeking opportunities in this fund.

Gold is regarded as a safe haven for investors when the markets are gripped with fear and uncertainty so it is no wonder the BlackRock Gold & General fund continues to be a top bought portfolio.

In fifth place is Legg Mason Japan Equity fund which starts the list of funds with overseas interests. Admans said this fund is a popular choice among investors as it “aims to play the internal consumer based around three key themes, notably the continuing rapid emergence of the internet as a sales channel, ageing population and the medical and long-term care industries”.

Next down is the Newton Global Income fund. “Newton has long been respected for their income-producing funds and this fund represents an alternative global approach for investors’ seeking income, perfect for those whose focus is away from the UK.”

Another fund that is exposed to gold is the Investec Global Gold fund and following closely behind in eighth position is the Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders fund. The latter has been an infrequent entrant over the past year in The Share Centre’s top 10 traded funds list. It invests in shares of large and mid-sized companies in the region, which generally have a total stock market value of at least US $1bn.

Propping up ninth and tenth place are the Lindsell Train Global Equity and Axa Framlington Global Technology funds, further emphasising investors’ keen interest in overseas products.