Monitor
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday September 13, 2003
FUNDS MANAGEMENT
International hedging made easy
Credit Suisse Asset Management is the latest fund manager to let investors or financial planners make the call on currency movements. It has launched a fund that invests in international shares and allows investors to choose their own level of currency hedging from no hedging to full hedging and two options in between. Its head of distribution, Brian Thomas, says a unique aspect of the fund is an Australian Tax Office product ruling that allows investors to move between the four hedging capabilities without triggering capital gains tax. Other fund managers, such as Merrill Lynch, have fully hedged and unhedged versions of some of their international shares funds.
INVESTMENT RETURNS
Perpetual going strong
This week marks the first anniversary of Peter Morgan's departure from Perpetual Investment Management to set up shop on his own. While there was much concern that Perpetual's best days may have been behind it and some superannuation funds withdrew money from the fund manager, the performance of its flagship Industrial Share Fund, which has been going since 1966, has hardly been better. Under the leadership of John Savior and Matt Williamson, the team of portfolio managers and analysts has produced a total return, after fees, of more than 8 per cent for the year to July 31. The Australian Share fund, which Savior and Williamson also oversee, returned almost 9 per cent, compared to the Australian stockmarket's 5.7 per cent. The performance of both funds ranks them in the top 25 per cent of Australian share funds.
INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATION
BT seeks cost cuts in closing Sagitta
The expected consolidation of managed funds at Westpac is about to get under way. Industry newspaper Money Management reports that the Westpac-owned BT Financial Group will start consolidating its product range under the BT name from late October. The Sagitta brand (the old Rothschild business, which Westpac bought last year) will disappear. The move is designed to eliminate brand confusion between BT and Sagitta and reduce duplication of funds, services and costs. Some new retail managed funds will be launched, some will close to new business and some will be terminated. Let's hope the consolidation goes more smoothly than at rival National Australia Bank when its consolidation of managed funds into its MLC business in 2001 resulted in a unit pricing mistake. NAB is in the process of paying 235,000 unitholders more than $60 million as compensation for losses.
© 2003 Sydney Morning Herald
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