Each month we feature the allocation in one of the three portfolios offered by FE Advisory Asia: cautious, balanced and growth. Data is included to show how well the portfolio has done compared to the previous month and year-to-date so that readers can get a sense of performance.
Additionally, Luke Ng, senior VP of research at FE Advisory Asia, provides a concise analysis on macro events and their potential impact on the portfolio.
A breakdown of the Growth portfolio at the end of March 2018. Performance figures are in the menu image above.
Portfolio breakdown and holdings are based on latest published data for each constituent, which may have publication dates that differ.
Percentages are based on current holdings and should only be used as a guide. Some information is provided to FE from independent third parties whom FE does not control. FE cannot guarantee the accuracy or reliability of the data, or its suitability for use by all investors.
How did the market perform in March?
Following disappointing market returns in February, March well and truly put to bed a prolonged period of unusually calm markets as volatility returned with vengeance. Markets posted losses across the board, with the US particularly hard hit, losing about 2.5% in US dollar terms. European markets, including the UK, proved slightly more robust, partly due to their stronger currency. Japan and emerging economies fell somewhere in between those two.
Markets were dominated by Donald Trump’s protectionist move involving tariffs on certain imported goods, a move designed to specifically hit China but one which will impact most economies. This stoked fear of an impending trade war, a situation in which everybody would no doubt come out as losers. Markets will be hoping that common sense will prevail. If not, one needs to expect continued volatility.
Against such backdrops, fixed income generally fared better than equities, with sovereign bonds outperforming corporates and high yield.
How did the FE growth portfolio perform?
Our growth portfolio fell 1.17% in March in US dollar terms, but fared better than the MSCI World Index which lost over 2%. In our pursuit to achieve benefits of diversification, we have been maintaining some property equity exposure in our portfolio. This strategy worked well as our property holding went up by 2.71%, helping partly offset some of the portfolios’ losses over the month. Our holdings in the JPMorgan Japan (Yen) Fund and a European equities fund also posted positive returns. The protectionist moves by Trump aimed specifically on China inevitably impacted our China dividend-focused strategy and our exposure to the JPMorgan Emerging Markets Equity Fund, which has been overweight in China for some time.
FE Advisory Asia portfolio performance
| Jan 2018 | Feb 2018 | Mar 2018 | YTD 2018 | |
| Cautious | 1.43% | -1.58% | -0.14% | -0.32% |
| Balanced | 3.64% | -2.68% | -0.80% | 0.05% |
| Growth | 5.19% | -3.60% | -1.17% | 0.21% |
