magazine archive
magazine archive
Feature
Is China still a developing economy?
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020The size of China’s economy and its financial markets mean it dominates emerging market indices to a very large extent. Just look at MSCI Emerging Markets and its counterpart at rival provider FTSE Russell. China accounts for six of the top 10 constituents of MSCI Emerging Markets and 40.7% of the...
The best performing stocks of 2020
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020After an extraordinary year we look back at some of the top performers in different size categories from the heavyweights all the way down to sub £100 million market cap stocks at the bottom of the market and examine what has driven them higher in 2020. We have excluded investment trusts. £4...
The year Baillie Gifford took over the investing world
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020We all know the many things 2020 will be remembered for, but in the investment world it’s been a historic moment for the performance of Baillie Gifford’s investment funds. It’s been the year many societal and economic trends have accelerated sharply, and this has fueled what some fund managers and...
How our 2020 stock portfolio stayed afloat despite Covid
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020What a year. At the start of 2020 it was all about the political certainty in the UK delivered by the 2019 General Election but within a couple of months attention had turned to a nasty new virus emerging from China. In the circumstances the 4.8% total return from our picks was a solid effort,...
The trends that will shape a continuing ESG boom in 2021
Wednesday 23 Dec 2020It feels as though 2020 was the year when ESG investing finally came of age. Expect more of the same in 2021, only more so. Throughout the pandemic, whatever happened to share or bond prices, sustainable investing continued to grow as institutions and individuals allocated more and more funds to...
Is there any value in bonds going into 2021?
Thursday 17 Dec 2020Bonds are often considered an integral part of a portfolio by providing diversification and, in many cases, adding a lower risk element to someone’s investments. Unfortunately, many bonds have become unattractive due to prices being bid up and yields falling. As such, investors need to be very...
Investment outlook: 10 big questions for 2021
Thursday 17 Dec 2020One cannot help feeling more optimistic about 2021 after the year we’ve just experienced. Everyone would agree that it’s been a testing time and hopefully we’re past the worst. Yes, there are still plenty of hurdles to clear. The pandemic continues to rage, unemployment levels are worrying, the...
Lacklustre UK performance makes international diversification vital
Thursday 10 Dec 2020We are all being urged to shop local as part of a rescue package to save British high streets. The UK Government has pressed shoppers to visit their high street to support businesses stripped of footfall during pandemic lockdowns. We’ll leave readers to draw their own conclusions about where and...
Big drug companies: The ones to make the world and your portfolio healthy
Thursday 10 Dec 2020This year has reminded the world about the importance of the pharmaceutical industry and investors have understandably become very interested in the sector’s big players. With a vaccine for Covid-19 now being rolled out, the market’s attention is moving on to earnings prospects for companies...
Want growth? China is the answer
Thursday 03 Dec 2020Experts believe that China will dominate global growth over the next decade as it continues to push ahead with its massive transition into a consumer-based economic superpower. This outlook, together with the fact it is already home to some of the most exciting and innovative growth companies,...