Fund investing is a thorny subject the sad truth is that few actively managed funds will beat their benchmarks, in any given year and fewer still will manage to do that on a consistent basis.
Against that when you buy a fund you are outsourcing the management of your money to an expert/team of experts, in their field. And that appeals to many investors, who don’t have the time, inclination or expertise to do this for themselves.
That’s particularly true when it comes to niche areas such as Bonds and Emerging Markets.
Buying an index tracker, especially a low cost one that tracks US blue chip equities has been something of a no brainier post covid. However, the magnificent 7 haven’t really performed in 2025. And if we look at the markets that produced the biggest bang for buck this year (in US$ terms) then Korea, Greece, Spain, South Africa, Mexico, Italy and Brazil, all knocked the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, in to a cocked hat.
in terms of sector and asset class performance Banks, Telecoms. precious metals and the Swiss franc were among the top performers. And if the US dollar remains weak (dollar index is well below 100 and is down -9.48% year to date) then it seems likely to me that these trends could continue into 2026.
If you are looking for a contrarian trade/fund in which to park some of your portfolio then Indian Equities have underperformed their EM and DM counterparts, and remain just above their 200 D moving average.
Closer to home France may present an opportunity with French stocks having lagged peers in Germany, Spain and Italy during 2025.
To get the most from these ideas spending some time researching fund mangers with expertise in the sectors and geographies is probably a good use of your time.
