China fund has top YTD return at 44.3%

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China mutual fund managed by Asset Plus Fund Management has generated the top year-to-date return for a mutual fund this year, says Morningstar Thailand.

The Asset Plus China Fund has a year-to-date return of 44.3%. The fund was established in mid-2014 with an investment policy geared towards emerging Asian markets.

The fund has invested through the Strategic China Panda Fund, managed by EI Sturdza Funds Plc, which has a policy of investing in stocks from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.

The top five stocks in the Asset Plus China Fund as of Sept 12 were: Tencent Holdings Ltd, China Mobile, Nexteer Automotive Group Ltd, AIA Group and New Oriental Education & Technology, said Morningstar Thailand.

The top three investment sectors for Chinese mutual funds were identified as consumer cyclicals at 38% of the portfolio, technology at 23% and consumer defensive at 8%. The top three regions for stock investment are Asian emerging markets at 75%, followed by the US and Asian developed markets at 9.5% and 8.7%, respectively.

Consumer cyclicals is a category of stocks that relies heavily on the business cycle or economic conditions such as automotive, housing, entertainment and retail. A defensive stock is one that provides a constant dividend and stable earnings regardless of the state of the overall stock market, whereby consumer defensive sectors include food, beverages, and tobacco.

For the top return mutual funds ranked second and third, they are KTAM India Equity A and KTAM India Equity D, which generates returns of 38.7% and 38.3%, respectively. The two mutual funds are managed by Krungthai Asset Management Co Ltd.

Kittikun Tanaratpattanakit, senior research analyst at Morningstar Thailand, said the country’s mutual fund industry has gradually grown this year, with more than 40 new foreign investment funds launched by local asset management firms.

But the thematic fund is the most interesting investment trend that is capturing investor appetite, he said.

The thematic trends attracting investment capital are ageing society, robotics technology and infrastructure funds.