“I am still sceptical towards Japan, although I am being continually proved wrong. In sterling terms, however, Japan’s returns have not been as good – mid 20 per cent. In yen, it is more like 40 per cent,” he explains. “I’m also wary of Asia – I have some exposure in the fund, but they are really discrete, specialist names.”
There is no doubt that this fund is aggressively managed, but it is nimble enough to exploit market inefficiencies. It may be a little riskier than the average growth fund, but for those willing to back Mr Thomson, the potential returns should make it worthwhile.
GEOFF MILLS, MANAGING DIRECTOR, RAYNER SPENCER MILLS:
“The portfolio is very much a bottom-up fund with a core portfolio of roughly 50-70 stocks and they are selected on the basis of those companies that will be able to benefit the most from the themes identified, which leads them right across the capitalisation scale. The team relies heavily on internal company assessment, in particular those stocks outside the FTSE 100 index and also use links established with external analysts forged over a number of years. The fund has a core portfolio which is not as diversified as some and so may be better used to add flair to a core portfolio rather than form the core itself.”
