Summer Balanced Selection

Summer Balanced Selection fund performance summary as at 31 January 2024. 

Fund at a glance

Unit price (as at 31 January 2024): $1.4760

Date the fund started: 19 September 2016

For information on fees, see our Fees page.

For more information on the Summer Balanced Selection fund, read the latest quarterly fund update and the product disclosure statement

For the current tactical asset allocation and date of most recent review, please go to the Summer Balanced Selection page.

Fund objective and strategy

See the Summer Balanced Selection page for the Summary of investment objective and strategy.

Fund returns

PIR Total since inception (annualised) 1 Month 3 Month 1 Year 3 Years^

28%

4.96%

1.02%

7.65%

6.70%

1.78%

17.50%

5.25%

0.99%

7.99%

7.11%

1.94%

10.50%

5.44%

0.98%

8.21%

7.38%

2.05%

   Annualised

Fund returns are calculated net of fund charges, trading expenses and accrued tax for a New Zealand resident individual paying tax at the Prescribed Investor Rate identified above. 

Top 10 investments 

  Asset name % of fund net assets
1 Hunter Global Fixed interest Fund 14.18%
2 Intermede Global Equity Fund 7.69%
3 ANZ transactional bank account 1.52%
4 New Zealand Government 3% 20/04/2029 1.46%
5 Westpac New Zealand 1.439% 24/02/2026 1.33%
6 BHP Group Limited 1.26%
7 CSL Limited 1.06%
8 Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Limited 1.01%
9 New Zealand Government 15/05/2032 2.00% 0.92%
10 New Zealand Government 14/04/2033 3.5% 0.89%

The top 10 investments make up 31.33% of the fund.

Manager's Commentary

What happened in the markets that you invest in?

Equity markets continued their positive run in January, notching up three months of gains in a row. They achieved this despite interest rates climbing slightly over the month. Interest rates are still well below the peaks seen in October 2023, despite their under-performance this month.

Economic resilience in the US continues to outshine most other regions. China is the second largest economy in the world after the US, but its economy continues to struggle with a weak property market and slower global growth. This has been reflected in very weak returns from their share market. Valuations appear attractive on the surface, but regulatory changes have created considerable uncertainty for investors.

The NZ dollar, relevant for our portfolios with unhedged foreign currency exposures, fell 2.78% against the US dollar, and rose 0.36% against the Australian dollar.

For further commentary on each asset class in the Balanced selection, refer to the relevant single-asset class funds. 

How did your portfolio perform?

The Balanced selection delivered a return net of fees and before tax of 0.95% for January. For the 12 months to 31 January the fund delivered a return net of fees and before tax of 7.79%. 

Compared to their market indices, all funds we utilise in the Balanced selection outperformed their market index during January, except for the Cash and New Zealand and Global Fixed Interest portfolios. 

We actively manage the fund’s foreign currency exposures. As of 31 January 2024, these exposures represented 36.30% of the value of the fund. After allowing for foreign currency hedges in place, approximately 18.26% of the value of the fund was unhedged and exposed to foreign currency risk. 

What are we thinking about the future?

Strong US equity market returns in January, achieved without support from falling interest rates, have in our opinion pushed that market significantly above fair value. Other global equity markets continue to offer better value, despite their economies not being as strong as that of the US.  

Despite a negative return from fixed interest over the month, we think attractive returns are possible as inflation continues to fall, with the added downside protection of even stronger returns if parts of the global economy fall into recession. Our base case is that there is no general or deep recession globally, but that downside can’t be ruled out.  

The next few months will be critical for markets. The last of the pandemic supports from government payments should fade just as the lagged impact of rising interest rates reaches its peak. For example, if you took out a two-year mortgage in NZ at the start of 2022, you will be resetting your payments at a rate around 2% higher this quarter, even as longer-term rates are now well off their recent peaks. 

This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any financial product and does not take your personal circumstances into account. All opinions reflect our judgement on the date of communication and may change without notice. Past performance is not a reliable guide to future performance. We recommend you take financial advice before making investment decisions. We have prepared this web page in good faith based on information obtained from other sources, but we do not guarantee the accuracy of that information. We do not make any representation or warranty (express or implied) that this web page is accurate, complete, or current and to the maximum extent permitted by law disclaim any liability for loss which may be incurred by any person relying on this web page.