2020 has been a year of uncertainty, but markets have been quick to respond when confidence emerged to help look through that uncertainty. In November, the apparent US election outcome and positive vaccine news were the welcome developments, but there have been others through the year – including super aggressive and super accommodative Central Banks, which has been a key support for risk assets. From its trough in late March, the S&P500 has roared ahead by some 65%.
But not all have been winners. ‘Big Tech’ and ‘Stay-at-Home’ favourites have done much of the heavy-lifting in terms of equity market recovery, but several sectors have lagged – at least until recently. 2020 has also been a year of huge dispersion, both within asset classes and within individual markets. Whether this continues or whether we see some of that dispersion reverse, our sense is that there should be a significant role for active managers to play in navigating the investment landscape into 2021.
Some highlights for the Investments business here in Australia this year include:
- Welcoming our newest strategic investment partner, Celeste Funds Management, into the Zurich family and introducing them to so many advisers.
- Our Global Growth Opportunities SMA received a ‘Recommended’ rating from Lonsec
- Winning the Money Management 2020 ‘Global Equities Fund of the Year’ award with our Concentrated Global Growth Fund, which also just passed its five-year anniversary.
- Launching our Global Thematic Focus Fund with our long term partner, Lazard Asset Management, and receiving a ‘Recommended’ rating from Zenith as it launched due to consistency in both strategy and Portfolio management team with its big brother, the Global Thematic Share Fund.
- We also went live with our newest strategy, the Healthcare Impact Fund, with our partners, American Century Investments. This Fund is a true Impact Investment strategy, focusing on the Healthcare sector, and the performance to date is looking very promising. This is one that we’re excited to roll out for advisers in 2021.
- And finally, Zurich Investments ticked over our 40 year anniversary of offering wealth creation solutions for Australians this year. While our celebrations were more subdued than we had hoped, I’m nonetheless proud of how far we’ve come, and the strength of the partnerships we’ve developed with advisers, and our Fund Manager partners over the years, all with the core goal of delivering the best possible outcomes for the end investor. And importantly, the team and I are looking forward to what’s ahead.
I hope you all are able to enjoy some well-earned downtime over the holidays, and can get together with loved ones in person and/or virtually. Stay safe, and let’s look forward to a more positive 2021!
Cheers,
Matt