Investing 101 suggests that a diversified portfolio can be built with three blocks; equities, bonds and cash. In certain market conditions stock prices rise, the teaching suggests, and bond prices fall, while in a different part of the cycle the reverse is true; uncorrelated assets provide diversification and help boost returns and smooth losses.
But monetary policy has distorted correlations, in times of market stress both bonds and equities fall together – take the market crash of summer 2015 for example, initially triggered by the Chinese stock market tumbling, but which spread across asset classes and geographies.
Multi-asset fund managers are increasingly looking to alternative assets to provide protection in these circumstances – investments removed from the headwinds and tailwinds that move global markets. Hedge fund managers have long employed a broader spectrum of assets and tools to meet their return targets and now these processes are entering the mainstream.
Although some assets are too niche for the private investor – such as catastrophe reinsurance, asset-backed securities or aeroplane leasing – but other alternative assets can provide welcome diversification to plain vanilla portfolios. Read on for Morningstar’s Guide to Alternative Investing to find out more.
Monday: Property
Your property as your pension, global diversification and Brexit
Investing in Property: What You Need to Know
Henderson: Falling Pound Has Attracted Property Investors
Is Your Home a Risky Investment?
Tuesday: Gold, Energy and Commodities
Safe haven precious metals, the oil price, agriculture and renewable energy
Brookes: Buy Commodities and Emerging Markets Now
Commodities Will Continue to Rally in 2017
Gold and Commodities Top Performing Trusts of 2016
Wednesday: Infrastructure
Backed by Donald Trump and Philip Hammond are their further gains to be made?
Investing in Infrastructure ETFs
Infrastructure Trusts for Income
Trump, Infrastructure and Sustainable Investing
Thursday: VCTs and EISs
Specialist funds for small company exposure
Boost Your Returns with Tax Free Investments
Friday: Multi-asset Funds
The best managers deploying alternative assets so you don’t have to