GAM Star Orient

John Mytton took over as the lead manager of the GAM Star Orient fund at the end of March this year but he has been part of the Pacific Investment Team since mid-1995.

Niklas Tell, 16 July, 2004 | 5:12PM
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Asset allocation is vital for the manager of this fund, which invests in Asia including Japan. Avoiding overvalued countries and sectors is a key factor, where Korea is a recent example. The manager sold all his Korean holdings last year and currently the fund has nothing invested in this market. This has benefited the fund as this year Korea is down over 9% in dollar terms as of July 15th.

The combination of top-down and bottom-up investment processes, in essence finding strong businesses in preferred sectors, is highlighted by the recent investment in Shinsei Bank of Japan. The manager has added to this position over the past three months and as of July it makes up 2.2% of the fund.

The team identified improvements in the Japanese banking system and as the share prices of the bigger banks had already moved they started to look at slightly smaller banks. After doing the research and meeting the management, which is important to Mr Mytton, the team came to the conclusion that Shinsei had the best loan book in the industry and they were able to buy it at a good price.

The manager admits that some things have changed at the fund. Following the market crash of 1997-98 he has become more focused on finding high quality companies and firms with strong balance sheets.

Finding companies with strong balance sheets was important in another theme Mr Mytton is currently following. The fund holds three of the biggest real estate developers in Hong Kong. These companies had strong balance sheets and were able to buy land cheaply following the crash. Today they control some 80% of available land in Hong Kong. What is already a beneficial environment could become even better if the dollar weakens. This will push up inflation in Hong Kong, which in turn will mean rising property prices.

China is obviously an important market in the region and the manager gains exposure in a couple of ways. One is the investment in Australian Wheat Board, an exporter to China that was previously government-owned. Another example is Capital Land of Singapore, which according to the manager is the leading property developer in Shanghai.

The GAM Star Orient fund gives investors exposure to a broad section of the Asian markets, including Japan. Investors should be aware that the manager is happy to entirely avoid markets or sectors that he sees as overvalued.

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.

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