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Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia: Global equity markets rose in April, with encouraging economic data and ongoing dovishness from major central banks supporting appetite for higher risk assets.
Corporate bonds outperformed government bonds. US equities advanced, supported by strong labour market data as well as better-than-expected Q1 GDP growth. Corporate earnings generally remained robust.
Eurozone equities registered a further gain in April. Top performing sectors included information technology and financials.
Economic growth for Q1 proved more resilient than feared. Emerging markets equities posted a positive return amid easing global growth concerns.
South Africa led the MSCI Emerging Markets index higher as equities rallied in advance of May's general election. The positive tone in economic data pushed government bond yields up (i.e. prices fell) and prompted riskier fixed income assets to outperform. Corporate bonds continued to perform well.
Performing strategies
The top three strategies for the month were Financial Equities (+4.12%), Europe (+3.74%) and Technology (+3.66%).
While, the bottom three strategies for the month were Healthcare and Biotech (-2.93%), Market Neutral (-2.49%) and Latin America (-0.66%).
For the year, Technology (+13.68%) leads all strategies while Market Neutral (-0.42%) brings up the rear. The better performing sectors were Financials (+9.54%), Information Technology (+7.59%) and Telecommunication...................... To view our full article Click here
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