The
longest
month
of
the
year
is
officially
over.
That
means
we
get
the
first
look
at
which
funds
and
markets
are
doing
well
in
2024.
So
far,
trends
from
2023
are
still
dominating,
with
technology
taking
several
of
the
top
spots
in
our
best
performing
funds
of
January
list.
But
it’s
India
strategies
that
take
the
top
two
spots,
with
Japan
following
suit.
At
the
other
end
of
the
table
we
find
the
usual
suspect,
China,
but
these
funds
are
not
completely
alone
in
occupying
the
bottom
10.
Last
year’s
best-performing
fund
has
fallen
to
become
the
eighth-worst
performer
in
January,
and
we
also
see
metals
and
energy
transition
feature
here.
Overall,
just
over
half
of
the
3200
funds
in
our
dataset
(Morningstar
rated
and
available
for
sale
in
the
UK)
are
down
since
2023.
The
worst
performer
was
down
18%
in
January
and
27
funds
saw
double-digit
losses.
Meanwhile,
the
best-performing
fund
was
up
almost
9%.
Commenting,
Ben
Yearsley,
director
at
Fairview
Investing
Limited,
says:
“The
positive
equity
stories
of
2023
all
continue
with
tech,
India,
and
Japan
all
starting
2024
with
a
bang,”
he
says.
Two
of
those
areas
look
pretty
expensive
–
but
then
again
they
almost
always
do.
Japan
remains
one
of
the
most
interesting
stories,
with
corporate
change
and
more
shareholder
awareness
helping
drive
markets.
On
the
other
side,
China
can’t
seem
to
escape
the
doom
loop;
Beijing
need
a
big
bang
to
pull
markets
from
historic
lows”.
India,
Japan
and
Tech’s
Win
Big
The
top
two
performers
of
January
2024
were
Jupiter’s
India
and
India
Select
funds,
both
with
over
8%
growth.
But,
despite
the
Indian
Nifty
Fifty
index
hitting
record
highs,
they
were
the
only
two
India-focused
strategies
in
the
top
10,
and
two
of
only
three
in
the
top
50.
Technology
and
global
and
US
large
cap
growth
were
by
far
more
prevalent
in
the
top
50
as
the
focus
on
AI
continued
to
drive
US
equity
success.
The
markets
also
expect
the
US
Federal
Reserve
to
cut
rates
this
year,
fuelling
further
growth.
The
best
performing
of
these
funds
was Janus
Henderson
Global
Technology
Leaders,
up
7.9%
in
January.
The
two
Japan
funds
featured
in
the
January
top
10
are
Liontrust
Japan
Equity
and
Scottish
Widows
Japan
Growth,
up
7%
and
6%,
respectively.
The
Japanese
TOPIX
was
up
almost
7%
over
the
month,
and
the
country
remains
the
last
in
the
world
where
the
central
bank
maintains
negative
interest
rates.
Joe
Bauernfreund,
chief
executive,
chief
investment
officer,
and
manager
of
AVI
Japan
Opportunity
Trust,
explains
the
country
could
still
have
many
good
years
ahead.
Companies
are
prioritising
shareholders,
business
practices
are
changing
and
the
macroeconomic
backdrop
is
supportive.
“We
believe
inefficiently-priced
Japanese
small
cap
companies
offer
the
greatest
potential
returns,
and
with
the
effectiveness
of
shareholder
activism
having
never
been
higher,
active
management
offers
significant
alpha
generation,”
he
says.
China
Loses
Out,
2023
Winner
Falls
Meanwhile,
China
remains
at
the
bottom
after
being
the
worst-performing
fund
category
in
all
of
2023.
This
month,
property
giant
Evergrande
was
forced
to
liquidate
after
spending
two
years
on
the
brink
of
defaulting
on
its
debt
pile.
Redwheel
China
Equity,
which
featured
in
the
bottom
10
for
2023
too,
saw
the
biggest
losses
at
18%.
Another
notable
fund
among
these
is
Baillie
Gifford
China,
the
fourth-worst
performer
–
the
Edinburgh
fund
house
announced
that
as
of
January
31,
it
is
forming
a
dedicated
China
equities
team
consisting
of
10
people.
In
its
announcement,
Baillie
Gifford
said
having
a
single
dedicated
team
will
help
“align
motivation,
incentives
and
accountability,
while
strengthening
the
ties
between
Shanghai
and
Edinburgh,
to
leverage
global
and
local
perspectives”.
Beyond
China,
the
bottom
10
includes
WS
Amati
Strategic
Metals,
Schroder
Glbl
Engy
Transition,
and
last
year’s
best-performing
fund: Nikko
AM
ARK
Disruptive
Innovation.
The
latter,
which
is
advised
by
Cathie
Wood’s
ARK
Investment
Management,
was
up
59%
in
2023,
but
has
fallen
12%
so
far
this
year.
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