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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Sep 11
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Thursday, 22 December 2011
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Fund Manager Comment
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September was very volatile as investors panicked about the fallout from a potential default in Greece. Focus now includes Italy and the French banking system has also come under scrutiny as shares plummeted in the large French banks. Major economies remain at risk of further recession as growth remains weak. Some degree of calm was restored towards the end of the month as individual countries passed changes to the EFSF and on a potential new plan to substantially increase the size of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to a reported Ç2 trillion.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to leave rates unchanged at 0.50% and the size of asset purchases at ú200bn. The voting was again unanimous at 9-0. Markets are expecting another round of quantitative easing to start by Q1 2012, if not before.
LIBOR rates again rose by around 5bps across the curve as funding pressures continue to weigh in the inter-bank system.
In coordination with the Federal Reserve System (Fed), Bank of England (BoE), Bank of Japan (BoJ) and Swiss National Bank (SNB) the European Central Bank (ECB) announced 3-month USD liquidity operations, providing dollar funding over the year-end.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) rose to 70 days at the end of September, in line with a maximum target of 90-days.
We rolled a small portion of the fund with a UK clearing bank into the 12-month part of the curve and increased allocation to counterparts from Scandanavia and Australia along with Government Guaranteed or related names.
We remain focused on maintaining a high quality portfolio and continue to reduce exposure to European banks, maintaining our allocation of around 10% of the fund to UK T-Bills and commercial paper guaranteed by the UK Government.
We do not anticipate any change to UK interest rates in the near future and expect rates to remain low into 2012.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Jun 11
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Tuesday, 20 September 2011
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Fund Manager Comment
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The European Debt Crisis intensified again as Greece passed further austerity measures, ensuring the the IMF will disperse the next tranche of funding. While risk traded on and off in-between headlines, Money Markets remained largely unaffected. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50%. Inflation, while still above target was unchanged and economic data was generally weaker, supporting the markets view that rates will remain at 0.50% until Q1 2012. LIBOR rates were largely unchanged across the curve. The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) was 70 days at the end of June as we increased towards our target of 90 days.
We added a AAA rated FRN with a coupon at 25bps over 3 month LIBOR and rolled a small portion of maturities which high quality names into the 12-month part of the curve. We expect rates to remain low in 2011 with the first hike in Q1 of 2012 and anticipate that the fund will continue to perform well versus the benchmark in the coming months.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Mar 11
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Wednesday, 25 May 2011
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Fund Manager Comment
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The risk off theme continued in the first half of March with events in Japan and continuing troubles in the Middle East & North Africa. As the situation in Japan stabilised equities moved higher again and government bond yields rose. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% with the voting again 6:3. Inflation data was again higher than expected, increasing market expectations of a rate rise, however this expectation later fell back with the first hike now priced into the July meeting. LIBOR rates rose an average 2 - 3 bps across the curve in March. The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) at the end of March was 66 days, down slightly from the previous month. Our target is to remain in a 60 - 90 day range ahead of expected rate rises during the year. We rolled some maturities into the 6-month part of the curve to maintain the WAM at the desired level, while increasing yield. We still expect rates to remain low in 2011, beginning to rise in the second half of the year.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Dec 10
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Thursday, 24 February 2011
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Fund Manager Comment
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Risk markets performed well in December driven by QE2 and better macro data, however the European sovereign situation weighed on investor sentiment. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% with the committee again voting 7:1:1, while acknowledging that inflation could reach 4% by spring 2011. LIBOR rates remained relatively unchanged in December. The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished December at 82 days, shortening naturally as investments neared maturity date . We remain focused on providing adequate liquidity and have targeted an increased WAM of 100 days. Following our decision to remove Irish exposure from the fund we have added short dated UK T-bills to the portfolio which have yielded more than bank deposits. Only a small amount of Irish exposure remains in the portfolio which is on fixed deposit maturing Q1 2011. We expect rates to remain low, into 2011 but with a chance that rates will start to increase in the second half of the year
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Sep 10
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Monday, 8 November 2010
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Fund Manager Comment
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Following the risk aversion seen across most asset classes in August, September saw money markets remain calm while equities rallied and government bond yields and gold set new highs.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% with the committee voting 8:1 for the fourth consecutive month.
LIBOR rates were relatively unchanged in September.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished September at 72 days in line with our current strategy. We remain focused on providing adequate liquidity and maintaining the WAM within a 70 -90 day range. The fund remains well positioned to react as and when the yield curve begins to steepen.
We have added a new short dated FRN in a high quality name paying 40bps over 3-month LIBOR and continue to look for opportunities to extend the WAM.
The fund outperformed it's 1-month LIBOR benchmark. We expect rates to remain low and anticipate that the fund will continue to perform well versus the benchmark in the coming months
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Jun 10
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Wednesday, 8 September 2010
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Fund Manager Comment
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Fragile risk appetite impacted across most asset classes as Euro area banking sector stress continued throughout June. The Coalition Government's emergency budget was well received by financial markets. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% and the QE asset purchase target at ú200m as expected, the decision was a surprising 7-1, indicating a more hawkish tone than expected. LIBOR rates remained stable throughout June following the rise in May. The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished June at 67 days up from 63 days in May and in line with our current strategy. We remain focused on providing adequate liquidity and maintaining the WAM within a 50 - 70 day range. The fund remains well positioned to react as and when the yield curve begins to steepen. We have taken the opportunity to extend the WAM a little by placing a further portion of the fund further down the curve with high quality names. We expect rates to remain low and anticipate that the fund will continue to perform well versus the benchmark in the coming months.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Mar 10
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Thursday, 24 June 2010
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Fund Manager Comment
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Money Markets remained stable as risk appetite increased across financial markets and equity markets made 18-month highs. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% and the QE asset purchase target at ú200m as expected, the decision was a unanimous 9-0. The UK's economic recovery outlook remain mixed and the MPC acknowledged it is increasingly likely that CPI will remain above the 2% target for longer than anticipated. LIBOR rates remained stable, as in February most fixings increased by 2 - 3 bps. The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished March at 47 days. We remain focused on providing adequate liquidity and maintaining the WAM within a 40 - 70 day range. The fund remains well positioned to react as and when the yield curve begins to steepen. The Manager has continued to reduce the fund's exposure to short dated bonds, reducing the possible impact of volatile price movements as these bonds neared maturity. The Manager expects rates to remain low and anticipates that the fund will continue to perform well versus the benchmark in the coming months.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Dec 09
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Tuesday, 23 March 2010
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Fund Manager Comment
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Money Markets remained calm throughout December.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left policy rates unchanged at 0.50% and the QE asset purchase target at ú200bn, reinforcing the view that rates will be lower for longer.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished December at 96 days, in line with our target. We have primarily focused rolling maturities in the 3 months area of the curve, while ensuring adequate liquidity ahead of the year end.
The fund once again outperformed it's one-month LIBID benchmark. As rates remain low we anticipate that the fund will continue to perform well versus it's benchmark in the coming months.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Sep 09
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Wednesday, 9 December 2009
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Fund Manager Comment
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Money Markets extended their period of calm through September. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) met market expectations by leaving the key base rate at 0.50%. LIBOR spreads continue to narrow reaching pre Lehman levels. The weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished August at 69.44 days. We continue to look for opportunities to add duration through high quality bonds with a 12-18 month life line targeting a WAM of 95 days. The fund once again outperformed its one-month LIBOR benchmark. We are pleased that the fund has held up so well versus its falling benchmark and anticipate that the out performance will remain elevated in the coming months.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Jun 09
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Wednesday, 16 September 2009
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Fund Manager Comment
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Market conditions continued to improve, the equity rally paused for breath but credit performed strongly.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held rates at 0.5%, as expected but refrained from extending its current ú125bn asset purchase at this time.
LIBOR rates continued to fall in line with official rates.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) finished the month at 75.15 days. As we expect rates to remain low over the coming months we will continue to monitor the WAM.
The fund marginally outperformed the one-month LIBOR benchmark, with the fund benefitting from elevated money market rates compared to lower official rates. As interest rates remain low we expect the fund will continue to offer very competitive returns whilst outperforming the benchmark.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Mar 09
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Tuesday, 9 June 2009
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Fund Manager Comment
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Market conditions improved during March as equities rallied, recovering some of the last 12 months losses and credit spreads tightened.
The Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) reduced rates by 50bps to a new low of 0.50%, at the same time confirming that they will embark in a quantitative easing program - purchasing up to ú75bn of financial assets over the next 3 months.
LIBOR rates continued to fall in line with official rates.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) was above 100 days for the majority of the month but finished March at 93.47 days. As we expect rates to remain low over the coming months we will continue to target a WAM of 100 days or above.
Performance was 0.12% over the one-month LIBOR benchmark, with the fund benefiting from elevated money market rates compared to lower official rates. As interest rates remain low we expect the fund will continue to offer very competitive returns whilst outperforming the benchmark.
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Nedgroup Inv Sterling comment - Dec 08
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Monday, 30 March 2009
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Fund Manager Comment
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Manager commentary
Rob Brockbanks, Treasury Manager - Thomas Miller Investment (Isle of Man) Limited
Market conditions calmed a little during December as investors placed money over the turn of the year and prepared for the Christmas break.
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) reduced rates by 100bps to 2.00%. Receding inflationary pressures have allowed the MPC to cut rates aggressively in a bid to stimulate the deteriorating economy.
LIBOR rates continued to fall in line with official rates.
The Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) of the TMI GBP sub-fund increased slightly to 108 days, although we remain focused on liquidity and capital preservation while investing in short-dated high quality names.
The TMI GBP sub-fund outperformed the one-month LIBID benchmark, the fund benefiting from elevated money market rates compared to lower official rates. As interest rates continue to fall we expect the fund will continue to offer very competitive returns whilst outperforming the
benchmark.
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Fund renamed
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Tuesday, 30 December 2008
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Official Announcement
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The Nedgroup Investments GBP Money Market Fund has been renamed to Nedgroup Investments Sterling Fund.
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Fund renamed
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Wednesday, 5 December 2007
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Official Announcement
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The Nedgroup International Investor Series GBP Money Market fund has been renamed to Nedgoup Investments GBP Money Market Fund.
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NIBIIS quarterly review - June 2002
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Monday, 14 October 2002
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General Market Analysis
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The NIBIIS quarterly review is available on the NIB website.
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NIBIIS International GBP MM comment - August 2002
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Wednesday, 25 September 2002
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Fund Manager Comment
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Market expectations for 3-month LIBOR in December 2003 dropped almost 100 basis points in July to 3.38%. Longer-term interest rates also declined, as ten-year Treasury yields dropped another 30 basis points to 4.47%. The Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) has left base rates at 4%.
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NIBIIS International GBP MM comment - June 2002
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Wednesday, 21 August 2002
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Fund Manager Comment
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Market expectations for 3-month LIBOR in December 2003 dropped almost 100 basis points in July to 3.38%. Longer-term interest rates also declined, as ten-year Treasury yields dropped another 30 basis points to 4.47%. The Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC) has left base rates at 4%.
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NIBIIS GBP Money Market comment - June 2002
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Wednesday, 24 July 2002
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Fund Manager Comment
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The Bank of EnglandÆs monetary policy committee (MPC), has left base rates at 4%.
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NIBIIS GBP Money Market comment - May 2002
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Friday, 21 June 2002
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Fund Manager Comment
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The Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC), has left base rates at 4%, as it still seems to be concerned about the prospects for economic growth and has kept interest rate rises firmly on hold even though house prices are rising rapidly.
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NIBIIS GBP Money Market comment April 2002
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Tuesday, 21 May 2002
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Fund Manager Comment
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The Bank of EnglandÆs monetary policy committee (MPC), has left base rates at 4%, but continued rises in house prices and consumer confidence reaffirmed concerns that rate rises in the UK are likely to precede those elsewhere.
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