Argo Group has announced the launch of a hedge fund dedicated to emerging markets, which will invest in bonds and currencies form a basket of 40 emerging countries, Investment Week reports. The Argo Local Markets fund, which will hold about 20 to 30 positions, has initial capital of USD7m.

In the first six months of the year, the gold strategy of Tocqueville Asset Management has continued to post gains in a highly volatile environment. Assets under management as of the end of October totalled about USD3.3bn, compared with USD2.7bn as of the end of December 2011, Doug Groh, co-portfolio manager for gold, stated on 13 November during a visit to Paris.Net inflows totalled about USD450m, including a large mandate of slightly over USD250m in Europe, while the remainder is due to market appreciation. 70% of investors in the strategy are still retail clients, but institutional customers are increasingly interest in gold for reasons of diversification.Groh says gold still has good growth potential. After averaging USD1,650 per ounce in first half 2012, gold may rise to about USD1,750 in the next few weeks, and then approach or even pass its previous record of USD2,300. In other words, gold still has good growth potential, which will largely depend on the evolution of interest rates, Groh says.Among the other factors supporting gold, Groh points to the very low gold reserve levels at central banks, and a desire on the part of emerging markets to increase their reserves. Mexico has increased its gold reserved to 4.3% of its total resered in third quarter 2012, compared with 3.5% in 2011, while the percentage is 15.4% for Turkey, compared with less than 11% in 2011.Gold portfolios generally include about 35 gold mines, while some portfolios include as much as 65 positions on gold mines, due to the integration of small companies in the process of exploration or development, which offer better valuation outlooks than larger, better-established firms. The performance of Tocqueville Gold since its inception is 136.77% with dividends not reinvested as of 31 October 2012, compared with 72.04% for the Philadelphia Gold & Silver index.

Fédéris Gestion d’Actifs and Kepler have raised in France about EUR300m from institutional investors for the contractual target date fund Fédéris Core Euro Crédit 2018. The product invests in mid-sized business which are seeking to diversify their sources of financing through the use of the bond markets. Issuers are from countries in northern Europe (France, Germany, Benelux, Austria and Switzerland), and the banking and insurance sectors are excluded from the investment universe. Bonds are intended to be held until maturity. The subscription period ended on 31 October 2012.

The pension fund for New Jersey public employees, whose assets under management total over USD79bn, has retained Scopis Fund Management to manage a mandate of USD150m for a long/short equity hedge fund dedicated to small and midcaps, PIONline reports. The fund has also awarded a mandate of USD400m to SONJ Private Opportunities Fund II, a fund managed by BlackRock Private Equity Partners, which invests in private equity strategies worldwide. Lastly, a mandate of USD100m has been invested in the Golden Tree Credit Opportunities Fund, a debt fund managed by Golden Tree Asset Management.

Assets on the French fund market rose by 1.2% in October, for total assets under management of EUR767.7bn, up by EUR7.5bn. According to figures from Europerformance, this increase is largely due to the size of net inflows to treasury funds (+2.72%). Funds investing in equities have also posted a slight increase (+0.03%). For their part, convertible bond funds have seen a 1.95% increase in their assets. In detail, inflows to all bond funds of EUR181m come despite significant redemptions from an international bond fund (-EUR598m). Net inflows to other categories of funds have more than offset this movement. In the euro bond fund segment (+EUR462m in net inflows), only government bond funds showed an increase in demand, with EUR227m in net allocation. For their part, private debt funds attracted EUR237m. The European bond fund and US dollar-denominated bond fund segments show respective net outflows of EUR16m and EUR4m, the Europerformance study funds. High yield debt has attracted inflows totalling EUR223m, and emerging market debt funds show inflows of EUR105m. Market effects in bond categories had a positive effect on assets, except in the USD Bonds category. The EuroPerformance index is down 0.9%. However, the strongest increases were for the High Yield category (+1.7%). “In all categories combined, the returns earned in October have resulted in a gain for the month of EUR546m,” Europerformance notes. Assets under management in Equity mutual funds remained stable for the month. Outflows totalled EUR510m. “For the European Equity category (-EUR227m in redemptions), France and euro Equities showed outflows of EUR422m and EUR309m; these outflows were partly offset by an increase in demand for funds in the Europe Equity category, which attracted a net EUR471m,” the study funds. This is also the case for all categories of International Equities, including the Emerging Market Equity category, where outflows totalled -EUR300m. The Americas Equity category posted net outflows of -EUR6m. Demand for China Equity funds (+EUR101m) has continued to drive result for the Asia/Pacific Equity segment, whose net inflows are +EUR108m. Aside from European equity funds, which benefited from a positive market effect (+0.89%), the other categories were penalised, including International Equities (-1.1%), Asia/Pacific Equities (-1.1%), and Americas Equities (-2.4%). These returns brought only +EUR389m in gains for October. Convertible Bond mutual funds have done well, with EUR140m in net inflows in October. These inflows were largely to the euro Convertibles category (+EUR106m) and International Convertibles (+EUR76m), while the European Convertibles category continues to show net redemptions (-EUR41m this month). The EuroPerformance index of Convertible Bond mutual funds is up 0.61%. Market effects of EUR82m and net inflows have brought assets under management up by nearly 2% in one month (to EUR11.6bn).

Hedge funds have posted a net inflow of USD3.4bn in September, following USD7.7bn in August, according to estimates by BarclayHedge ad TrimTabs Investment Research.Assets in the industry as of the end of September totalled about USD1.8trn, down 25.8% from a peak of USD2.4trn in June 2008.In the first nine months of the year, hedge funds earned returns of 6.1%, while the S&P 500 index gained 14.6%. In the past twelve months, the difference is even more pronouned, with gains of 7.8% for hedge funds, compared with a rise of 27.3% for the benchmark index.However, the top decile of hedge funds show returns of 27.8% on nine months, compared with 14.6% for the S&P 500. The bottom decile, meanwhile, shows losses of 25.6%. The best hedge funds have also posted higher subscriptions. The top decile attracted more than USD10bn in assets, more than 21% of total net inflows in the first nine months of the year, which total USD49.1bn.

The Pictet Emerging Markets High Dividend sub-fund of the UCITS-compliant Sicav Pictet Luxembourg will now be made available in the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe.The high-dividend emerging market equity product, managed by Mark Boulton and Stephen Burrows, follows a strategy deployed for Japanese investors since 2007, which had USD4.8bn in assets as of 6 November.The annual distribution level has been set at a prudent 4%, while the average returns on high-dividend equities in the portfolio as of the end of August stood at a gross 5.8% per year. Distribution may be monthly or annual; the subscriber may also choose a capitalisation formula.For the fund, Pictet uses an active management process which allows for selection of shares in companies which pay high and sustainable dividends, while avoiding businesses whose returns are not sustainable or whose equities have a weak outlook. The managers invest in growth businesses with a low debt to equity ratio and a consistent profit growth history.CharacteristicsName: Pictet-Emerging Markets High DividendISIN codes: LU0725970791 (P-USD shares)LU0725972227 (P-EUR shares)Management commission: 1.6%

Ica Banken, a small Swedish bank owned by the supermarket chain of the same name, will launch a platform of 40 funds, Dagens Nyheter reports. The bank will offer external funds, but will also have three funds in its own name with various risk profiles. Other small banks are planning to enter the fund market, DN reports, including SBAB.

Weintraub Capital Management, responsible for a long/short equity hedge fund whose assets under management total about USD1bn, has decided to return capital to investors, in order to transform itself into a family office responsible for managing the wealth of its founder, Jerry Weintraub, Bloomberg reports. Weintraub, who founded the firm in 1992, has not stated the reasons for the decision. From the beginning of the year to the end of October, Weintraub has gained 3%, and has only seen two years of negative performance in its two decades of existence. The average annual returns are about 3% to 5% since the creation of the firm.

As of the end of October, Franklin Resources (Franklin Templeton Investments) posted total assets of USD753.9bn, compared with USD749.9bn one month previously, largely due to the fact that its bond assets have increased by USD5.6bn in one month, to USD341.9bn.For its part, total assets at AllianceBernstein remain unchanged since the end of September, at USD419bn.Lastly, Invesco has seen a decline of USD5.6bn in its assets under management in one month, to USD677.4bn, due to a decline of USD8.3bn from its equity products, while assets at Legg Mason total USD645.5bn, compared with USD650.7bn one month earlier, largely due to a contraction of USD6.9bn in assets in its equity products, to USD146.5bn.

Goldman Sachs will close its Korean asset management unit, after five years of losses on the fifth-largest Asian fund market, the Financial Times reports. The division, which has 40 employees and manages USD4bn in assets, will be liquidated in the next six months. Goldman Sachs entered Korea in 2007, via the acquisition of a joint venture founded by Macquarie and IMM Asset Management for USD147m.

The pension fund for the Korean postal service (USD62bn in assets under management) has opened a request for proposals from local and international hedge fund managers to award tenders for four strategies, Asian Investor reports.The size of the allocations which will ultimately be awarded has not yet been determined.

Parametric Portfolio Associates, an affiliate of Eaton Vance since 2003 based in Seattle (USD53.1bn in assets as of the end of September) has announced the acquisition of the institutional asset management firm The Clifton Group Investment Management Company (Clifton, USd33.4bn), based in Minneapolis.Clifton had previously been 80% owned by non-employee shareholders, and 20% controlled by the three principals of the business, CIO Jack L. Hansen, Thomas B. Lee, senior portfolio manager, and Kip Chaffee, managing principal. Each of these three directors will trade in their shares for Parametric equities, and will retain their positions, under a long-term agreement which will be activated when the transaction is completed.Chaffee will report to Brian Langstraat, CEO of Parametric, while Hansen will continue to serve as chief investment officer at Clifton, and the firm will remain at its current headquarters.The release does not disclose any financial terms of the transaction, but does state that no changes are expected to personnel at Clifton due to the acquisition.

Heath Mottram, the head of fiduciary pension fund management activities at Russell Investments, has left the firm after one year there, to join USS Investment Management, the asset management firm for the British pension fund USS, Financial News reports. He will be responsible for bonds and liability-driven management.

The British Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined the wealth management firm Ashcourt Rowan GBP412,000, for failing to take reasonable care to ensure the suitability of the investment portfolios of its wealth management clients. The faults observed concern Savoy, a unit of Ashcourt Rowan which had not reacted to previous injunctions by the FSA in relation to this case. In the wake of the decision, Ashcourt Rowan states that the head of asset management, Christopher Jeffrey, and the head of professional ethics Mark Smith have resigned. In the six months to the end of September, Ashcourt Rowan posted a pre-tax loss of GBP1.2m, compared with a similar loss in the half to the end of September 2011.

A government delegation from Hong Kong in Geneva, including K C Chan, secretary for financial services and the Treasury of the Hong Kong government, has presented the Asian metropolis as the international financial centre for China, highlighting its growth and potential, Agefi Switzerland reports. According to Chan, “Hong Kong is a major centre for asset management in Asia, but we think it has all the qualities to become a top player in this area. Thanks to our unique position as the gateway to continental China, we can help foreign businessmen to seek investment vectors, and access to the country’s increasing wealth.”

La banque centrale portugaise a fortement réduit sa prévision d'évolution du produit intérieur brut pour l’an prochain et tabler désormais sur une contraction de 1,6%. Une estimation moins positive que les bailleurs de fonds internationaux qui tablent sur une récession de 1%. Pour cette année, la Banque du Portugal s’attend à une chute de l’activité économique de 3%, selon son dernier bulletin économique d’automne.

«Le Parlement grec vient d’adopter un nouveau plan, dur et attend le soutien de l’union européenne et du FMI. Ce soutien lui est dû. C’est par la solidarité et non par l’austérité sans fin que seront atteint les objectifs de déficit public», a déclaré cet après-midi le président de la République à l’occasion de la première conférence de presse de son quinquennat. Le chef de l’Etat a également vanté les progrès accomplis sur le terrain de l’union bancaire. «Ça prendra du temps, mais le chemin a été ouvert», a-t-il souligné. «J’ai pu introduire la taxe sur les transactions financières, qui pourra voir le jour dès le début de l’année prochaine», a encore ajouté François Hollande.

Un arrêté du 12 novembre vient de renouveler complètement le Conseil d’analyse économique (CAE). Plus resserré et rajeuni, il comptera 14 membres outre sa président déléguée, tels que Phillipe Askenazy, Jean Tirole ou David Thesmar. Trois économistes de banque - Patrick Artus (Natixis), Laurence Boone (Bank of America) et Jacques Cailloux (Nomura) - seront simples «correspondants». Agnès Benassy-Quéré, qui a pris les commandes du CAE en septembre, souhaite rendre les études du Conseil plus fréquentes et plus courtes, mais aussi limiter les conflits d’intérêt. Le temps passé par certains membres sortants à conseiller des entreprises privées plutôt qu'à produire des études académiques a été montré du doigt.

Choo Heung Sik, responsable de la gestion des réserves de la Banque centrale de Corée, a indiqué que l’autorité était prête à acheter des nouvelles obligations émises par le MES «compte tenu de leur note AAA, de la structure du capital et de leur liquidité».

Le marché parisien de la location de bureaux continue de subir les conséquences de la crise économique. Selon la direction des études du Crédit Foncier Immobilier, le marché a accusé sur 9 mois un recul de 19% des surfaces placées en Ile-de-France. Les prises de locations devraient toutefois atteindre 2 millions de mètres carrés à la fin de l’année, un niveau qualifié d’honorable à comparer avec les années 2009 et 2010. Selon le Crédit Foncier, le marché de l’investissement devrait se chiffrer à quelque 13 milliards d’euros soit un niveau supérieur à ce qui était anticipé précédemment. Le contexte anxiogène et la recherche de produits sécurisés haut de gamme dits «prime» devraient se maintenir l’an prochain.

Le groupe a annoncé la fermeture du BNY Mellon Euro Liquidity Fund, un fonds monétaire court terme de droit irlandais, pour le 26 novembre. Le fonds n’est plus jugé économiquement viable en raison de la politique de taux zéro de la BCE.

«Les discussions très préliminaires menées avec E-Land, à la suite de sa manifestation d’intérêt, n’ont pas révélé de synergies suffisantes pour faire évoluer la stratégie de développement notamment à l’international, et le capital de Lafuma», a indiqué hier la société. Et de préciser vouloir poursuivre son recentrage sur le marché «outdoor sport» concrétisé notamment par la récente cession de Le Chameau.

L’Autorité des marchés financiers outre-Manche a confirmé cette nuit avoir lancé une enquête sur de possibles manipulations sur le marché du gaz de la part de grands groupes d'énergie en Grande-Bretagne. L’autorité de régulation de l'énergie (Ofgem) a également fait savoir qu’elle avait reçu des informations relatives aux échanges sur le marché du gaz.

Le nombre de salariés intérimaires a diminué de 4% en septembre en France pour s'établir à 572.900, son recul atteignant 11,6%, ou 75.400, sur un an, selon des chiffres publiés par Pôle emploi. Tous les secteurs ont été affectés par la baisse de septembre, qui a atteint 5,6% dans la construction, 3,9% dans le tertiaire et 3,3% dans l’industrie.

La taxe carbone à laquelle les compagnies aériennes sont assujetties pour les vols à destination et en provenance de l’Union européenne va être suspendue sous condition, a indiqué le Commissaire européen à l’Action pour le climat, Connie Hedegaard. Cette suspension temporaire va permettre à l’Organisation de l’aviation civile internationale de chercher à obtenir un accord mondial avant sa prochaine assemblée générale dans un an.

La banque suisse va racheter 20% de Kairos Investment Management, dont les actifs sous gestion s’élèvent à 4,5 milliards d’euros. La nouvelle entité issue de l’opération sera dénommée Kairos Julius Baer. Elle demandera une licence bancaire afin de se concentrer sur la gestion de fortune onshore. L’opération devrait être finalisée au cours du premier semestre 2013.

Un souci de logiciel a bloqué hier les transactions sur plus de 200 valeurs sur le Nyse, qui anticipe un retour à la normale dès aujourd’hui

La Grèce ne devrait pas dégager d’excédent primaire avant 2014, selon les experts de la troïka, et encore un modeste 1,5 milliard d’euros

L'une des explications tient à l’évolution de l’exposition divergente des banques européennes à la dette des pays dits «périphériques»