The overall performance of all unit trusts and investment-linked insurance products (ILPs) included under the Central Provident Fund Investment Scheme (CPFIS) recorded positive returns of 11.58% on average for the 2Q20 ended June.
CPFIS-included funds and ILPs registered positive returns of 13.0% and 10.66% on average respectively, according to findings by Refinitiv Lipper.
All asset types saw positive returns, with equity funds seeing the biggest increase at 14.91% on average for the quarter.
Benchmark indexes such as MSCI World TR USD and MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index rallied 17.12% and 14.43% respectively, while the FTSE WGBI Index dipped 0.02% in 2Q20.
During the year, the overall performance of CPFIS-included funds achieved a positive return of 1.66% on average, with unit trusts and ILPs rising 1.03% and 2.07% respectively on average.
In the same period, the MSCI World TR USD and MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index climbed 6.61% and 5.14% respectively, while the FTSE WGBI TR soared 7.85%. The Bond fund registered a 6.25% growth, which outperformed Equity (+0.18%), mixed-asset (+2.75%), and money market (+1.28%) fund offering.
For the three-year period, CPFIS-included funds grew 9.58% on average, with unit trusts gaining 9.05% and ILPs posting an uptick of 9.90%. During the period, the benchmark MSCI World TR USD and MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index rallied 25.13% and 13.65% respectively, meanwhile, the FTSE WGBI TR also achieved 13.92%. Bond type remained the leading gainer (+10.68%), meanwhile, equity and mixed-asset type also posted positive return of 9.29% and 10.03% on average for the period.
“As the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic continues into 2020, we have seen that the market start to rebound, although the recovery is projected to be more gradual than anticipated. All global equity markets bounced back in 2Q following 1Q’s big hit,” says Xav Feng, head of Asia Pacific research at Lipper at Refinitiv.
“Major stock indices including the MSCI World Index have regained lost ground. However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) now expects global GDP to shrink by 4.9% this year, 1.9% lower compared to its forecast in April. Looking ahead, the uncertainty and volatility are still high, particularly in view of on-going tensions between China and the U.S. and the upcoming US presidential election. Investors should be prepared for a prolonged period of uncertainty in investment markets,” Feng adds.
