Thanks Kingkong... the problem is, I find that the compliant Funds are technically second tier in terms of performance. PIX, PRSF for the past 2 years were the "in fund" for the compliant funds.

Hence, I find their performance is way below PAGF and PIF. But my concern in terms of switching to compliant is to hive off against a potential downturn which I expect to come very soon. The problem is reswitching BACK.. . Then I will be salivating at the growth of PIF and PAGF or even PGF, PITTIKAL. These are the funds which are big enough to generate impressive returns over a broad spectrum of investment. I guess we cant have the best of both worlds.. unless EPF decides to make an about turn later.

The whole thing sucks as they want to keep EPF funds strictly to domestic funds in order to fuel growth in the local bourse. Lets share ideas as to when would be the best time to switch. I am contemplating the week of Feb 18th. It has historically shown that a week after CNY it will sort of boom a while then regress. Wonder if it will be the same this coming year or will it buck the trend like 2007?

Yup, most of time KLSE peak at the beginning of the year then having correction afterwards, although it is not a must of necessary, 7/10 KLSE did peak at the beginning of the year or pre-cny, I think mainly because of portfolio movement or adjustment by fund managers as well as 'new year' money/bonus into the system.

Except for 2007 I think every other year (also except the ones when there are major downturns) one can see the peak is about after CNY then it drop some 10%- 25%unless there is a big hiccup in subprime which I hope will be muted and with Beijing Olympics in 2008, the global economy should remain buoyant at least with demand from China. Cuts both ways as energy cost is expected to spiral as China thirst for more petroleum and steel, there will be additional inflation pressure.

On the other hand on local front.....

With our G artificially suppressing inflation by resisting increasing fuel prices to maintain popularity, the impact will be humungous once after election where we we see a 15% increase across the board for all items edible or otherwise. Hence, I am also worried if that is the case, keeping it in bonds for more than 6 months can be a possibility unless, PublicMutual comes up with a fund exclusively for O&G and Energy Sector.. .

No, 2007 also did peak (for 6 months chart) at the beginning of the year before had a mini-crash on Feb, just KLCI did recover back to make a new high in the year end. But the market sentiment and overall picture currently (with KLCI new high) is not the same as the beginning of the 2007 year. The bullishness is not the same although KLCI manages to make new high, a lot of stocks had been off their best significantly.

Inflation surely will be sky-rocketing in near future. For local there is no pure O&G sector, as there is none of oil company are listed in KLSE. Those O&G company listed in KLSE are those supporting equiptment/construction/work O&G company, there is oil producing company. Too bad, Petronas never want to be listed in KLSE, otherwise it is a good option.
If really want to play a pure O&G sector, one needs go for global fund (resources type)

cherroy, how about counter 6033 (PETGAS) and 5681(PETDAG) ? Aren't those petronas counters?

PetroGas is just a division that selling natural gases product
PetDag is a division that selling petrol or running petrol station one.

That one we would like to have is the Petronas (the parent company) that are drilling crude oil one.

See the differences, which one is more profitable?

oh....ok.. thanks~!
And back to topic by Grengo01, the 1 fund that focuses on natural resources/gas that I found is from OSKUOB-Resources, which invests in palm oil, natural gas, oil. timber, coal, miningg, etc. companies across Asia region including Australia...though that fund may not be EPF-certified...take a look if you're interested

All global and regional fund are not allowed by them after recent changes.

Nobody would want to list a cash cow.... they do not need the cash.. and why would you want to subject a perfectly profitable company to be partially owned by someone else? Rite Cherroy.. LOL..

Well, there are some O&G related counters since petroleum prospecting is oligopolistic in nature but the ancillary business and industry that supports it will gain as well. It will be worth their while to start a fund that focusses on certain verticals/ industry, industry specific funds would generate more focus and returns, not more returns but depending on economic and demand climate, it would significantly outperform the key indicators.

Well, an EPF investor like me will just wallow in sadness as my bulk in UT comes from EPF.. .

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Added on January 2, 2008, 4:55 pmThe problem with me is I am too lazy to deal with too many agents... .

Thanks. I will look into it. In fact, I am also looking at funds that invest in clean and renewable energy industry. Although many countries are moving at snail pace to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, the direction towards this end will probably crystalize sooner rather than later.

This post has been edited by Grengo01: Jan 2 2008, 04:55 PM

Yup, those supporting O&G are also will be benefitting, just would like to have the top or upper line one as those upper stream will have steady stream of income through oil drilling (or any term you call it) while those supporting it only relied on the contracts awarded by them which is somehow can be cyclical in nature and volatile.
But having said that, as long as oil price is high, those supporting industry will also have a good time ahead.

There are some newer global funds called climate or climate change which have been launched by 2 to 3 funds house which primary invest in company stocks that are doing or producing environmental friendly product. Don't know about their prospect. Just to let you know, not meant to recommend it. Judge your own.

The OSK-UOB Cumulative Performance tables don't seem to be working currently, but I believe this fund is one of the top performing local funds in the past year. But it also had one of the biggest drops in August, so maybe this is not for those who like a good sleep.

Thanks for the info... its just that carbon credits are getting more valuable these days.. . They are just making more money selling their credits as another stream of income by planting more trees and harvesting their produce... producing and selling environmentally friendly products are small fries in the environment industry... so countries in EU technically buy credits to pollute... that is why countries like US and China has resisted ratifying the pact. If they do, the credits are going to get more expensive.. .

Thanks man.

Public Mutual launches its first consumer themes fund


Public Bank's wholly-owned subsidiary, Public Mutual launches its first Far-East consumer themes fund, Public Far-East Consumer Themes Fund (PFECTF) on 8 January 2008 (Tuesday). PFECTF allows investors to tap into the growth potential of rising consumer spending in the Far-East markets.

Public Mutual's Chairman Tan Sri Dato' Sri Dr. Teh Hong Piow said consumer spending generally accounts for a significant share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in most economies. This is no different in Asia where consumer spending accounts for about half of GDP. In the 2001-2006 period, consumer spending in Indonesia and China grew at healthy annual rates of 13.6% and 10.4% respectively on the back of rising income and urbanisation. Meanwhile, South Korea, Malaysia and Thailand's consumer spending growth were also impressive at around 9.0%-9.5% per annum, backed by strong consumer confidence amidst generally buoyant economic activities.

He added that in the Far-East region, consumer spending has been fuelled by robust growth in disposable incomes, the wealth effect from rising equity and property markets, increased urbanisation, healthy tourism activities and attractive lending rates.

Tan Sri Teh said that PFECTF is positioned to benefit from the robust growth of consumer spending in the Far-East region.

PFECTF is an equity fund that seeks to achieve long-term capital appreciation by investing in securities, mainly equities, in the consumer sector in the domestic and foreign markets. The fund may also invest in multinational corporations in the consumer sector which sell their products in Far-East markets or have distribution outlets/establishments in the Far-East region and are listed in United States, Europe and Australian markets.

Tan Sri Teh added that PFECTF is suitable for aggressive investors who can withstand extended periods of market highs and lows to achieve medium- to long-term capital growth for their investments.

The issue price / net asset value (NAV) of PFECTF is at RM0.2500 per unit during the 21-day initial offer period of 8 January 2008 to 28 January 2008. During the offer period, a special promotional service charge of 5% of NAV per unit is extended to the purchase of units of PFECTF by investors. Investors who opt for Direct Debit Instruction with PFECTF during the offer period will enjoy a special promotional service charge of 5.25% of NAV per unit for as long as the Direct Debit is active. Terms and conditions apply. The minimum initial investment for the fund is RM1,000 and the minimum additional investment is RM100.

PFECTF is distributed by Public Mutual's unit trust consultants. Interested investors can contact any Public Mutual unit trust consultant or call its Customer Service Hotline at 03-6279 5252 for more details of the fund.

Public Mutual is the largest private unit trust company in Malaysia and it currently manages 55 funds for more than 1,350,000 accountholders. As at 30 November 2007, the total net asset value of the funds managed by the company was RM27.4 billion.

source: http://www.publicmutual.com.my/article.aspx?id=6448

I have created a dedicated thread for this new fund.

What kind fund is this? How's the prospect?

This is another High Risk Equity Fund...its investment will be on consumer sector stocks (Food & Beverage, textile, dairy product, fashion, electrical & home appliances, apparels, tobacco etc..). 98% NAV will be invested in foreign market.

I personally think this fund is quite good, good in terms of its investment strategy, which I would say, a bit on the 'defensive' side.

Consumer goods are something that is a necessary, rain or shine, everyone still have to eat, drink, wear clothes, etc, that is why the spending on consumer goods are repetitive. Even market down, people still have to eat & drink.

Besides, with better living lifestyle & quality of life, plus better income & wealth due to economy growth (especially in Asia), people nowadays can spend more, i.e. the spending power has increased.

Population wise, it wont stop growing. More people means more spending. Besides, more young people & ppl fr kampung are coming out to the cities to join the workforce. Tourism will play another role as Asia has become one of the favourite tourist destination...more tourist more spending.

All in all...this funds' prospects is very promising.

But we still have to be aware of the potential risk (market slow down [short term?], currency exchange, etc).

For me, I try to stay away from funds that focus on a specific sector. The fund may be doing well, but there could be other sectors that are doing even better, and I like the fund managers to have the flexibility to choose the sectors as they see fit depending on the conditions at the time.

The other thing is I try not to buy into new funds. While the funds may sound good on paper, a lot depends on the actual strategy the fund managers are going to adopt and how good the fund managers actually are. In a lot of cases, it comes down to the one (or two) person in the fund management team making the call which makes all the difference. So, I like a little bit of history in the fund before I decide.

That is what I try to do - which may not be the same as what I end up doing.....

Hi,

I just contacted Public Mutual and they informed me that I do not have to utilize an agent to invest in the funds. My question is what is the difference between using an agent and buying directly?

Also, as a first time investor I would like put in an initial capital of RM 1,000. Which fund do you sifus think I should invest in? My investment profile for this 1 k is aggresive so I'm looking at putting it in high-risk funds.

I am looking at PAGF as the returns on investment have been high but at a price of above RM 1, I would only acquire less than 1000 units.

I may choose to put the money in PDSF as it is much cheaper and is showing good performance at 32 cents a unit.

So what are your opinions?

This post has been edited by onlyforthecars: Jan 4 2008, 10:11 AM

Haha...this one discussed before.

Yes, u can invest in PM funds without a agent, but with/without an agent, u still pay the same service charge.

Without agent...u hv to go bank yourself, go PM yourself, settle problem urself, get news on latest fund info slightly late, no explaination

With agent...they do all the running around for you (save petrol, parking & saman ), help monitor ur portfolio, update u on latest news, provide explaination & advise (this one u hv to evaluate urself whether good/bad)...

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PAGF growth is quite good for this yr...but like u said, the price is quite high...from its past 5 years performance, actually it has not done too well, juz recently 2007 it has shoot up quite fast. It seems a bit saturated n growth potential is less. Mayb u can consider newer high risk fund...PIOF, PAIF, or even can consider the new PFECTF.
If u still like china, PCSF & PCIF

PDSF i personally like this fund...when i tot it has reach it top, it still continue to move. Its performance for past 2yrs is good. Still more room to move up

This post has been edited by kingkong81: Jan 4 2008, 10:40 AM

I don't think fund performance can be measured by the unit price...High price now didn't indicate that the room of growth is limited. Fund is not totally same as share. If the investment strategies of that fund is still good in prospect, no matter how expensive is the fund, I still will go for it.