Asset Allocation & Fund Positioning, Copley Fund Research

Steven Holden

Asset Allocation & Fund Positioning

Copley Fund Research

Copley Fund Research provide research and data on asset allocation among Global and Emerging Market equity funds.  The analysis details absolute and relative positioning across countries, sectors and industries together with highly granular data on single stock and single fund allocations.  The data is updated monthly with time series going back to January 2011.

Global Research - Analysis of 165 prominent Global equity funds, combined AUM $335bn
GEM Research - Analysis of 127 prominent global EM equity funds, combined AUM $250bn

Asset Allocation - Global and GEM Equity

Cross Asset Strategy

<ul>
<li>Consumer Discretionary is the strongest consensus overweight among UK active funds, with 85% positioned above the FTSE All Share Index.</li>
<li>The sector’s relative overweight has climbed steadily to decade highs, with 85% of funds positioned above benchmark.</li>
<li>Stock-Level tilts show consistent preference for Burberry, Whitbread, and Next, alongside reductions in Taylor Wimpey, Dowlais, and Frasers Group.</li>
</ul>


Consumer Discretionary is the strongest consensus overweight among UK active funds, with 85% positioned above the FTSE All Share Index.
The sector’s relative overweight has climbed steadily to decade highs, with 85% of funds positioned above benchmark.
Stock-Level tilts show consistent preference for Burberry, Whitbread, and Next, alongside reductions in Taylor Wimpey, Dowlais, and Frasers Group.


UK Consumer Discretionary Positioning: A Consensus Overweight

<ul>
<li>China exposure among GEM funds has rebounded to 26%, up from the 2024 low, but still far below the 37.5% peak. India has eased while Taiwan allocations hit new highs.</li>
<li>China remains a major EM underweight at -3.09% vs. benchmark, despite rising allocations. High Active funds stay the most underweight</li>
<li>Industrials see the strongest buying, while Utilities and Consumer sectors decline. Tencent and Alibaba dominate ownership, but many new names are entering the picture.</li>
</ul>


China exposure among GEM funds has rebounded to 26%, up from the 2024 low, but still far below the 37.5% peak. India has eased while Taiwan allocations hit new highs.
China remains a major EM underweight at -3.09% vs. benchmark, despite rising allocations. High Active funds stay the most underweight
Industrials see the strongest buying, while Utilities and Consumer sectors decline. Tencent and Alibaba dominate ownership, but many new names are entering the picture.


China & HK: Rebuild Slows Amid Heavy Sector and Stock Rotation

<ul>
<li>Japan is widely owned but lightly held: 88% of global funds now hold Japan—well ahead of Asian peers—yet average weights remain near 15-year lows and structurally underweight vs. ACWI.</li>
<li>Allocations are shallow and skewed: 75% of global funds hold less than 6.3% in Japan; exposures above 10% are rare and concentrated in Value and Yield strategies.</li>
<li>Tech &amp; Industrials dominate; ownership is fragmented: Japan exposure is concentrated in Tech/Industrials, with few consensus stocks beyond Sony and Keyence, and a long tail of lightly held names.</li>
</ul>


Japan is widely owned but lightly held: 88% of global funds now hold Japan—well ahead of Asian peers—yet average weights remain near 15-year lows and structurally underweight vs. ACWI.
Allocations are shallow and skewed: 75% of global funds hold less than 6.3% in Japan; exposures above 10% are rare and concentrated in Value and Yield strategies.
Tech &amp; Industrials dominate; ownership is fragmented: Japan exposure is concentrated in Tech/Industrials, with few consensus stocks beyond Sony and Keyence, and a long tail of lightly held names.


<ul>
<li>Active UK funds gained +11.75% through Q3, lagging the FTSE All Share ETF’s +15.9%—a 4.15% gap, with nearly 75% of managers underperforming.</li>
<li>Value strategies led returns (+16.6%), while Aggressive Growth funds averaged just +4.5%.</li>
<li>Key underweights in Rolls-Royce, HSBC, BAE Systems and BATS cost roughly 3% in relative performance.</li>
</ul>


Active UK funds gained +11.75% through Q3, lagging the FTSE All Share ETF’s +15.9%—a 4.15% gap, with nearly 75% of managers underperforming.
Value strategies led returns (+16.6%), while Aggressive Growth funds averaged just +4.5%.
Key underweights in Rolls-Royce, HSBC, BAE Systems and BATS cost roughly 3% in relative performance.


UK Active Funds Face a Benchmark Blowout in 2025

<ul>
<li>Active Global funds averaged +15.5% YTD, trailing the SPDR ACWI ETF’s +18.8%, with 73% underperforming the benchmark.</li>
<li>Value strategies led performance; Aggressive Growth funds lagged sharply, averaging just +10.15%.</li>
<li>Underweights in US Tech names like NVIDIA and Palantir, plus 2.4% cash holdings, drove relative losses.</li>
</ul>


Active Global funds averaged +15.5% YTD, trailing the SPDR ACWI ETF’s +18.8%, with 73% underperforming the benchmark.
Value strategies led performance; Aggressive Growth funds lagged sharply, averaging just +10.15%.
Underweights in US Tech names like NVIDIA and Palantir, plus 2.4% cash holdings, drove relative losses.


Global Active Funds Struggle to Close the Gap in 2025

Copley Fund Research
Asset Allocation - Global and GEM Equity

UK Consumer Discretionary Positioning: A Consensus Overweight

Consumer Discretionary is the UK’s standout active overweight. Absolute allocations are stable, but the sector’s relative overweight has surged to...

Steven Holden

China & HK: Rebuild Slows Amid Heavy Sector and Stock Rotation

China & HK allocations are recovering, yet remain a major EM underweight. Rotation is active but cautious—Industrial inflows rise, while high...

Steven Holden

Japan: Cautious Reengagment

Global ownership of Japan is rising, but conviction remains weak. Allocations sit near historic lows, with Value funds leading a cautious rotation...

Steven Holden

UK Active Funds Face a Benchmark Blowout in 2025

Active UK funds trail the benchmark by 4% YTD. Value managers outperform, but missed calls on Rolls-Royce, HSBC, and BAE Systems weigh heavily on...

Steven Holden

Global Active Funds Struggle to Close the Gap in 2025

Global active funds face another uphill year—Value shines, but benchmark dominance, missed US Tech winners, and high cash weights keep most...

Steven Holden