Meet The Manager

Andrew joined Henderson in summer 2005, and has managed Henderson Asian Growth Trust since then. Previously, he was Lead Portfolio Manager, Emerging Markets and Pacific Rim for Nicholas Applegate Capital Management where his PIMCO-NACM Asia Pacific fund was the recipient of the 2005 Lipper award for consistency of risk-adjusted returns over 3 years.

Andrew has specialised in the Asia Pacific region since 1994 and describes himself as a stock picker with a growth bias. He targets companies with accelerating earnings trading at discounts to their long-term franchise.

Fund Manager's Commentary - April 2012

Markets were broadly flat in April as economic data from both Asia as well as the US and Europe was fairly mixed. Many Asian companies reported their most recent quarterly earnings during the month and on balance, there were more negative than positive surprises. Chinese shares outperformed as markets anticipated further policy easing by the government.

Performance was robust over the month with notable contributions from Hyundai Motors in Korea, which rallied after reporting firm revenues and earnings for the final quarter of 2011, and CP ALL (convenience stores) in Thailand, which is continuing to benefit from a recovery in retail sales following last year’s floods. Agile Properties was also strong as transaction volumes in China showed early signs of improving. Chinese shares Tencent and Zhuzhou CSR Times Electric were also noteworthy performers. The main laggards were HTC and Foxconn Technology in Taiwan, which were hurt by news that Samsung continues to gain market share in the global smartphone market.

A position was added in SK Innovation in Korea in anticipation of strong growth in the company’s petrochemical and refinery businesses. The purchase was financed through trimming positions in Samsung Electronics and Tencent.

We expect to see Asian economies picking up over the remainder of the year in response to steady policy easing by central banks and more proactive fiscal measures from governments across the region. Company earnings forecasts are starting to rise in response to increasing optimism about the economic outlook and this should support stock market returns over the rest of the year – provided that problems in the Eurozone remain contained and the US economy stays on track.