After a tumultuous finish to 2015/16, super funds have got off to a good start in the new financial year. Over the September quarter, the median growth fund (61 to 80% allocation to growth assets) gained a solid 3.1%.
Key highlights include:
This was a solid quarter overall but the performance was far from consistent. Of the 3.1% gain, 2.7% was achieved in July. Since then we’ve had two months of fairly flat returns, and that’s mainly because investors are preoccupied about US interest rates and when the next rate hike will be.
Funds are finding it hard to indentify undervalued assets that will deliver real returns, and this is compounded by the pressure they’re under to reduce investment fees.
Industry funds outperformed retail funds over the quarter, returning 3.2% versus 2.9%.
