A focus on smaller companies rather than large cap technology stocks hurt the performance of the £246m Fidelity Asian Values investment trust in the year to 31 July.
The trust returned 23 per cent for the year in question, compared with 25 per cent for the Association of Investment Companies Asia Pacific Excluding Japan sector in the same time period.
The fund is run by Nitin Bajaj, who said the year in question was one where the market focused on large caps rather than small, and where technology stocks were particularly in fashion.
Mr Bajaj said the evidence showed that over the long-term small caps outperform their large cap peers, and with that in mind, he intends to persist with his small cap exposure.
The fund manager revealed he has bought put options, which are a form of insurance against market falls.
He said he hopes never to have to use these, but with the equity market delivering strong returns and the cost of such insurance particularly low right now, in his view, it is prudent to have such options.
He said most economies in the region are growing at a healthy rate, with monetary stimulus injected into the Chinese economy boosting the region and its stock markets, particularly through pumping liquidity into the system.
The Fidelity Japanese Values investment trust trades at a discount to net assets of 13 per cent, it has returned 71 per cent over the past three years, compared with 58 per cent for the average trust in the sector in the same time period.
david.thorpe@ft.com
