Despite widespread losses in global markets, a small group of equity funds have delivered positive returns this year
As global equity markets reel from steep losses in 2025, only a select few investment funds have managed to stay in the black. The IA Global sector, a broad measure of global equity fund performance, has tumbled 9.6% year-to-date, reflecting the broader downturn across major indices. The MSCI World Index has declined 13.3% since the start of the year, while the MSCI All Country World Index is down 12.6%.
Despite these headwinds, a handful of funds have defied the trend. Notable outperformers include Heptagon Kopernik Global All Cap Equity, Latitude Global, Lazard Global Equity Franchise, Robeco BP Global Premium Equities, and Antipodes Global. These funds have demonstrated resilience largely by avoiding the underperforming U.S. equity market and instead leaning into exposures in Europe, the UK, and select sectors such as precious metals, utilities, and consumer staples.
Value Investing Rises as Growth Falters
With tech stocks — the main drivers of growth in past years — facing sharp corrections, value-oriented strategies have surged ahead. Funds such as Ranmore Global Equity, Artisan Global Value, Oldfield Partners’ Overstone Global All Cap Value, and MFS Meridian Contrarian Value have remained in positive territory, avoiding overpriced growth equities in favor of undervalued alternatives.
Several sector-focused strategies also delivered gains, including iShares Gold Producers UCITS ETF, L&G Future World Infrastructure Index, SSGA SPDR MSCI World Utilities UCITS ETF, and SSGA SPDR MSCI World Consumer Staples UCITS ETF.
Between 23 January (the market’s peak) and 21 April, eight funds recorded positive returns. Leading the pack was the iShares Gold Producers UCITS ETF, which surged 27.5%.
Contrarian Bets Pay Off
Two actively managed funds stood out for their bold bets on commodities. The £52 million VT Price Value Portfolio and the £5.1 million WS Charteris Global Macro fund reaped the rewards of substantial positions in gold and silver miners.
Price Value Partners, inspired by Benjamin Graham’s value principles, focuses on capital preservation and low-risk absolute returns by investing in high-quality businesses at discounted valuations. As of 31 March, its top holdings included Pan American Silver Corp., Hecla Mining, Genesis Minerals, and Artemis Gold, along with silver ETFs from iShares and WisdomTree.
WS Charteris Global Macro, managed by Ian Williams, takes a top-down investment approach, aligning macroeconomic trends with blue-chip equities while holding flexibility to shift into G7 government bonds if needed. As of the end of March, it held 18.9% in cash and maintained significant stakes in MAG Silver, Agnico Eagle, Antofagasta, Standard Chartered, and Coca-Cola.
Long-Term Performers Emerge
Two funds have demonstrated not only resilience in 2025 but also sustained excellence over longer periods: Ranmore Global Equity and Heptagon Kopernik Global All Cap Equity. Both funds have posted top-quartile returns over one, three, and five-year periods, navigating through various market regimes with consistent outperformance.
The $1.4 billion Heptagon Kopernik fund, run by David Iben and Alissa Corcoran, held just 9% exposure to the U.S. as of 31 March. Instead, it had 45.3% allocated to emerging markets, including top holdings such as Impala Platinum, Anglo American Platinum, South Korean telecom companies LG Uplus and KT Corp, and uranium producer NAC Kazatomprom JSC.
Meanwhile, the $590 million Ranmore fund, managed by Sean Peche, had only 18% exposure to North America, with the rest spread across Europe (27%), Asia ex-Japan (21%), Japan (13%), and South America (9%). Its top investments include Petrobras, Associated British Foods, Mattel, Tesco, and Shinhan Financial Group.
Peche believes a significant global shift is underway. “For the first time in a long time, international investors have a reason to exit the U.S. and look elsewhere,” he said, citing political uncertainty, trade concerns, and governance issues in the U.S., contrasted with stimulus measures in Germany and China and reforms in Japan and Korea.
He also warned that heavy U.S. concentration creates systemic risk. “If you’re 70% allocated to the U.S. and the winds shift — whether through tariffs, political volatility or regulation — that’s a lot of sheep trying to leave the same field at once,” he noted.
At Kopernik, Iben and Corcoran follow a contrarian strategy, focusing on capitalizing on market dislocations and maintaining low correlation to other managers — a strategy that has helped them shine amid this year’s market turbulence.
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