TORONTO, July 3, 2015 /CNW/ -- Morningstar Research
Inc., a Canadian subsidiary of Chicago-based independent investment research
provider Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN), today released
preliminary performance data for June and the second quarter of
2015 about its 42 Morningstar Canada Fund Indices, which measure
the aggregate returns of funds in various standard categories. All
but four of the 42 Fund Indices decreased during the month, with a
majority of indices posting losses between 1% and 3%. For the
second quarter, 11 Fund Indices had positive results.
Highlights from Morningstar's June
2015 preliminary performance report include:
- All fund indices that track equity or balanced categories were
in the red for June, as were most fixed-income indices. The only
positive performers were in the four least risky
categories—Canadian Short Term Fixed Income and the three money
market categories—which all increased by less than 0.1%.
- Funds in the Greater China Equity category were the best
performers overall for the second quarter of 2015, consistent with
the first quarter, despite steep losses in June. The Morningstar
Greater China Equity Fund Index decreased by 4.6% in June, but its
strong showing in April and May brought its quarterly return to a
healthy 5.5%. The index remains the best-performing fund index in
Canada by a wide margin for the
year to date with a 22.1% increase. However, the fund index has
significantly underperformed the Shanghai Stock Exchange Index,
which is up 32.2% for the same period. The returns of funds in this
category were hampered by their exposure to Hong Kong and Taiwan stocks, which had much more modest
results.
- The fund indices that track the Natural Resources Equity,
Energy Equity, and Precious Metals Equity categories were among the
worst performers in June, with decreases of 4.1%, 4.6%, and 6.1%,
respectively. For the second quarter of 2015, the Morningstar
Precious Metals Equity Fund Index ranks near the top with a 1.3%
increase owing to its strong results in April and May, while the
Natural Resources Equity and Energy Equity fund indices are down
0.3% and 3.4%, respectively.
- The major diversified equity categories were all negative for
both the month and the quarter, with results mostly in the middle
of the pack. The U.S. Equity, Global Equity, Canadian Equity, and
International Equity fund indices were down 1.6%, 2.0%, 2.5%, and
3.1% in June, respectively, while their quarterly results ranged
between -0.9% and -1.8%.
- Unlike the first quarter, currency movements were modest and
had a limited effect on the performance of foreign equity funds in
the second quarter. The Canadian dollar appreciated by 1.7% against
the U.S. dollar and by 2% to 3% against most Asian currencies, but
depreciated by 2.1% against the euro and 4.0% against the UK pound.
Currency movements were in the 8-10% range in the first quarter of
the year.
To view the complete report about Morningstar's preliminary
June 2015 performance data for
Canadian funds, please visit
http://cawidgets.morningstar.ca/ArticleTemplate/ArticleGL.aspx?culture=en-CA&id=705097.
Morningstar Canada's preliminary
fund performance figures are based on change in funds' net asset
values per share during the month, and do not necessarily include
end-of-month income distributions. Final performance figures will
be published on www.morningstar.ca next week.
About Morningstar Research Inc. and Morningstar,
Inc.
Morningstar Research Inc. is a Canadian subsidiary of
Chicago-based Morningstar, Inc., a
leading provider of independent investment research in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company offers an extensive line of
products and services for individual investors, financial advisors,
asset managers, and retirement plan providers and sponsors.
Morningstar provides data on approximately 500,000 investment
offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles,
along with real-time global market data on more than 15 million
equities, indexes, futures, options, commodities, and precious
metals, in addition to foreign exchange and Treasury markets.
Morningstar also offers investment management services through its
investment advisory subsidiaries and had approximately US$179 billion in assets under advisement or
management as of March 31, 2015. The
company has operations in 27 countries.
©2015 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.
MORN-R
Media Contact:
Christian
Charest, +1 416-484-7817 or
christian.charest@morningstar.com
SOURCE Morningstar Research Inc.