CPFIS funds post 0.68% gain in Q2 from Q1

FUNDS that can be purchased under the Central Provident Fund Investment Scheme (CPFIS) posted an overall gain of 0.68 per cent in the second quarter from three months ago, Thomson Reuters Lipper on Thursday said, boosted by broad-based gains.

Such funds include all unit trusts and investment-linked insurance products that are included under the investment scheme as at June 30, 2016.

But the funds are down 5.94 per cent from a year ago. On average, bond offerings - which gained 5.58 per cent - outperformed equities (-9.83 per cent), mixed-asset (-2.62 per cent) and money market funds (+0.78 per cent).

"On a macro-level, global markets have gradually rebounded following United Kingdom's referendum decision to leave the European Union, but an environment of uncertainty continues to prevail," said Xav Feng, head of Asia Pacific Research, Thomson Reuters Lipper.

"In addition, there are doubts about the effectiveness of European Central Bank and Bank of Japan's quantitative easing. As the yuan continues to depreciate, China's central bank has focused on improving communication with markets in an effort to stabilize currency movements.

"Investors are advised to remain cautious, keep on top of market-changing events and look into portfolio diversification to counteract market volatility."