Only one fund beats Stock Exchange both during decline and during rally

Only one equity fund managed to fetch its investors higher earnings than the BET index (which reflects the performance of the 10 most liquid stocks on the Bucharest Stock Exchange), and to lose less than the BET index during the crisis-related corrections. Most equity funds managed to see a lower decline than the market when the Stock Exchange fell, but they failed to beat the BET index in the last six months. The BT Index fund, managed by BT Asset Management, brought its investors a 127.4% yield from March, when the Stock Exchange rally started, until the end of August, when the Stock Exchange reference index, BET, appreciated by 121.9%. The fund lost 75.7% in the August 2007 – February 2009 correction period, less than the 81.5% depreciation of the BET index. “This performance is explained by the fact that the fund’s portfolio was built based on the ROTX index, which includes liquid shares, which performed better than those of small, less liquid companies,” said Radu Hanga, general manager of BT Asset Management. BRD, Erste, and Banca Transilvania shares make up 50% of the assets of the fund, which does not include SIFs (Financial Investment Companies) in its portfolio. Since August 2007 until now, the fund has lost 45%, followed by Raiffeisen Prosper, with a 39% decline.