Listed property trusts proved their mettle as good defensive investments in May, raking up the top return among all asset classes.
Listed property trusts proved their mettle as good defensive investments in May, raking up the top return among all asset classes.
Listed property trusts returned 1.4 per cent for the month, marginally ahead of Australian bonds which returned 1.3 per cent.
Australian shares were the worst performers for the month, ending the month 1.1 per cent lower than at the end of April. International funds fared better but still lost 0.3 per cent for the month.
International investments were buoyed by the decline in the Australian dollar with-out which Ausbil Dexia says the market would have declined 2.6 per cent. The US-based S&P dropped 2.2 per cent while the Nasdaq lost a whopping 11.6 per cent.
Asian share markets fared even worse. Thailand fell 17.2 per cent, Singapore 16.9 per cent, Indonesia 13.7 per cent and Japan 9.1 per cent.
Ausbil Dexia chief investment officer Michael Wilson says the average balanced fund would have struggled to produce a positive return in May.
