First Sentier Investors (First Sentier Investors), formerly known as Colonial First State Global Asset Management (CFSGAM), is an exclusive division of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia's international asset management business. It is one of the largest investment institutions in Australia. Later, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust Bank acquired it from CFSGAM and renamed it Shouyuan Investment.

As of September 30, 2020, Shouyuan Investment has a total management value of approximately US$157 billion. It has 17 independent business teams involving stocks, fixed income, direct listed infrastructure and diversified assets, including Stewart Investors, a pioneering investment team in emerging market stocks and sustainable investment, and FSSA Investment Managers, a leading Asian and global emerging market equity investment team.

Nuggets potential in the Asian market

Although this investment company was formerly part of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, it is actually a global asset management company, and it is devoting a lot of energy to the Asian market.

Optimism about the Asia-Pacific market is the market's recognition of its potential. At the end of 2019, many top institutions such as Qiaoshui and UBS showed interest in emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region. In particular, due to the current impact of the pandemic, the global market is in turmoil and uneasy. Under the easing of peripheral liquidity pressure, the gap between China and the US is widening. On the other hand, the Asian market has achieved economic recovery relatively quickly due to good control.

In addition, Asia has many top technology companies, leading the industry in the sub-sector. Unlike European and American technology stocks, which mainly focus on Internet and software development, Asian technology companies have an upper, middle, and downstream layout, covering investment opportunities in the entire industrial chain; moreover, urban construction in many countries is still being vigorously promoted, and domestic demand is still driving growth.

Taking China as an example, “new infrastructure” will accelerate the upgrading of the entire country's economic structure and stimulate the improvement of China's ability to innovate independently. It will bring many opportunities to high-tech industry practitioners, and consumers will benefit from data explosions to spawn many value-added services; government work reports also mention the industrial and information communication industries in many places, calling for the upgrading of manufacturing industries and the development of emerging industries. The Internet industry and the 5G industry will benefit in the future. The country has great potential for overall development, and the economy is stable and far-reaching.

Naturally, Shouyuan will not let go of this investment opportunity. The company vigorously lays out in Asia, with Stewart Investors, a pioneering investment team with emerging market stocks and sustainable investments, and FSSA Investment Managers, a leading Asian and global emerging market stock investment team. The number of awards in the Asian sector is even greater, and the team's strength speaks for itself.

Its Shouyuan Asia Equity Advantage Fund is heavily invested in China, and the fund's performance was also quite outstanding. It won Morning Star's three-year, five-year, and ten-year 5-star Grand Slam, and has truly achieved equal emphasis on value and growth. Excellent asset management capabilities have taken advantage of the high growth circuit, which has naturally yielded excellent returns, which further confirms the company's excellent investment logic.

Sniper global investment opportunities

Of course, as a global diversified asset management company, in addition to being optimistic about the development potential of emerging markets, the company is also looking for value investment opportunities around the world.

Currently, global environmental issues are becoming more prominent. The world is rapidly moving towards a low-carbon economy. Renewable energy is currently the focus of attention, and the coal-fired power plants and freight railway industries are also adapting to the environment of declining capacity. At this time, they are also throwing olive branches into new infrastructure. Power utility companies such as solar power plants can not only quickly adapt, but also focus on productivity and price, but are also the main force for future development.

Shouyuan Investment has paid attention to this characteristic. Its subsidiary, Shouyuan Global Infrastructure Fund, has long focused on globally listed infrastructure stocks. It has maintained higher potential than fixed income while maintaining lower volatility than global stocks. From its establishment in June 2008 to May 2019, its one-year, three-year, and ten-year yields have surpassed the same category benchmark.

It is a good choice for investors who are optimistic about the global infrastructure potential circuit. It is also a good option to lay out strategic investments and diversify risk diversification.

A pioneer in responsible investment

In addition to focusing on the most important return on investment, the company also focuses on the long-term nature of return on investment and personally implements the ESG concept. Perhaps many investors are not familiar with the term “ESG,” but ESG responsible investment is relatively mature in Europe and America. This is a long-term investment concept. ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) usually represents the three major factors of environment, society, and corporate governance. These factors closely influence the long-term performance of listed companies.

Currently, the mainstream opinion is that implementing the ESG investment philosophy can better avoid or eliminate companies with high risk, flash collapse, or “black swan” risk, so that investors can obtain higher returns.

Take “*ST Kant,” which once turned 100 billion white horse stocks into a capital scandal, and “Changsheng Bio” in the vaccine scandal, as examples. These are all black swans that have emerged ignoring social responsibility and internal governance. The ESG concept is to avoid these flawed companies to the greatest extent possible. This concept is an important investment trend indicator in the foreign investment process. In the context of China's current shift from “rapid growth” to “high-quality development,” and enterprises focus on long-term development, this investment philosophy can better screen out value stocks.

As a pioneer of this concept, Shouyuan Investment has already laid out its potential. It has also won the annual ESG Pioneer Award. It has tried different ESG investment concepts in different stock selection strategies. This also fully reflects the company's meticulous stock selection logic, long-term investment philosophy, and responsible attitude towards investors. It is a true asset management leader that investors can rely on.