A further bout of quantitative easing could plunge the West into a second credit crunch, Aberdeen head of global equities Stephen Docherty warns.

Positive earnings reports from some of the FTSE 100 top players have boosted the index this morning.

FUND MANAGER FOCUS

The interest rate rise in China last week, which initially unsettled global equity markets, has been seen by managers as a positive move for the sustainability of the burgeoning economy.

A position in BP has wiped 10% off the dividend growth on the £580m JO Hambro Capital Management UK Equity Income fund for 2010.

River & Mercantile's Alex O'Reilly has his highest weighting to the US relative to history as a result of low valuations in the country.

Large caps are offering once-in-a-decade opportunity on a valuation-and-yield basis, according to Mark Barnett, manager of the Invesco Perpetual Strategic Income fund.

Hargreaves Lansdown saw assets under administration increase by 14% during the third quarter, traditionally a quiet period for the firm, driven largely by positive markets.

FUND MANAGER FOCUS

Managers of the recently-launched JO Hambro Capital Management (JOHCM) Emerging Markets fund remain convinced there are opportunities in consumer-facing EM sectors despite fears of a bubble.