Japanese volatility hurts managers

Allianz RCM and Fidelity lead sector, where postive returns are as likely as negative numbers

Japanese equity has both led and lagged global stock-market returns over the past three years. In 2005, multi-managers such as Jupiter's John Chatfeild-Roberts and North's John Husselbee generated top-decile returns on the back of an overweight stance to Japan. The past 18 months, however, have seen Japan become a dog region for managers, and returns have stagnated. The sector, comprised of 50 funds, reflects this with an average return of 19.42% over the three years to 23 July 2007, according to Morningstar. This compares with 95.9% in Europe, 73.5% in the UK and 131.8% in Asia ex-Japan....