…expresses optimism for 2024
Cal Asset Management Company has reported significant growth and expressed optimism in it’s outlook for 2024, for both Cal Benefit Fixed Income Unit Trust and Cal Advantage Balanced Unit Trust.
During the company’s 2023 Annual General Meeting, CEO James Elijah Donkoh highlighted the impressive performance of their two main investment schemes launched in September 2022.
The Cal Benefit Unit Trust, now renamed Cal Benefit Fixed Income Unit Trust, saw its Net Asset Value (NAV) grow by an impressive 250.33 percent year-over-year, reaching GH₵16.87 million by the end of 2023. Similarly, the Cal Advantage Unit Trust, renamed Cal Advantage Balanced Unit Trust, experienced a 100.39% growth in NAV, closing the year at GH₵4.45 million.
Mr. Donkoh emphasized the schemes’ strong market position, stating, “The Benefit is the most liquid fixed income fund on the market and the sixth-ranked in terms of returns among the many mutual funds available.”
The company’s decision to rename its funds was driven by a desire for better market identification.
The CEO explained, “We want to make them easily identifiable in the market, so that if you want an income fund, you know you are investing in a fixed income fund.”
A key strategy highlighted during the AGM was the company’s move towards offshore investments. Mr. Donkoh elaborated on the rationale behind this decision, citing risk minimization and inflation hedging as primary factors.
“Having a foreign component of securities in our portfolio will help us minimize the risk that the scheme’s assets will be exposed to, and deal with inflation as a result of our foreign currency diversification,” he stated.
The company’s fund managers’ reports painted a positive picture of the Ghanaian equity market in 2023, with the Ghana Stock Exchange Composite Index (GSE-CI) ending the year with a gain of 28.08 percent. The reports also noted a significant decline in treasury bill yields throughout the year.
In its outlook, Cal Asset Management remains cautiously optimistic about the prospects for enhanced returns on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The fund managers anticipate that the gradual moderation of macroeconomic conditions will support continued bullishness in the equity market through 2024.
The company’s strategy moving forward includes further diversification across asset classes, currencies, and geographical regions. “We aim to further diversify the portfolio to position the Trust to meet its objective of delivering optimal long-term value,” the fund managers stated in their outlook.
Mr. Donkoh concluded the AGM on a positive note, saying, “The outlook is very bright. As I said, we started very low, but now the AUM for both portfolios are increasing aggressively on the market.”
While the funds slightly underperformed their respective benchmarks in 2023, the company remains confident in its ability to deliver value to investors.
With a focus on diversification, risk management, and capitalizing on both local and international opportunities, Cal Asset Management appears well-positioned to navigate the evolving economic landscape in 2024 and beyond.
