Premier's Ross: The headwinds and tailwinds for European property

Alex Ross, manager of the £329m Premier Pan-European Property Shares fund, tells Laura Dew why the high volume of inflows into the sector is unlikely to continue and how he is preparing for a period of volatility when interest rates rise.

Having spent seven years at Aberdeen Asset Management, where he managed the Property Share Unit Trust, Ross joined Premier Asset Management in 2005. The firm launched a commercial property fund for him in July 2005, following direct requests from advisers, and the vehicle remains the company's only property strategy. The fund aims to provide income and long-term capital growth from a portfolio of UK and European property company shares, mainly hedged back to sterling. Its historic yield is 2.4%. While assets in the fund initially grew slowly in its first few years, strong investor dem...