Sarasin's Whitehead bullish on European equities after strong Q2 results

Sarasin's Mark Whitehead has increased his fund's long equity exposure from 40% to 60% since July, attracted by low valuations and a strong Q2 reporting season.

The co-manager of the £183m GlobalSar IIID fund put most of the money into European exporters who have befitted from a weak euro. "At the end of June, we saw equity markets driven down by the rolling over of worse than expected macro-data and ongoing fiscal problems in Europe. There has been quite a significant drawdown," he says. "But it became clear to us ahead of the Q2 reporting season that the companies in which we invest were upbeat, and were talking about a pick up in top-line profits despite the doom and gloom. "We have been investing in cyclical businesses which have been ...