SLI GARS backs 'cheap European banks' as ECB scales back QE

£22.5bn fund

The Standard Life Investments' Global Absolute Return Strategies fund has introduced a strategy focusing on European banks as monetary policy around the world begins to tighten.

The implementation of the relative value position in European banks versus the Eurostoxx 50 strategy in the £22.5bn fund is created via buying European bank futures and selling Eurostoxx 50 futures.  It is a similar position to one held by the team in US banks versus consumer staples, which the multi-asset team said "contributed significantly" to performance over the past 15 months. Gerry Fowler (pictured), investment director for idea generation within the multi-asset team, said the team felt equity markets were underestimating the potential for the European Central Bank (ECB) hiking...