The year to the end of May 2016 saw the average fund in this sector lose 2.8 per cent, with a similar outcome in the 12 months to the end of this May. However, it should be noted that each of these periods were marked by broader market sell-offs affecting regions beyond Europe. Intermediaries will be encouraged to see how the top 20 fared over these periods. In each of these two down years, 11 of the funds listed in our table managed a positive return.
Our findings also serve as a reminder that funds delivering substantial returns can get caught out in difficult markets. Marlborough European Multi-Cap, which holds around two thirds of assets in small and micro-cap companies, made a gain of nearly 16 per cent in the year to 31 May 2016, going on to return more than 50 per cent in the following year. However, it made the biggest loss, of 6.6 per cent, out of those in our table over the 12 months to the end of May 2019.
From trade to longer-term monetary policy, much remains uncertain when it comes to backing Europe. But with the region once more moving ahead in performance terms, it could yet prove a success story for those willing to take the plunge.
