Are our resident iShare shrewdies quietly becoming more risk averse? It’s an open question, suggested by the fact that 3 of the top 12 playing our iShares EFT virtual trading game are currently, cautiously, sitting on their cash.
Not for them the soaraway markets of Brazil (iShares MSCI Brazil was up 2.73 points on Tuesday), Turkey, Taiwan or China. Or even the iShares FTSE EPRA/NAREIT US Property Yield Fund, which was suddenly on the move after the Memorial Day holiday in the US.
Yet those in the lead clearly believe the established emerging markets trend remains their friend. Hat’s off therefore to the snappily-named fcmisc, showing a total return of 7.24 per cent on Tuesday, seeing off weifoong (up 6.8 per cent) and cjgreenaway (a persistent top-tier player, currently up 6.61 per cent).
For what it’s worth, fcmisc classes him or herself as an “asset or fund manager,” which we read as “traditional.” In comparison the best hedge fund manager is bullbearnbluff, with a return of 3.02 per cent so far.
So there’s everything to play for….
Barclays Global Investors are sponsoring the game, where participants are granted £10m in virtual money to invest, but you must start playing by June 17.