Fantasy fund manager: returns buoyed by global rebound
Markets have shrugged off geopolitical turbulence, leaving five of our contestants with gains for 2025’s first half.
The rebound in global markets continued in June, helping most of our competitors’ portfolios climb further into profit, while a couple of their trusts produced stellar returns.
This was despite heightened geopolitical tensions, with the US bombing Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
Markets appeared determined to shrug off the risks and focus on an easing of concerns around global trade instead. As a result, US markets rose by over 5% in June, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hitting all-time highs. Meanwhile, European markets fell back slightly, taking a breather from one of the region’s strongest periods of outperformance relative to the US in years.
Investment trusts in the UK All Companies sector performed relatively well in June, with the average trust returning 2.84% versus a near-flat return for the FTSE All-Share Index.
So what does all this mean for our leaderboard?
Journalist | Portfolio gain (%) | Value of £10,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Rosie Murray-West | 16.29 | £11,629 |
| James Baxter-Derrington | 4.66 | £10,466 |
| Moira O'Neill | 3.56 | £10,356 |
| Cherry Reynard | 0.59 | £10,059 |
| Kyle Caldwell | 0.13 | £10,013 |
| Ian Cowie | -10.01 | £8,999 |
Source: theaic.co.uk / Morningstar. Share price total return from 31/12/24 to 30/06/25
Top portfolio returns
Rosie Murray-West has extended her lead at the top of the table thanks largely to another phenomenal month from Gresham House Energy Storage (GRID), with a gain of 18.05% in June alone. One of her other trusts, Brown Advisory US Smaller Companies added weight to her gains with a monthly return of 3.67%. In fact, all four of Rosie’s trusts made a positive contribution in June, meaning her portfolio had gained 16.29% in the six months to the end of June.
Similarly, every one of James Baxter-Derrington’s trusts made significant returns in the month, cementing his position in second place with an overall portfolio return of 4.66% since the start of the year. His portfolio return in June alone was 4.87%, meaning he is now in positive territory after a tricky few months following Trump’s inauguration and the ensuing tariff turmoil.
In third place on the leaderboard, Moira O’Neill was actually the second best portfolio performer in June, with total returns of 5.29%. Again, every one of her trust selections rose in value, helped by strong performance in the UK and in US tech.
Top investment trusts
Aside from Gresham House Energy Storage, mentioned above, there were several other trusts that delivered a return in June that would have been been respectable over an entire year. Moira O’Neill’s Polar Capital Technology jumped by 11.33%, helped by strong earnings from the Mag Seven in the US and Nvidia now back to its record highs.
James Baxter-Derrington’s pick of private equity specialist Chrysalis Investments blossomed with a 9.00% return in June, while Cherry Reynard’s holding Renewables Infrastructure Group saw its share price power up by 8.78%.
| Journalist | Investment trust | AIC sector | Share price total return (%) 1 month to 30/06/25 | Share price total return (%) YTD to 30/06/25 | Value of holding as at 30/06/25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rosie Murray-West | Brown Advisory US Smaller Companies | North American Smaller Companies | 3.67 | -9.29 | £2,268 |
| Canadian General Investments | North America | 2.55 | -5.87 | £2,353 | |
| Gresham House Energy Storage Fund | Renewable Energy Infrastructure | 18.05 | 71.02 | £4,276 | |
| Polar Capital Global Financials | Financials & Financial Innovation | 0.24 | 9.30 | £2,733 | |
| Total portfolio | 6.13 | 16.29 | £11,629 | ||
| James Baxter-Derrington | Chrysalis | Growth Capital | 9.00 | 0.93 | £2,523 |
| Fidelity China Special Situations | China / Greater China | 4.72 | 16.46 | £2,912 | |
| JP Morgan American | North America | 3.34 | -8.73 | £2,282 | |
| Mercantile Investment Trust | UK All Companies | 2.42 | 9.96 | £2,749 | |
| Total portfolio | 4.87 | 4.66 | £10,466 | ||
| Moira O'Neill | City of London Investment Trust | UK Equity Income | 1.99 | 15.82 | £2,896 |
| Henderson Smaller Companies | UK Smaller Companies | 3.21 | 7.88 | £2,697 | |
| International Biotechnology Trust | Biotechnology & Healthcare | 4.63 | -13.78 | £2,156 | |
| Polar Capital Technology | Technology & Technology Innovation | 11.33 | 4.30 | £2,608 | |
| Total portfolio | 5.29 | 3.56 | £10,356 | ||
| Cherry Reynard | Diverse Income Trust | UK Equity Income | 2.07 | 17.37 | £2,934 |
| JP Morgan US Smaller Companies | North American Smaller Companies | -0.21 | -18.66 | £2,034 | |
| Polar Capital Global Healthcare | Biotechnology & Healthcare | 3.74 | -4.01 | £2,400 | |
| Renewables Infrastructure | Renewable Energy Infrastructure | 8.78 | 7.65 | £2,691 | |
| Total portfolio | 3.60 | 0.59 | £10,059 | ||
| Kyle Caldwell | Alliance Witan | Global | 2.69 | -0.66 | £2,484 |
| Fidelity Special Values | UK All Companies | 3.65 | 19.21 | £2,980 | |
| Personal Assets Trust | Flexible Investment | -0.97 | 2.70 | £2,568 | |
| RTW Biotech Opportunities | Biotechnology & Healthcare | 4.00 | -20.73 | £1,982 | |
| Total portfolio | 2.34 | 0.13 | £10,013 | ||
| Ian Cowie | Alliance Witan | Global | 2.69 | -0.66 | £2,484 |
| Edinburgh Worldwide | Global Smaller Companies | 5.62 | -11.10 | £2,223 | |
| India Capital Growth | India/Indian Subcontinent | 2.35 | -9.61 | £2,260 | |
| JP Morgan US Smaller Companies | North American Smaller Companies | -0.21 | -18.66 | £2,034 | |
| Total portfolio | 2.61 | -10.01 | £8,999 | ||
Best performers after six months
So, halfway through the first year of our inaugural competition, what trusts have performed the best since the beginning of January?
As you can see from the table of portfolios above, Rosie Murray-West’s choice of Gresham House Energy Storage has shot the lights out with a 71.02% return from the beginning of the year to 30 June.
Kyle Caldwell’s selection of Fidelity Special Values, which focuses on UK companies that the manager believes are undervalued or due for a rebound, is next with 19.21%. Cherry Reynard’s choice of Diverse Income Trust, which aims to provide solid total returns through dividends and capital growth, is third with 17.37%, and fourth place goes to Fidelity China Special Situations, highlighting the country’s resilience despite the trade war with the US and the skill of manager Dale Nicholls.
In fifth at this halfway point is City of London Investment Trust, a stalwart of the UK Equity Income sector, which has returned an impressive 15.82%.
Remember, while our competition hones in on short-term movements in trusts’ share prices, it is the long-term performance that really matters. As we always say, don’t invest with anything less than a five-year timeframe to give your investments time to recover from any short-term blips, like legendary DIY journalist and investor Ian Cowie’s portfolio is suffering from at the moment.
You can read Ian’s take on his fantasy portfolio performance in this month’s Compass newsletter. Or if you want to look back at the rules of the competition, and understand the rationale behind our contestants’ choices, click here.
We’ll be back next month with another portfolio update. Let’s see if the second half of the year knocks Rosie off her pedestal or gives Ian a much-needed boost…
All data to 30 June 2025. The information and trust selections are for entertainment purposes only and do not constitute investment advice or personal recommendations. The opinions expressed are those of the individual writers and not of the AIC. You should not make investment decisions based solely on this information and you should seek independent financial advice to identify investments that suit your own personal circumstances and needs. See our full terms of use.
Nick Gardner
Nick Gardner is an award-winning financial journalist. He is former Business and Personal Finance Editor of the Sunday and Daily Telegraph in Sydney, and Deputy Money editor of The Sunday Times in London. He was also Head of Content at Brewin Dolphin, the wealth manager.
