Equity and Fixed Income markets rally in Q1 overall; the banking crisis in March created a short term set back to SEI positioning but our forward-looking view remains consistent: inflation and rates are likely to stay higher for longer and value managers have more to give in terms of relative returns

Executive Summary

  • Global equity markets finished in positive territory for the first quarter of 2023, amid numerous periods of volatility in reaction to the latest monetary policy actions and public comments from central banks. Additionally, late in the period, turbulence in the banking sectors in the U.S. and Europe led to a selloff in equity markets globally before stocks rallied towards the end of the quarter.
     
  • In early March, California-based Silver gate Capital, a major lender to the highly speculative cryptocurrency industry, announced that it was entering a voluntary liquidation due to significant losses following massive withdrawals of funds by depositors. Soon thereafter, two U.S.-based regional banks, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank, failed after depositors withdrew funds on fears regarding the valuation of the institutions’ bond portfolios.
     
  • The bank troubles were not limited to the U.S. Swiss lender Credit Suisse also came under pressure after suffering significant investment losses in 2021 and 2022. The Swiss National Bank, Switzerland’s central bank, announced that it would provide the embattled bank with 50 billion francs ($54 billion) in financial support. Soon thereafter, Swiss bank UBS took control of rival lender Credit Suisse in an emergency 3 billion franc ($3.2 billion) deal negotiated by Swiss government regulators.
     
  • Developed markets garnered positive returns over the quarter and outperformed emerging markets. Europe was the top-performing region among developed markets for the quarter due primarily to strength in Ireland and the Netherlands.
     
  • U.S. fixed-income assets ended the quarter in positive territory as Treasury yields declined for all maturities of one year or greater (yields and prices have an inverse relationship). High-yield bonds were the top performers for the period, followed by corporate bonds and U.S. Treasurys.1 The yields on two-, three-, five-, and ten-year Treasury notes decreased 0.35%, 0.41%, 0.39%, and 0.40%, respectively, over the quarter. The spread between ten- and two-year notes widened 0.05% to -0.58% during the period, further inverting the yield curve.

 
Market Overview

  • In the U.S., all eyes (and ears) were on the Federal Reserve (Fed) over the quarter. The Fed raised the federal-funds rate to a range of 4.75%-5.00% in two increments of 0.25% on February 1 and March 22. Towards the end of the quarter, Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged that the FOMC members had considered a pause in the rate-hiking cycle, given the recent turmoil in the banking sector. He also noted that prior to the onset of the banking crisis, the Fed had discussed the possibility of a more hawkish 0.50% rate increase as U.S. economic data remained relatively strong.
     
  • The U.S. consumer-price index (CPI) rose 0.4% in February, down 0.1% from January, according to the Department of Labor, and was up 6.0% year-over-year. Higher housing and services costs contributed significantly to the rise in inflation in February. The government attributed the year-over-year upturn in the CPI to sharp increases in prices for energy services and food. Core inflation, as measured by the CPI for all items less food and energy, was up 0.5% in February and 5.5% over the previous 12 months.
     
  • The Department of Labor reported that U.S. payrolls expanded by 311,000 in February, down sharply from 517,000 for the previous month. The unemployment rate, which had dipped to a 54-year low in January, rose 0.2% to 3.6%. The Department of Commerce reported that U.S. GDP grew at an annual rate of 2.6% in the fourth quarter of 2022, marking a slowdown from the third quarter's increase of 3.2%. The U.S. economy expanded by 2.1% for the 2022 calendar year.
     
  • Within the Eurozone, the proposal of President Emmanuel Macron of France to raise the minimum retirement age for the country’s public pension program from 62 to 64 led to civil unrest in that country. There were many violent demonstrations and several large labor unions staged widespread job actions in opposition to the plan.
     
  • The European Central Bank (ECB) boosted its benchmark interest rate from 2.0% to 3.0% in two increments of 0.50% in February and March. In its rate-hike announcement in March, the ECB commented that “Inflation is projected to remain too high for too long” that the increase was “in line with [the ECB’s] determination to ensure the timely return of inflation to the 2% medium-term target.”
     
  • Inflation in the Eurozone slowed by 1.6% to 6.9% in the 12-month period ending in March. Natural gas prices decreased 0.9% year-over-year, while food, alcohol and tobacco costs climbed 15.4% for the same period.2
     
  • Eurozone manufacturing activity declined in March, with the S&P Global Flash Eurozone Manufacturing Output Index falling 1.2 points to 49.9. Services activity in the Eurozone reached a 10-month high in March, with the S&P Global Flash Eurozone Services PMI Activity Index increasing 2.9 points to 55.6.
     
  • According to Eurostat’s third estimate issued in March, Eurozone GDP was stable in the fourth quarter of 2022. The Eurozone economy grew 1.8% year over year in the fourth quarter and expanded 3.5% for the 2022 calendar year.
     
  • On March 15, U.K. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt unveiled the government’s new budget, which directly addresses the nation’s tight employment situation. Among some of the proposals: increasing vocational training; providing tax incentives, enhancing access to capital and easing certain regulations to encourage the creation of new enterprises.
     
  • The Bank of England (BOE) increased its benchmark rate by an aggregate of 0.75% to 4.25% over the quarter. The central bank noted its ongoing concerns about inflation, as the government’s consumer-price index rose 10.4% year-over-year in February (the most recent available data).
     
  • According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), consumer prices in the U.K. rose 1.1% month-over-month in February, a notable reversal of the 0.4% decrease in January. The year-over-year inflation rate increased 10.4% over the previous 12-month period, up from the 10.1% annual rise in the previous month. The ONS also reported that U.K. GDP increased 0.3% in January 2023, following a decline of 0.5% in December 2022, and was flat for the three-month period ending in January. The services sector grew 0.5% in January. Conversely, production output fell 0.3% for the month.
     
  • The S&P Global/CIPS Flash UK Manufacturing Output Index declined 1.9 to a two-month low of 49.0 in March due to a decrease in demand. A reading below 50 indicates contraction in the manufacturing sector. The S&P Global/CIPS Flash UK Services PMI Business Activity Index was down 0.7 to 52.8 in March, but indicated expansion for the second consecutive month. There was particular strength in the services sector.

 
Selected Asset Class Commentary

  • Global Short Duration Fixed Income Asset Class: AllianceBernstein underperformed because of long currency exposures to Norwegian krone and Japanese yen. Wellington underperformed because of duration underweights in the UK and Japan rates and an underweight to Italian government bonds. Colchester underperformed because of an underweight to US rates, long currency positions in Norwegian krone, South Korean won, and Polish zloty, and short exposure to the euro.
     
  • Emerging Markets Debt Asset Class: Stone Harbor Investment Partners managed to stem its losses in March, having taken off some risk in the January rally, to end the quarter near flat. Given an overweight in local interest rate duration, Colchester outperformed as local rates decline over the quarter. Despite being on the right side of the short U.S. dollar trade for the quarter, local-currency manager Ninety One UK Ltd was significantly hindered by its long position in South Africa. Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers’ performance was also hindered by long high-yield hard currency exposure, but it managed to more than offset this with a long position in interest rate duration and short U.S. dollar exposure. Marathon Asset Management benefited from security selection and a bias to investing in investment grade, which outperformed.
     
  • Global Managed Volatility Equities Asset Class: During the quarter, the building block underperformed its benchmark. Exposure to low volatility and value were key detractors over the period, as investors reallocated to speculative growth stocks and away from value. Diversity and smaller size tilts detracted as large-cap IT stocks led markets higher. LSV Asset Management underperformed in this environment, as their holdings lean further into value within the low-volatility cohort of the market. Allspring Global Investments was similarly challenged. Their portfolio tilts had increased towards value, as their momentum-based factor model followed favourable trends further into value over the past year. Acadian Asset Management’s broad multifactor model held the least concentrated exposure to value compared to the other managers, partially dampening some of the value style headwinds.



Manager Changes

• None in the period.


Outlook

  • Economists have been struggling for the past several months to find the right analogy to describe the future trajectory of growth and inflation in the U.S. The optimists favor the term “soft landing,” whereby growth in business activity slows just enough to reduce inflation pressures without causing a recession. Pessimists see a “hard landing” ahead as the global economy stumbles into recession due to overly tight central-bank monetary policies. Still others see “no landing” whatsoever—economic growth actually accelerates, along with inflation.
     
  • SEI suggests a fourth possibility: a “holding pattern” in which the economy moves in circles with no estimated time of arrival. Economic growth slows, but not enough to push inflation back to the 2% target rate that the Fed and other major central banks have set as their goal. We believe, eventually, the plane runs out of gas and a recession develops.
     
  • The federal-funds futures curve has swung dramatically in just three months, with traders beginning 2023 expecting the central bank to cut interest rates in the second half of the year. When the nonfarm payrolls report for January was released in early February, however, sentiment began to change and those anticipated rate cuts were completely priced out of the futures curve. Before the failure of SVB and the other banks, the entire futures curve had shifted upward in dramatic fashion, with the peak funds rate rising into the 5.50%-to-5.75% area, and the December 2023 contract yielding 5.58%. The federal-funds futures curve now has been reset well below where it was at the start of this year.3
     
  • SEI understands the market’s willingness to “fight the Fed” at this juncture. The tumult in the banking system is not over yet; even after this panic stage passes, smaller banks will face ongoing pressure to raise deposit rates to more competitive levels, while borrowing from the Fed and U.S. government agencies to improve their liquidity.
     
  • A recession becomes likelier due to the important role that community and regional banks play in the U.S. financial system. According to the Fed, smaller banks (below the 25 largest banking institutions ranked by domestic assets), account for roughly two-thirds of commercial bank loans. They also comprise a very large proportion of credit extended to small businesses. • SEI is assuming that the current banking panic will be quelled by the government’s “whatever-it-takes” attitude. If that belief proves wrong, the Fed could indeed blink and cut rates as the futures curve applies; however, the surge of liquidity being injected into the banking system may well make the job of reducing inflation that much more difficult.
     
  • The FOMC has underestimated the extent and persistence of core PCE inflation for nine consecutive quarters. And, in every quarter since March 2021, the FOMC members have forecast a return to a 2.0% to 2.5% within the next two years. The latest forecast follows the same trajectory, with core PCE inflation falling to 3.6% by December 2023, 2.6% by December 2024, and 2.1% by December 2025. By contrast, PCE core inflation ended 2021 at 4.8% and 2022 at 4.7%.4
     
  • The current panic in the banking sector doesn’t seem to be dissuading other central banks from pursuing their inflation-fighting goals. In particular, the ECB surprised the markets by raising its three key policy rates by 0.5% in March, as members of the Governing Council strongly hinted they would prior to the onset of the recent market turbulence. The ECB’s rationale was clear; the mandate is to bring inflation back to its 2% target rate, and the central bank will use its monetary toolset (interest rates and security sales from its balance sheet) in an effort to achieve this goal.
     
  • SEI believes that recent events in the financial markets have raised the odds of recession in the U.S. beginning later this year or in early 2024. As has been the case following previous recessions, wage pressures most likely will ease and inflation should fall as well. However, global financial markets are probably getting ahead of themselves, pricing in near-term cuts in policy rates and a rapid decline in inflation back below 2% within a year.
     
  • Both cyclical factors (tight labor markets and consumer resiliency especially) and secular factors (a persistently tight labor market, an emphasis on supply chain resiliency over efficiency, higher capital costs, and higher future tax burdens) suggest to us that inflation will remain higher than what central banks and market participants expect. On this basis, SEI believes that the positioning in fixed income and equities will continue to add value as we look into the future, despite another shorter term set back to positive returns over the medium term. SEI continues to warn that the return pattern SEI expects from its positioning will not be delivered in a straight line; investors should continue to expect short-term setbacks on the path to potential medium and long-term success.



Important Information on Performance

This is a Marketing Communication. Past Performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Standardised performance is available upon request. All data is as at 31 March 2023.

Asset class performance discussed is based on the majority SEI fund underlying the asset class. This does not include analysis of the manager pools, hedged share class investments within SEI Funds, additional SEI funds or any third-party funds within the Strategic Portfolios. As a result, performance for the total asset class allocation may vary. Not all asset classes discussed are included in all Strategic Portfolios. All asset class comparative performance is relative to the benchmark of the specific SEI fund representing the majority of the asset class investment.


Important Information

This material is not directed to any persons where (by reason of that person’s nationality, residence or otherwise) the publication or availability of this material is prohibited. Persons in respect of whom such prohibitions apply must not rely on this information in any respect whatsoever. Investment in the funds or products described herein are available only to intended recipients and this communication must not be relied or acted upon by anyone who is not an intended recipient.

Whilst considerable care has been taken to ensure the information contained within this document is accurate and up-to-date, no warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of any information and no liability is accepted for any errors or omissions in such information or any action taken on the basis of this information.

The SEI Strategic Portfolios are a series of the SEI Funds and may invest in a combination of other SEI and Third-Party Funds as well as in additional manager pools based on asset classes. These manager pools are pools of assets from the respective Strategic Portfolio separately managed by Portfolio Managers which are monitored by SEI. One cannot directly invest in these manager pools.

SEI Investments (Europe) Limited acts as distributor of collective investment schemes which are authorised in Ireland pursuant to the UCITS regulations and which are collectively referred to as the “SEI Funds” in these materials. These umbrella funds are incorporated in Ireland as limited liability investment companies and are managed by SEI Investments Global, Limited, an affiliate of the distributor. SEI Investments (Europe) Limited utilises the SEI Funds in its asset management programme to create asset allocation strategies for its clients.

Reference in this document to any SEI Funds should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities or to engage in any related investment management services. Recipients of this information who intend to apply for shares in any SEI Fund are reminded that any such application must be made solely on the basis of the information contained in the Prospectus (which includes a schedule of fees and charges and maximum commission available). Commissions and incentives may be paid and if so, would be included in the overall costs.

Investments in SEI Funds are generally medium to long term investments. The value of an investment and any income from it can go down as well as up. Fluctuations or movements in exchange rates may cause the value of underlying internal investments to go up or down. Investors may not get back the original amount invested. SEI Funds may use derivative instruments which may be used for hedging purposes and/or investment purposes. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events.

The Fund is actively managed.

This communication is provided on a confidential basis and does not constitute an offer to sell or an offer to buy. This document is not to be interpreted as tax, investment, or legal advice and is not contractually binding. In the event of any inconsistencies between this document and the legal documents of the Fund, the descriptions and terms in the Fund’s legal documents shall prevail.

Estimates, trends, targets, forecasts, illustrations or opinions are based on SEI’s subjective opinions only at the date of publication and are subject to change. SEI makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of any information contained herein.

Please refer to the Fund documents including the Prospectus and Key Investor Information Document (KIID) for more information. The Prospectus and KIID are available from Fund documents | SEI (seic.com) in English.

If the management company decides to terminate its arrangement for marketing the fund in any EEA country where it is registered for sale it will do so in accordance with the relevant implementation of the UCITS directive (2009/65/EC).

A summary of investor rights are available from Fund documents | SEI (seic.com) in English.

All information contained herein is as of March 31, 2023 unless otherwise indicated.

This document contains confidential information. Your acceptance of this document constitutes your agreement that you will not disclose, copy, or use the information for any other purpose than to assess the Fund, and that you will promptly return the document at the request of SEI Investments (Europe) Ltd.

Country Notice for the United Kingdom

This document is issued in the United Kingdom by SEI Investments (Europe) Ltd (“SIEL”), 1st Floor, Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London, EC2A 1BR (Company registration number 03765319), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority under Firm reference number 191713. This document is only directed at professional clients or eligible counterparties under the Financial Services Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005.

Each of SEI Global Assets Fund PLC are structured as open-ended investment companies with variable capital and with segregated liability between their sub-funds and each has been established and is authorised as an EEA UCITS (in accordance with the EU UCITS Directive) in Ireland. The Fund is a sub-fund of SEI Global Assets Fund PLC. The Fund has been notified to the Financial Conduct Authority of the UK (the “FCA”) for the purposes of the temporary marketing permissions regime in the United Kingdom and therefore is considered to be a recognised collective investment scheme for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 of the United Kingdom (“FSMA”).

Notice to Investors in the EEA

In the EEA, this Document is issued by SEI Investments (Europe) Ltd (“SIEL”), 1st Floor, Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London, EC2A 1BR (Company registration number 03765319), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority under Firm reference number 191713SEI Investments (Europe) Ltd.

In relation to each member state of the EEA (each a “Relevant State”), this Document may only be distributed to the extent that: (1) the certain share classes of the Fund are permitted to be marketed to professional investors in accordance with the UCITS Directive (2009/65/EC); or (2) this Document may otherwise be lawfully distributed (including at the initiative of the investor).

In relation to each Relevant State which, at the date of this Document, has not implemented the UCITS Directive, this Document may only be distributed to the extent that certain share classes may lawfully be offered in that Relevant State (including at the initiative of the investor).

Notice to investors in Switzerland

The offer and marketing of shares of the Fund in Switzerland will be exclusively made to, and directed at, qualified investors (the "Qualified Investors"), as defined in Article 10(3) and (3ter) of the Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act ("CISA") and its implementing ordinance. Accordingly, the Fund has not been and will not be registered with the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority ("FINMA"). This document and/or any other offering or marketing materials relating to the shares of the Fund may be made available in Switzerland solely to Qualified Investors.

In respect of its offer and marketing in Switzerland to qualified investors with an opting-out pursuant to Art. 5(1) of the Swiss Federal Act on Financial Services ("FinSA") and without any portfolio management or advisory relationship with a financial intermediary pursuant to Article 10(3ter) CISA, the Fund has appointed a Swiss representative and paying agent:

  • Swiss representative: CACEIS (Switzerland) SA, Route de Signy, 35, CH-1260 Nyon. The legal documents as well as the latest annual and semi-annual financial reports, if any, of the Fund may be obtained free of charge from the Swiss representative.
     
  • Swiss paying agent: CACEIS Bank, Montrouge, succursale de Nyon/Suisse, Route de Signy, 35, CH-1260 Nyon
     
  • Place of performance: CACEIS (Switzerland) SA, Route de Signy, 35, CH-1260 Nyon
     
  • Place of jurisdiction: CACEIS (Switzerland) SA, Route de Signy, 35, CH-1260 Nyon or at the registered office/domicile of the investor.


Notice to investors in Singapore

Offers made under the Institutional Investor Exemption and/or the 305 Exemption
The offer or invitation of the Shares of the Fund, which is the subject of this document, does not relate to a collective investment scheme which is authorised under Section 286 of the Securities and Futures Act 2001of Singapore (the “SFA”) or recognised under Section 287 of the SFA. The Fund is not authorised or recognised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (the “MAS”) and Shares are not allowed to be offered to the retail public. Each of this document and any other document or material issued in connection with the offer or sale is not a prospectus as defined in the SFA. Accordingly, statutory liability under the SFA in relation to the content of prospectuses would not apply. You should consider carefully whether the investment is suitable for you.

This document has not been registered as a prospectus with the MAS. Accordingly, this document and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of Shares may not be circulated or distributed, nor may Shares be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor under Section 304 of the SFA, (ii) to a relevant person pursuant to Section 305(1) of the SFA, or any person pursuant to Section 305(2) of the SFA, and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 305 of the SFA, or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA. Where Shares are subscribed or purchased under Section 305 of the SFA by a relevant person which is: (a) a corporation (which is not an accredited investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or (b) a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary of the trust is an individual who is an accredited investor, securities (as defined in Section 2(1) of the SFA) of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust shall not be transferred within six months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the Shares pursuant to an offer made under Section 305 of the SFA except: (1) to an institutional investor or to a relevant person defined in Section 305(5) of the SFA, or to any person arising from an offer referred to in Section 275(1A) or Section 305A(3) (c) (ii) of the SFA; (2) where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer; (3) where the transfer is by operation of law; (4) as specified in Section 305A(5) of the SFA; or (5) as specified in Regulation 36A of the Securities and Futures (Offers of Investments) (Collective Investment Schemes) Regulations 2005 of Singapore.”

Notice to Investors in Hong Kong

The contents of this document have not been reviewed by any regulatory authority in Hong Kong. You are advised to exercise caution in relation to the offer. If you are in any doubt about any of the contents of this document, you should obtain independent professional advice.

This document has not been registered by the Registrar of Companies in Hong Kong. The Fund is a collective investment scheme as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance of Hong Kong (the “Ordinance”) but has not been authorised by the Securities and Futures Commission pursuant to the Ordinance. Accordingly, the Shares may only be offered or sold in Hong Kong to persons who are “professional investors” as defined in the Ordinance and any rules made under the Ordinance or in circumstances which are permitted under the Companies (Winding Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance of Hong Kong and the Ordinance. In addition, this document may not be issued or possessed for the purposes of issue, whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere, and the Shares may not be disposed of to any person unless such person is outside Hong Kong, such person is a “professional investor” as defined in the Ordinance and any rules made under the Ordinance or as otherwise may be permitted by the Ordinance.

Notice to Investors in Chile

Private Placement – shares not registered with Securities Registry

ESTA OFERTA PRIVADA SE INICIA EL DÍA 31 MARXO 2023 Y SE ACOGE A LAS DISPOSICIONES DE LA NORMA DE CARÁCTER GENERAL Nº 336 DE LA SUPERINTENDENCIA DE VALORES Y SEGUROS, HOY COMISIÓN PARA EL MERCADO FINANCIERO. ESTA OFERTA VERSA SOBRE VALORES NO INSCRITOS EN EL REGISTRO DE VALORES O EN EL REGISTRO DE VALORES EXTRANJEROS QUE LLEVA LA COMISIÓN PARA EL MERCADO FINANCIERO, POR LO QUE TALES VALORES NO ESTÁN SUJETOS A LA FISCALIZACIÓN DE ÉSTA; POR TRATAR DE VALORES NO INSCRITOS NO EXISTE LA OBLIGACIÓN POR PARTE DEL EMISOR DE ENTREGAR EN CHILE INFORMACIÓN PÚBLICA RESPECTO DE LOS VALORES SOBRE LOS QUE VERSA ESTA OFERTA; ESTOS VALORES NO PODRÁN SER OBJETO DE OFERTA PÚBLICA MIENTRAS NO SEAN INSCRITOS EN EL REGISTRO DE VALORES CORRESPONDIENTE.

An English translation of this wording is as follows (please note, however, that the Spanish version must be used in documentation):

This private offer commences on 31 March 2023 and it avails itself of the General Regulation No. 336 of the Superintendence of Securities and Insurances (currently the Financial Markets Commission). This offer relates to securities not registered with the Securities Registry or the Registry of Foreign Securities of the Financial Markets Commission, and therefore such securities are not subject to oversight by the latter; Being unregistered securities, there is no obligation on the issuer to provide public information in Chile regarding such securities; and These securities may not be subject to a public offer until they are registered in the corresponding Securities Registry.

Notice to Investors in Peru
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores (SMV) does not exercise any supervision over this Fund and therefore the management of it. The information the Fund provides to its investors and the other services it provides to them are the sole responsibility of SIEL. This document is only for the exclusive use of institutional investors in Peru and is not for public distribution.

Notice to Investors in Colombia

This document does not constitute a public offer in the Republic of Colombia. The offer of the Fund is addressed to less than one hundred specifically identified investors. The Fund may not be promoted or marketed in Colombia or to Colombian residents, unless such promotion and marketing is made in compliance with Decree 2555 of 2010 and other applicable rules and regulations related to the promotion of foreign funds in Colombia.

The distribution of this document and the offering of Shares may be restricted in certain jurisdictions. The information contained in this document is for general guidance only, and it is the responsibility of any person or persons in possession of this document and wishing to make application for Shares to inform themselves of, and to observe, all applicable laws and regulations of any relevant jurisdiction. Prospective applicants for Shares should inform themselves of any applicable legal requirements, exchange control regulations and applicable taxes in the countries of their respective citizenship, residence or domicile.

The risks described below may apply to the underlying assets of the products into which the Strategic Portfolios invest:
Investment in equity securities in general are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time.

  • Fixed income securities are subject to credit risk and may also be subject to price volatility and may be sensitive to interest rate fluctuations.
     
  • Absolute return investments utilise aggressive investment techniques which may increase the volatility of returns. If the correlation between absolute return investments and other asset classes within the fund increases, absolute return investments’ expected diversification benefits may be decreased.
     
  • International investments may involve risk of capital loss from unfavourable fluctuation in currency values, from differences in generally accepted accounting principles or from economic or political instability in other nations.


The Funds are denominated in one currency but may hold assets priced in other currencies. The performance of the Fund may therefore rise and fall as a result of exchange rate fluctuations.

This information is issued by SEI Investments (Europe) Ltd (“SIEL”), 1st Floor, Alphabeta, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1BR. This document and its contents are directed only at persons who have been classified by SIEL as a Professional Client for the purposes of the FCA Conduct of Business Sourcebook. SIEL is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

SEI sources data directly from FactSet, Lipper, Bloomberg, and BlackRock, unless otherwise stated.