The Best and Worst: When managers are mystified: Investment Trusts

MANAGERS of Scottish Investment Trust appear mystified by the relatively poor performance of its share price. With nearly pounds 500m under management, and an investment mix not unlike that of other big general trusts, such as Foreign & Colonial's, they say they experienced no particular problems with the portfolio last year.

One explanation could be that the trust has been less successful than rivals in attracting the attention of small investors through savings schemes, according to David McFadyen, an analyst with Olliff & Partners.

Ian McLeish, one of SIT's managers said: 'The underlying performance of our assets has been adequate but the share price has certainly lagged. That need not be something permanent.'

Chris Jeffrey, manager in charge of the British Investment Trust for Edinburgh Fund Managers is in no doubt about why its price does not perform strongly. British Coal's pension fund holds 85 per cent of the trust and the rest is held by about 4,000 shareholders who they tend to be long-term. The price lags through sheer inactivity.

Foreign & Colonial, the UK's largest investment trust with more than pounds 1bn under management, goes, meanwhile, from strength to strength. Michael Hart, the manager, said: 'We came through last year's sterling crisis well. We had a low exposure to sterling and recently have been overweight in Japan, relative to other trusts. Our philosophy is to buy cautiously into difficult and panicky markets. When the Japanese market turned, we were extremely well placed.'

----------------------------------------------------------------- BEST & WORST: INVESTMENT TRUSTS ----------------------------------------------------------------- International General Funds The best pounds 1 Mid Wynd International . . . . . . . . . .128.86 2 Foreign & Colonial . . . . . . . . . . . .126.95 3 Personal Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126.58 4 Investment Trust of Guernsey . . . . . . .122.58 5 Scottish Mortgage . . . . . . . . . . . . 120.62 The worst 15 Edinburgh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114.90 16 Kleinwort Charter . . . . . . . . . . . .114.28 17 Baring Tribune . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114.11 18 British Investment Trust . . . . . . . . 113.74 19 Scottish Investment Trust . . . . . . . .113.16 ----------------------------------------------------------------- The chart shows the value of pounds 100 invested over one year to 1 May, mid-market share price basis, with net income reinvested ----------------------------------------------------------------- Source: Micropal -----------------------------------------------------------------