2012-03-27
Assets managed by collective investment undertakings (CIUs) and the number of their participants decreased in 2011
According to the data of the Bank of Lithuania, the total value of the CIUs investment portfolios last year made up LTL 509.75 million at the end of 2011 and was 15.24 per cent lower than in 2010 (LTL 601.37 million). More active redemption of investment units than their distribution and a negative return on investment were the largest contributors to the decline of fund assets.
Although the last quarter of 2011 was successful – the total weighted unit value of all CIUs registered in Lithuania increased by 3.4 per cent – this did not help to amortise poorer results of the first three quarters.
According to the data of the Bank of Lithuania, the unit value of all CIUs declined by 11.4 per cent on average in 2011. The average unit value of the most risky CIUs – those investing in stocks – contracted the most – by as much as 18.6 per cent. The unit value of mixed investment CIUs went down by 8.0 per cent on average, whereas that of bond CIUs investing in non-risky asset categories (bonds and government securities) declined by 0.7 per cent. Last year, a moderate growth was registered only in the unit value of money market CIUs.
Poor investment results and expectations related to debt problems of the European countries, as well as fund mergers effected in the beginning of 2011 reduced the number of fund participants almost by a half. At the end of the last year, there were 20,981 participants of CIUs in Lithuania, i.e. 17,889 participants or 46 per cent less than in 2010. The trend of decline in the number of CIUs participants is continuing already for the seventh successive quarter.
Same as in 2010, the most popular CIUs in 2011 were stock CIUs, in which 77.19 per cent of all CIUs participants invested (16.2 thousand), whereas their assets made up 41.04 per cent of total assets of CIUs. Mixed investment CIUs were the second largest group of funds, which had 27.06 per cent of assets and 15.87 per cent of all participants.
At the end of 2011, the largest share of investment of CIUs (46.57 %) consisted of investment in units or shares of other CIUs, amounting to LTL 237.38 million, whereas investment in stocks made up 25.23 per cent of CIUs assets (LTL 128.63 million). Direct investment in Government securities made up LTL 55.32 million, while investment in corporate debt securities amounted to LTL 55.17 million.
The share of direct investment in Lithuania declined in 2011. It amount to LTL 99.72 million or 41.70 pert cent of total investment. In 2010, investment in Lithuania made up LTL 153.60 million or 52.83 per cent of total direct investment of CIUs.
In total, 25.96 per cent of total assets of CIUs were invested in Lithuania and 74.04 per cent were invested abroad (34.66 % and 65.34 % respectively in 2010).
At the end of the fourth quarter of 2011, the value of units of foreign CIUs distributed in Lithuania amounted to LTL 1,004.94 million. The value of the managed assets declined over the year by 20.83 per cent, i.e. by LTL 1,269.43 million.
The total number of CIUs publicly offered to Lithuania’s investors was 93 (30 CIUs established in Lithuania and 63 foreign CIUs); in addition, the units of 13 Lithuanian and 269 foreign CIU sub-funds were distributed.