Responding to a crash

bostonerimus

Linton wrote: »

I see no problem with Brazil as a long term investment, 20 years perhaps. In those circumstances it isnt ganbling but a reasonable punt on the future. It would be an omission to ignore such parts of the world to focus purely on currently developed markets. But it should held as part of an overall asset allocation and an ongoing portfolio managment strategy.

Emerging markets are a sector that people might like to have some small percentage of their assets. But I would not focus on a single country; the fund expenses and volatility are not right for the retail investor.....as shown by the OP.

Linton

bostonerimus wrote: »

Emerging markets are a sector that people might like to have some small percentage of their assets. But I would not focus on a single country; the fund expenses and volatility are not right for the retail investor.....as shown by the OP.

There isnt a "one size fits all" answer to investing. "Retail investors" cover a wide range of people. Those who post on these boards vary from newbies wondering what to do with £5K to experienced investors with 6 or 7 figure portfolios. Single country investing and higher volatility may be wrong for one group and perfectly appropropriate for another. There are a range of views on the importance of charges. Some may take the extreme view that the first thing to do when considering a fund is to look at the charges. Others believe what the fund invests in and its strategy and how both fit into one's wider portfolio are what's important, charges are secondary along with performance history. Others regard the track record of the manager as a major consideration.

bostonerimus

Linton wrote: »

There isnt a "one size fits all" answer to investing. "Retail investors" cover a wide range of people. Those who post on these boards vary from newbies wondering what to do with £5K to experienced investors with 6 or 7 figure portfolios. Single country investing and higher volatility may be wrong for one group and perfectly appropriate for another. There are a range of views on the importance of charges. Some may take the extreme view that the first thing to do when considering a fund is to look at the charges. Others believe what the fund invests in and its strategy and how both fit into one's wider portfolio are what's important, charges are secondary along with performance history. Others regard the track record of the manager as a major consideration.

We have different approaches to investing.....I'm definitely cynical about active management and have pursued a passive indexing/rebalancing approach for my investing. It's kept my blood pressure low through several major market crashes and produced good returns; it might be better for the OP if volatility is worrying. I don't think the risk and volatility of investing in a single emerging market is appropriate for the vast majority of investors. It certainly isn't appropriate for the OP as they are phased by a sharp drop in value. I'll adjust my advice now and maybe the OP should sell the Brazil fund and buy a low cost emerging markets tracker.