Among the hardest-hit funds is the AuAg Silver Bullet Fund, which lost a staggering 17.1% in just one week, effectively cutting the fund’s year-to-date returns in half.
The fund, heavily exposed to silver, suffered from this week’s silver price decline. The drop reflects a broader market trend of increased uncertainty and general risk aversion in the wake of sharply rising volatility. This has led investors to also move away from precious metals like silver.
Although historically seen as a safe haven in turbulent times, silver prices have not been able to withstand the recent week’s turmoil.
While silver prices have only “slipped” just over 3%, the fund’s returns have also been impacted by the US dollar dropping over 2% against the Swedish krona.
It is important to note that movement-driven silver mining company stock prices may be more affected than the actual decline in silver prices. Factors such as the company’s debt, silver content in findings, and total production costs to extract silver play a crucial role in how the companies’ stocks perform.
Tech Troubles
At the same time, major tech companies have also had an unusually tough week, negatively affecting several tech funds.
The hardest hit among tech funds was the UBS Lux EF Tech Opp (USD) P acc fund, which fell by 14.4%, turning its returns negative since the beginning of the year.
The tech sector, which previously drove much of the market’s growth, has become vulnerable in the current market climate. Investors have started to reassess their positions in tech stocks due to high valuations, rising interest rates, and concerns about future growth opportunities in AI.
The Avanza Disruptive Innovation by ARK Invest, a fund known for its aggressive investment in sectors with unusually high growth, dropped by 13.7% during the week. This reflects the increasing challenges for disruptive innovations and strategies in a volatile market climate where risk appetite has significantly decreased.
Funds like Brobacke Global Allocation A and Atlant Green Tech Metals also experienced significant declines, both with losses of over 13%. These funds, exposed to global macro strategies and green metals, were heavily pressured as investors shifted focus from more speculative sectors and strategies to safer assets.
Global Allocation
The weak performance of Brobacke Global Allocation this week brings the year’s returns to a negative 11%. Atlant Green Tech Metals has now fallen nearly 22% since the beginning of the year, making it the weakest fund on the list.
SEB Asset Selection C H-SEK, despite its historically low volatility, saw an unexpected decline of 13%. The weak performance has pushed the fund into negative territory for the year’s returns.