UK EQUITIES (FOUR ETFS)
Mass dividend cuts and a slumping oil price have seen UK equities suffer more than most this year, with the FTSE All-Share losing around 17 per cent of its value in the first five months of 2020. But investors still have good reason to focus on their home market, from seemingly cheap valuations to a sense of familiarity and the convenience of holding sterling assets. A lingering home bias means that many investors start here before focusing on other equity regions.
iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (ISF)
A flagship offering from ETF giant iShares, this remains a firm favourite among our panel of experts. The fund had £7.9bn in assets at the end of May, making it extremely liquid for those looking to trade in and out. This liquidity results in a low bid/ask spread which, combined with the ETF’s annual fee of just 0.07 per cent, translates into an extremely low total cost of investing. The ETF can also generate some extra returns via securities lending.