March was the cruellest month for BlackRock World Mining Trust as its investments in mineral stocks took a bath.
The group reported a 7.6% fall in net asset value (NAV) in March, although the end-March figure still stands 4.3% higher than the end-2011 figure.
Furthermore, the performance in March bested that of the HSBC Global Mining Index, the index against which the trust benchmarks its own performance; the index was down 10.2% in March and was only up 0.8% on the year at the end of March.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Over the past year the NAV is down 16.4%, but up 41.4% over the past five years. It is only over the five-year interval that the trust fails to beat its benchmark index, which rose 46.6% over the five years to the end of March 2012.
The trust's largest holding is Rio Tinto at 9.3% of the portfolio, followed by BHP Billiton at 8.1%.
Gross assets at March 31st were £1,391.6m, with short term borrowings £42.56m.
Gearing stood at 3.2% and the share price discount to the NAV was 11.6%.
The share price fell 0.67% to 665.50p by 14:11.
NR
-
Tycoon Truong My Lan on death row over world’s biggest bank fraudProperty tycoon Truong My Lan has been found guilty of a corruption scandal that dwarfs Malaysia’s 1MDB fraud and Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto scam
-
Why undersea cables are under threat – and how to protect themUndersea cables power the internet and are vital to modern economies. They are now vulnerable
