The best funds for volatile times

In these troubled times anyone investing in funds should be looking for a safe pair of hands at the helm. We pick some of the 'grizzled veterans' who can see you through a tricky patch.

After a four-year period of largely uninterrupted equity growth, the outlook for shares is rather choppy around $2.1trn was knocked off the value of equities worldwide last week in response to the first signs of a global credit crunch. In these troubled times anyone investing in funds should be looking for a safe pair of hands at the helm; "you want a grizzled veteran rather than a fresh-faced youth", as Mark Dampier of Hargreaves Lansdown put it in The Times. The reason is simple: many younger fund managers have known nothing but good times and "may not know what to do when the bad times come along". So who are the managers who can see you through a tricky patch and which funds look like the best bets?

At MoneyWeek, we have pointed out on several occasions that, with large-cap firms largely untouched by private-equity bid speculation, their shares are currently offering good value. As markets panic and the credit crunch worsens, well-funded, stable companies paying decent dividend yields are once again coming into fashion. Unsurprisingly, then, income-based funds are among The Times's top picks.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

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

Sign up
MoneyWeek

MoneyWeek is written by a team of experienced and award-winning journalists, plus expert columnists. As well as daily digital news and features, MoneyWeek also publishes a weekly magazine, covering investing and personal finance. From share tips, pensions, gold to practical investment tips - we provide a round-up to help you make money and keep it.