Unit trusts, ETFs gain

INVESTMENTS: SCHEMES LINKED TO GOLD AND PLATINUM PERFORM WELL

- Adriaan Kruger

It comes as no surprise that collective investment schemes with exposure to gold and platinum shares did very well during the first nine months of this year.

The gold price increased by 46% and platinum by 85%, boosting profit margins for the miners.

This resulted in stellar gains in their share prices - AngloGold Ashanti increased by 225% over the nine months, and Gold Fields by 177%.

Impala Platinum ran 137%, and Valterra Platinum gained 105%.

A large portion of the Old Mutual Gold Fund (about 60%) was invested in AngloGold Ashanti and Gold Fields, delivering nearly 150% in returns in the past nine months alone.

The five unit trusts and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that achieved the best performance since January were all gold or other commodity funds with large exposure to gold and platinum.

Among the 10 best-performing trusts, seven were gold and commodity funds. The other major gainers also had significant exposure to gold and platinum.

The Satrix Shari'ah Top 40 ETF was the best-performing fund that isn’t a pure commodities fund. It achieved a return of 71%, just below Sanlam Investment Management’s SCI Resources Fund at 76%.

However, the Satrix Shari'ah Top 40 fund has high exposure to gold shares. The latest fact sheets show that Gold Fields comprises nearly 22% of its portfolio, while AngloGold Ashanti accounts for nearly 15%.

It also holds Anglo American, Harmony Gold Mining, Impala Platinum and Valterra Platinum.

One of its non-mining shares that attributed nicely to the performance is MTN Group, which increased by 58% since January.

Different

The SaltLight Worldwide Flexible FR Fund did things differently.

One of the good performers every quarter of 2025, it achieved a return of 51% without sizeable exposure to the mining sector.