May was a brutal month for Japan, with TOPIX down 10.5%. In volatile conditions FPP Japan has coped relatively well, a -3.48% return in May leaving year-to-date figures at 1.69%.
The fund’s manager Alexander Griffin – who previously, along with co-manager Richard Whittall, ran the Boyer Allan Japan fund from 2000 to 2007 – believes the rest of the year is likely to be equally difficult for Japan.
A key sticking point, Griffin says, is...