Manulife Asset Management Services Berhad (MAMSB) has launched the Manulife Shariah Global REIT Fund, the first shari'ah global REIT fund in the world available to retail investors*.
The fund invests in shari'ah-compliant real estate investment opportunities across the globe, providing Malaysian investors with more diversified sources of medium to long-term returns. Apart from traditional investments into residential, retail, office and industrial REITs, its global nature captures potentially higher growth opportunities stemming from “new economy” sectors like e-commerce, self-driving cars, the Internet of Things, and other technology-related sectors. The backbone for these new technologies and businesses is the demand for infrastructure buildout including data centres, telecommunication cell towers and warehouses in which the fund can invest.
The fund can also add exposure into the healthcare industry such as medical centres and retirement homes, which are areas of growth in face of the world’s aging population.
“Asian investors traditionally have good appetite for property investments due to the potential long-term income and capital appreciation, as well as for inheritance purposes. Investing in bricks and mortar, however, limits them to only a few physical residential or commercial assets typically in one or two jurisdictions, while global REITs can expose them to a wider universe of property investments including large-scale infrastructure projects that are typically off limits to individual investors,” said Jason Chong, CEO of Manulife Asset Management Services.
“Global REITs can withstand different market conditions largely due to its lower correlation with other asset classes. In fact, dividend yields from global REITs have been higher than 10-year government bond yields, and major REIT markets such as the US, Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong have all performed strongly in past US interest rate hike cycles.”
The fund will invest a minimum of 70% to a maximum of 98% of its assets in listed Islamic REITs around the world. A minimum of 2% up to a maximum of 30% of its assets will be in Islamic liquid assets, which comprise of Islamic money market instruments and Islamic deposits with financial institutions.
Ng Chze How, Head of Retail Wealth Distribution, Manulife Asset Management Services, said the company is optimistic about REITs in the Hong Kong and Singapore. "Hong Kong REITs are currently at attractive valuations, and we see retail property benefiting from improvements in
real estate fundamentals. Singapore REITs continue to offer above average dividend income and is a good insular to global macroeconomic uncertainty," he said.
The fund is suitable for investors who wish to have investment exposure through a diversified portfolio of REITs globally, seek regular income and potential capital appreciation over the medium to long-term, and prefer shari'ah -compliant investments.
Manulife Asset Management Services is a wholly owned subsidiary of Manulife Holdings which is itself majority-owned by Canada-based Manulife Financial Corporation. MAMSB offers 50 unit trust and PRS funds in the asset classes of equity, fixed income and money market.
According to Manulife, when compared to physical properties, REITs are more liquid and have proven to be a more resilient asset class throughout different stages of an economic cycle.
Historically, shari'ah REITs have also generated higher total return than conventional REITs, partly thanks to the shari'ah screening requirements that limit the companies’ debt-to-equity ratio to 33%. Between September 2013 and end of December 2018, the IdealRatings Global REITs Islamic Select Malaysia Index - the fund’s benchmark - recorded a total return of 67%, compared to the S&P Global REIT Index return of 36%.
Details:
The fund aims to distribute all or part of its distributable income on a semi-annual basis. The classes that are offered for subscription by the fund are RM Class and USD Class at RM0.5000 and US$0.5000, respectively, during the initial offer period from March 12, 2019 to April 1, 2019. The minimum initial investment amount for the fund is RM1,000 or US$1,000, and the minimum additional investment amount is RM100 or US$100. The fund is distributed by the unit trust consultants of Manulife Asset Management Services.
*Based on research by Manulife Asset Management. The fund is the world’s first global shari'ah REIT fund that invests in REITs only and is made available to retail investors.
The fund invests in shari'ah-compliant real estate investment opportunities across the globe, providing Malaysian investors with more diversified sources of medium to long-term returns. Apart from traditional investments into residential, retail, office and industrial REITs, its global nature captures potentially higher growth opportunities stemming from “new economy” sectors like e-commerce, self-driving cars, the Internet of Things, and other technology-related sectors. The backbone for these new technologies and businesses is the demand for infrastructure buildout including data centres, telecommunication cell towers and warehouses in which the fund can invest.
The fund can also add exposure into the healthcare industry such as medical centres and retirement homes, which are areas of growth in face of the world’s aging population.
“Asian investors traditionally have good appetite for property investments due to the potential long-term income and capital appreciation, as well as for inheritance purposes. Investing in bricks and mortar, however, limits them to only a few physical residential or commercial assets typically in one or two jurisdictions, while global REITs can expose them to a wider universe of property investments including large-scale infrastructure projects that are typically off limits to individual investors,” said Jason Chong, CEO of Manulife Asset Management Services.
“Global REITs can withstand different market conditions largely due to its lower correlation with other asset classes. In fact, dividend yields from global REITs have been higher than 10-year government bond yields, and major REIT markets such as the US, Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong have all performed strongly in past US interest rate hike cycles.”
The fund will invest a minimum of 70% to a maximum of 98% of its assets in listed Islamic REITs around the world. A minimum of 2% up to a maximum of 30% of its assets will be in Islamic liquid assets, which comprise of Islamic money market instruments and Islamic deposits with financial institutions.
Ng Chze How, Head of Retail Wealth Distribution, Manulife Asset Management Services, said the company is optimistic about REITs in the Hong Kong and Singapore. "Hong Kong REITs are currently at attractive valuations, and we see retail property benefiting from improvements in
real estate fundamentals. Singapore REITs continue to offer above average dividend income and is a good insular to global macroeconomic uncertainty," he said.
The fund is suitable for investors who wish to have investment exposure through a diversified portfolio of REITs globally, seek regular income and potential capital appreciation over the medium to long-term, and prefer shari'ah -compliant investments.
Manulife Asset Management Services is a wholly owned subsidiary of Manulife Holdings which is itself majority-owned by Canada-based Manulife Financial Corporation. MAMSB offers 50 unit trust and PRS funds in the asset classes of equity, fixed income and money market.
According to Manulife, when compared to physical properties, REITs are more liquid and have proven to be a more resilient asset class throughout different stages of an economic cycle.
Historically, shari'ah REITs have also generated higher total return than conventional REITs, partly thanks to the shari'ah screening requirements that limit the companies’ debt-to-equity ratio to 33%. Between September 2013 and end of December 2018, the IdealRatings Global REITs Islamic Select Malaysia Index - the fund’s benchmark - recorded a total return of 67%, compared to the S&P Global REIT Index return of 36%.
Details:
The fund aims to distribute all or part of its distributable income on a semi-annual basis. The classes that are offered for subscription by the fund are RM Class and USD Class at RM0.5000 and US$0.5000, respectively, during the initial offer period from March 12, 2019 to April 1, 2019. The minimum initial investment amount for the fund is RM1,000 or US$1,000, and the minimum additional investment amount is RM100 or US$100. The fund is distributed by the unit trust consultants of Manulife Asset Management Services.
*Based on research by Manulife Asset Management. The fund is the world’s first global shari'ah REIT fund that invests in REITs only and is made available to retail investors.