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SCMP Reporter

THERE is a way to cash-in on the growing amount of leisure time and disposable income being enjoyed by millions of people around the world.

  Investors are offered funds which target leisure pursuits such as entertainment, catering, sports and holidays.

   According to Micropal, the statistics company, Hong Kong investors have a choice between Guinness Flight's and Invesco's Global Leisure funds.

   Both are established international fund management houses and their leisure funds aim to provide long-term capital growth.

   On an offer-to-offer basis the funds have produced largely similar returns over six months.

   But over one year the Invesco fund has posted gains of nearly 40 per cent.

 Tim Miller and Mark Greenburg, who manage Invesco's fund in Denver, said they concentrated on individual stock selection.

  Mr Miller said: 'It is a natural extension of a fund we manage in the United States. We have applied those techniques globally.'    He said that some of the attractive growth sectors - such as multimedia, satellite companies and cable (including the Turner Broadcasting group) - are based in the United States.

   'In Hong Kong, stocks such as TVB have tremendous assets such as a film library. We also recognise that much of the growth during the next 10 years will be in Asia and for products in the Chinese language. TVB is a dominant producer.

   'This year we have been beefing up the retail sector across the globe. Many of the growth trends tend to follow globally.'    Invesco's biggest holdings are in individual stocks such as Amalgamated Holdings, the cinema, hotel and resort operator and British television and leisure company Granada Group.

     Earlier this month Granada reported a 19 per cent jump in half-year profits and said it was on course to deliver improved performance following the acquisition of the family-run Forte hotel and catering empire.

   Amalgamated is increasingly pushing to develop new markets for its products in the Asia region.

   On a geographical basis, Invesco said that about 40 per cent of the fund is invested in North America with the Far East - excluding Japan - the next biggest region at 19 per cent.

   The Guinness fund has 30 per cent exposure to North America stocks with Europe the second biggest exposure at 17 per cent.

   Managers are expecting positive returns from most markets with the most upside in Japan.

  They plan to become further overweight in Japan next month.

  A spokesman added: 'We are also interested in emerging market stocks that are not too heavily correlated with Wall Street.'    The funds are aiming to find those listed companies profiting from the emergence of a young consumer class with high spending in Asia and Latin America and the greying populations in the West with high levels of discretionary income.



Leisure big business for investment funds