Fund management group Fidelity International has warned that the poor state of investment 'infrastructure' into Chinese companies and smaller Hong Kong companies threatens to cause difficulties for investors. The fund management house which has GBP505.6 million (about HK$6 billion) in UK unit trusts investing in Pacific Basin equities, is increasing its exposure in mainland companies principally though H-shares. However, Simon Fraser, chairman of Fidelity's Global Emerging Market's Strategy committee, says companies do not always understand the needs of investors. 'They do not always allow investors to share in the growth of a company,' he said. Management of Chinese companies and some Hong Kong companies, sometimes try to keep the profit for themselves, by transferring the good results of one company to another company, he said. 'It is very difficult to completely trust the management with your money.' The dominance of family shareholdings in smaller Hong Kong companies mean that the interests of external investors are not always paramount. 'Particularly there is a problem in mainland China . . . a lot of companies are related to the government in some way, so you do not always know, which assets are going to be invested,' he said.
