IFSL RC Brown UK Primary Opportunities | Fund Update | August 2025
August: A summer lull amongst modest UK market gains
Markets edged higher in what is customarily a quiet month. Global markets were spurred on by weaker than expected US job numbers which raised the prospects of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, which has been slower to cut rates than its European counterparts. Back in the UK, the Bank of England cut rates to 4%, its third cut of the year, albeit prospects of further rates cuts have diminished as a result of the narrow committee vote (5-4) in favour of a cut. Inflation in the UK remains somewhat stubborn as the cost of food in particular continues to rise and the inflation rate is expected to peak at 4% in September before falling back.
Economic self esteem in the UK is currently low but we believe that there are positives that the media are largely failing to focus on. Annualised economic growth in the UK has averaged 1.8% since November 2023, the fastest growing G7 country in 2025 so far. Growth is slower than it was before the 2008 economic crisis, but not markedly so and economists still anticipate growth in 2026 and 2027. On the negative side, with interest rates not expected to fall much further, if at all, government cost of borrowing will be higher and the Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to impose further tax rises in her Autumn budget.
No additions were made to the portfolio in what was, as anticipated, a quiet month for primary opportunities. With markets relatively buoyant, we anticipate a pick up in fund raising activity in the final months of this year.
In August, the IFSL RC Brown UK Primary Opportunities fund returned 0.8% compared with 0.9% for the FTSE All Share and -0.3% for the IA UK All Companies sector, all on a total return basis.
Purchases
There were no purchases in the month.
Sales
We sold the remaining modest holding in Pennon for profits, a placing which we had participated in, in February this year. With recent strength in more domestic focused names, and limited scope, in our view, of the shares moving materially higher, we are not afraid to take profits where we have made a reasonable return and do not see significant further upside.
Cumulative Performance (Total Return %) – To 31 August 2025
| Fund/Benchmark Name | 3M | 6M | 1Y | 3Y | 5Y | 10Y | Since Inception (28/05/1997) |
| IFSL RC Brown UK Primary Opportunities P Acc | 4.2 | 7.3 | 9.8 | 24.4 | 44.2 | 96.7 | 563.6 |
| Quartile Ranking IA UK All Companies | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| IA UK All Companies | 3.3 | 5.9 | 6.9 | 29.6 | 53.5 | 78.9 | 397.0 |
| FTSE All Share | 5.4 | 7.1 | 12.6 | 38.6 | 77.7 | 108.5 | 478.5 |
Source: FE: 31/08/2025
Discrete Annual Performance (Total Return%) – To 31 August 2025
| Fund/Benchmark Name | Year to 31/08/2025 | Year to 31/08/2024 | Year to 31/08/2023 | Year to 31/08/2022 | Year to 31/08/2021 |
| IFSL RC Brown UK Primary Opportunities P Acc | 9.8 | 15.6 | -2.0 | -13.9 | 34.6 |
| Quartile Ranking IA UK All Companies | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| IA UK All Companies | 6.9 | 16.5 | 4.1 | -10.5 | 32.4 |
| FTSE All Share | 12.6 | 17.0 | 5.2 | 1.0 | 27.0 |
Source: FE: 31/08/2025
Please be advised that the past is not necessarily a guide to future performance. Investments and the income derived from them can fall as well as rise and the investor may not get back the amount originally invested.
