Commodities key to portfolio diversification

Shaun Port, chief investment officer at Fitzwilliam Asset Management, is passionate about commodities. He has been running multi-managers since 1995 and multi-strategy funds since 2003. Commodities, he believes, should be an essential part of any portfolio that is looking not only for diversification but also for good returns

According to Port commodities are an asset class that is not correlated to the markets. This alone makes them worthy of consideration, he says.

Three main reasons are driving higher allocations to commodities: thematic investing; inflation hedging; and a need for diversification. For thematic investing Portf sees strong demand for commodities even now from the emerging economies and most particularly from China.

That country is mid-way through its hyper-growth phase, similar to the Japanese