Most Fund Categories Fall in August as World Markets Tumble, Morningstar Canada Data Show

TORONTO, Sept. 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Morningstar Research Inc., a Canadian subsidiary of Chicago-based independent investment research provider Morningstar, Inc. MORN, today released preliminary performance data for August 2015 about its 42 Morningstar Canada Fund Indices, which measure the aggregate returns of funds in various standard categories. Only four of the 42 Fund Indices increased during the month, while 26 of the losing indices decreased by 3% or more.

Highlights from Morningstar's August 2015 preliminary performance report include:

• Funds that focus on precious metals equities were last month's top performers. The Morningstar Precious Metals Equity Fund Index increased by 3.8% after posting a 16.2% decrease in July, which was the worst result among all fund indices that month. The only other fund indices remaining in positive territory in August were the three indices that track the risk-free money market categories, all of which posted minimal increases.
• Funds in the Greater China Equity category were the worst performers of the month. The Morningstar Canada Fund Index that tracks the category dropped 10.8%, reflecting double-digit losses on both the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges. This marks the third consecutive monthly decrease for the index, which has lost more than 20% since the beginning of June after being the best performer during the first five months of 2015 with a 28.1% increase in that period.
• Also among the worst performers in August were the fund indices that track the Asia Pacific Equity, Emerging Markets Equity, and Asia Pacific ex-Japan Equity categories, which decreased by 7.6%, 8.3%, and 8.8%, respectively. All three categories have significant exposure to Chinese equities.
• The losses posted by domestic equity funds were among the least severe of all equity categories. Of that group, the fund indices that track the Canadian Dividend & Income Equity and Canadian Small/Mid Cap Equity categories were the strongest performers, each posting a 3.6% decrease, followed by the Canadian Equity category with a 3.9% decrease. The Canadian Focused Equity and Canadian Focused Small/Mid Cap Equity fund indices, whose constituent funds have larger allocations to foreign stocks, finished lower in the rankings with decreases of 4.2% and 4.6%, respectively.
• Currency movements had less of an effect on fund performance in August than in recent months. The Canadian dollar depreciated by 1.5% against its U.S. counterpart, alleviating the losses for funds in the U.S. Equity category, which collectively decreased by 5.4% while the S&P 500 Index lost 6% when measured in U.S. dollars. Meanwhile, the loonie's 2.8% decline against the euro helped the Morningstar European Equity Fund Index limit its decline to 4.7%, as stock markets in Germany and France both dropped by more than 8%.
• All seven fund indices that track fixed-income categories were in the red in August, which is unusual for a period in which equity markets also show generalized losses. Results ranged from a 0.3% decrease for the Morningstar Canadian Short Term Fixed Income Fund Index to a 4.2% decrease for the Morningstar Preferred Share Fixed Income Fund Index.

To view the complete report about Morningstar's preliminary August 2015 performance data for Canadian funds, please visit http://cawidgets.morningstar.ca/ArticleTemplate/ArticleGL.aspx?culture=en-CA&id=713501.

Morningstar Canada's preliminary fund performance figures are based on change in funds' net asset values per share during the month, and do not necessarily include end-of-month income distributions. Final performance figures will be published on www.morningstar.ca next week.

About Morningstar Research Inc. and Morningstar, Inc.
Morningstar Research Inc. is a Canadian subsidiary of Chicago-based Morningstar, Inc., a leading provider of independent investment research in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company offers an extensive line of products and services for individual investors, financial advisors, asset managers, and retirement plan providers and sponsors. Morningstar provides data on more than 500,000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles, along with real-time global market data on more than 16 million equities, indexes, futures, options, commodities, and precious metals, in addition to foreign exchange and Treasury markets. Morningstar also offers investment management services through its investment advisory subsidiaries, with more than US$180 billion in assets under advisement or management as of June 30, 2015. The company has operations in 27 countries.

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Media Contact:
Christian Charest, +1 416-484-7817 or christian.charest@morningstar.com

SOURCE Morningstar, Inc.