The Analyst: Keeping ahead of a changing world

At first you may think I have taken leave of my senses reviewing a fund that has the word "consumer" in its name. Given that global growth is slowing (with UK, European and American growth on its knees) and consumer credit is at its limit, the idea of investing in this area might seem complete madness. However, as I often say to investors, you must look under the bonnet of a fund rather than assuming all the clues are in the title. The JPM Global Consumer Trends Fund looks to find long-term themes that are durable rather than short-term spending fads. These consumer trends are not constant – they keep changing – but globally they are worth $30trillion (£15trillion). One of the essential areas of the shifting consumer landscape is the emerging markets story; as more people ascend to the middle classes in these economies there... [read full story]