The recent pace of equity market gains slowed in January as markets took stock after a very strong fourth quarter of 2023. Global equities delivered a modest 0.7% return, with developed markets outperforming emerging markets. Despite a major earthquake, Japan was top-performing regional equity market. It jumped 4.7% amid strong investment inflows. Meanwhile, China's ongoing market rout helped pull emerging market equities down 4.5% with similar losses accross Asian markets. Global bond markets gave up ground following a spectacular end to 2023, with UK gilts among the biggest casualities of the month.
Returns from the Creation Portfolios ranged from a modest loss of 0.4% for the Creation Conservative Portfolio to a small gain of 0.2% for the Creation Adventurous Portfolio. Within the equity market, larger companies outperformed smaller companies, while hight-growth companies fared better than cheaper value companies. Japan was the best-performing region followed by the US, while emerging markets, particularily China, struggled.
