Emerging markets guru Mark Mobius to lead new Templeton Asian Growth Fund

Jet-setting Emerging Markets star fund manager Mark Mobius will be the lead manager for the new Templeton Asian Growth Corporate Class fund announced by Franklin Templeton Investments Corp.

The fund, designed for Canadian investors, will invest in companies across the Asia region, as well as companies elsewhere that are positioned to benefit from development in the Asian economies.

“Asia has witnessed a tremendous transformation since we began investing there in 1987. It is now home to some of the fastest growing economies globally,” Mobius said in a press release.

He’s Executive Chairman of Templeton Emerging Markets Group and also Lead Manager of Templeton Emerging Markets Fund.

Mobius says valuations in Asia have increased of late, but growth and profitability “still appear strong, indicating, in our view, strong fundamentals. As bottom-up value investors, we are still able to find attractive stocks on an individual basis in most Asian markets.”

Asian listed companies up by 206%, versus 36% for developed world

The number of listed companies in Asian emerging markets has grown by 206% over the last 20 years versus 36% in developed countries. In addition to the huge economies of India and China, it will invest in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and even “frontier” markets like Vietnam.

It’s part of Franklin Templeton’s Corporate Class structure, which allows investors to switch between funds and portfolios while deferring taxable events until they redeem. The expected Management Expense Ratio (MER) will be in line with the current Emerging Markets and BRIC funds, a spokesperson says, which will put it around 2.98%.

(Source: financialpost.com)