Copia News

The past 12 months have been a rollercoaster for investors, dominated by inflationary pressures, market volatility and political uncertainty. Despite the headwinds, global markets have delivered positive returns. As we move into 2026, key questions remain: will growth hold, is inflation still a risk, and how will markets respond to the US midterms? Richard Warne, Senior Portfolio Manager at Copia, explores the challenges and opportunities ahead.

Donald Trump’s return to the White House was always likely to create uncertainty. His re-election alongside a host of economic and geopolitical factors contributed to a changeable trading environment.

Nevertheless, despite pockets of volatility, most major asset classes have performed well. For us, it’s been a year where narrative-driven investing, prudent protection and thoughtful diversification have all played a role in delivering strong performances across our portfolio range…

Our Short-Dated Bond Portfolio (SDBP) has just passed its three-year anniversary. Looking back on performance, the team and I are very proud that it’s delivered on our core objective to provide steady and better-than-cash returns with low levels of risk and volatility…

In the previous blogs, we looked at how managed portfolio services (MPS) have proliferated as advice firms seek to improve efficiency and mitigate the compliance burden while maximising value for clients. Yet standard models are becoming increasingly commoditised, leaving some firms feeling they are surrendering control to an off-the-shelf solution that looks broadly the same as everyone else’s.

How can firms combine adviser insight and value with DFM expertise, scale and governance?

While the concept of custom MPS is gaining traction, many advisers worry about what this means on a practical basis. Are you just adding risk without control? Where do responsibilities start and finish? Tony Hicks demystifies the process in part two of his series on custom portfolios.

Recently there’s been a lot of commentary on a potential bubble in AI. Some suggest challenges lie ahead for those exposed to US equity, where elevated valuations are concentrated in AI-related stocks. Others say that investing is worthwhile to fuel innovation in a revolutionary technology. While discussions around a bubble are important, one thing that’s missing is a reminder about investing basics when it comes to assessing US exposure. Several factors suggest being underweight in the US is sensible: the nature of current valuations, underlying economic conditions and other metrics that indicate the AI narrative is largely driven by speculation…