Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund

Eco energy - pollution control - clean water

Pick up a newspaper, switch on the television, watch the news – the environment is featured on a daily basis. Climate change is heating up political and social agendas. And as the world cleans up, it means big business for selected firms in the environmental technology sector.

The Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund targets selected firms within the themes of eco energy, pollution control and clean water. All three are key areas in the environmental technology sector which we believe has strong long term growth potential. And we’re not the only ones. According to Ernst and Young, the sector could be worth a staggering $750bn by 2016 – a 650% increase in just eight years.¹ And that’s on top of a sector track record of outperforming major market indices, as shown opposite. Given this anticipated long-term growth trend, valuations of ecotech companies in many areas have considerable appeal right now.

But what’s behind this phenomenal growth potential? The answer is pretty much everybody, from governments to industry to individual consumers, all on a global scale.

At the highest level, there is growing pressure in the form of international and domestic legislation aimed at combating climate change. This legislation shows no signs of abating – directives are actually becoming tighter.

Businesses are also taking action as some of the world’s largest corporations commit to spending hundreds of millions of pounds to develop ecofriendly policies and greener best practice.

Individuals are taking action too. Worldwide, lifestyles are changing as people embrace the importance of protecting the environment. Cumulatively, this global sentiment for change at legislative, corporate and consumer level contributes to a potentially phenomenal rise in demand for environmental technology success stories. And the Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund aims to identify just these.

Allianz Global Investors is well placed to spot companies with potential as the environmental technology sector expands. Our sustainability research team managing the Fund contains a breadth of talent and experience – as evidenced by the phenomenal figure of more than €1.7 billion in assets attracted to the Allianz RCM EcoTrends franchise outside of the UK since its launch. The team is supported by our unique Grassroots® Research platform, a proprietary real-time network of more than 50,000 industry contacts supplemented by independent reporters and investigators who undertake more than 30 studies of a specified company or industry each month.

1 Source: Ernst & Young renewable energy country attractiveness indices.
2 Source: Allianz Global Investors, as at 25 January 2008. GBP, annualised periods, to 25 January 2008.