1. Overview

    The Worldwide Japanese Fund aims to maximise total return principally through investment in equity securities which are listed, traded or dealt on Regulated Markets in Japan. The Fund’s share price can be volatile due to movements in the prices of the underlying holdings and the basis on which the Fund is priced.

    Performance & Portfolio

    Select currency
    Cumulative Performance
    Created with Highstock 4.2.2Zoom10 Years5 Years3 Years1 YearQuarterWorldwide Japanese Fund - B Acc JPY (in JPY)TOPIXJan 2016Jan 2017Jan 2018Jan 2019Jan 2020Jan 2021Jan 2022Jan 2023Jan 2024Jan 20252014201520162017201820192020202120222023202450.075.0100.0125.0150.0175.0200.0225.0250.0

    Rebased to 100 at the start date of this chart.

    B Acc JPY share class launched on 18 August 2014.

    Past performance is not a guide to future returns. The value of your investment may go down as well as up, and you may not get back the amount you invested.

    Baillie Gifford operates a single swinging price for the Fund and, therefore, may apply a dilution adjustment to the price to protect long-term investors from the costs associated with buying and selling underlying investments that result from other investors joining or leaving the Fund. This adjustment will affect relative performance, either positively or negatively.

    Share class performance converted to chosen currency.

    Source: Baillie Gifford & Co, BBH, Revolution, relevant underlying index provider.

    Annualised Periodic Performance 28/02/2025
    • Month-end
    • Quarter-end
    • Calendar Year
    • 12 Month Performance
    1 Month3 MonthsYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) -3.91 0.20 -1.02 -1.78 6.07 8.30 5.88 7.75
    TOPIX -3.79 0.22 -3.65 2.59 15.27 14.88 8.26 9.79
    Created with Highcharts 4.2.2% p.a.-3.91%0.20%-1.02%-1.78%6.07%8.30%5.88%7.75%-3.79%0.22%-3.65%2.59%15.27%14.88%8.26%9.79%Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY)TOPIX-5-2.502.557.51012.51517.5
    1 Month3 MonthsYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    1 MonthYTD1 Year3 Years5 Years10 YearsSince Inception
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) 1.23 10.04 10.04 1.35 6.31 6.93 7.98
    TOPIX 4.02 20.45 20.45 14.64 12.77 9.54 10.35

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) 7.74 3.98 30.76 -16.63 17.87 21.35 7.53 -19.69 17.81 10.04
    TOPIX 12.06 0.31 22.23 -15.97 18.12 7.39 12.74 -2.45 28.26 20.45

    Performance figures of periods of one year or less have not been annualised.

    31/12/14-31/12/1531/12/15-31/12/1631/12/16-31/12/1731/12/17-31/12/1831/12/18-31/12/1931/12/19-31/12/2031/12/20-31/12/2131/12/21-31/12/2231/12/22-31/12/2331/12/23-31/12/24
    Fund - B Acc - JPY (in JPY) 7.74 3.98 30.76 -16.63 17.87 21.35 7.53 -19.69 17.81 10.04
    TOPIX 12.06 0.31 22.23 -15.97 18.12 7.39 12.74 -2.45 28.26 20.45

     

     

    Top Ten Holdings - 28/02/2025

    Fund %
    1 Sony 6.7%
    2 SoftBank Group 5.4%
    3 SBI Holdings 4.5%
    4 Sumitomo Mitsui Trust 4.2%
    5 Recruit Holdings 3.9%
    6 Keyence 3.8%
    7 MS&AD Insurance 3.5%
    8 Rakuten 3.2%
    9 Nintendo 3.1%
    10 Murata Manufacturing 2.9%
    Total 41.1%
    Sector Analysis 28/02/2025
    Created with Highcharts 4.2.212345

    Fund %

    • 1 Manufacturing 49.14
    • 2 Transport And Communications 14.59
    • 3 Finance & Insurance 14.05
    • 4 Services 12.16
    • 5 Commerce 7.90
    • 6 Real Estate 0.72
    • 7 Cash 1.45
    • Total 100.00

    Totals may not sum due to rounding.

    As well as cash in the bank, this balance includes unsettled cash flows arising from both shareholder flows and outstanding trades. Therefore, a negative balance may arise from timing differences between shareholder flows and security trading and does not necessarily represent a bank overdraft.

    Managers

    Donald Farquharson

    Donald is head of the Japanese Equities Team, which he joined in 2008. He is currently the co-manager for the Japan Growth Strategy, which he has run since its inception, and is also a member of the International Alpha Portfolio Construction Group. Donald joined Baillie Gifford in 2008 and became a partner of the firm in 2017. Donald has over 35 years of investment experience, almost all dedicated to Japan having worked in Tokyo, London and now Edinburgh. Prior to Baillie Gifford, Donald spent 20 years working for Schroders as a Japanese specialist and latterly Head of the Pan Pacific Equity Team. Between 1991 and 1995, he headed Schroders’ research team in Tokyo. He graduated with MA (Hons) in Arabic Studies from the University of St Andrews in 1987 and is a CFA Charterholder.

    Tolibjon Tursunov

    Tolibjon is a founding member of the Baillie Gifford Islamic Equities Strategy and is a co-manager of the Japan Growth Strategy. He joined Baillie Gifford in 2011 and has spent time working on regional as well as large and small cap global equities teams. Prior to joining Baillie Gifford, he worked in the corporate finance department of an FMCG company, before founding a price comparison website in Central Asia covering insurance, banking, and telecom sectors. Tolibjon graduated LLB in Law from Queen Mary University of London in 2008 and is a CFA Charterholder.

    Documents

    You can access any literature about the Fund here, either by downloading or requesting a copy by post (where available).

    To download any document you will need Adobe Reader. Please note that we can now provide you with Braille and audio transcriptions of our literature on request. It may take up to 10 days for the transcription to be completed dependent on the size of the document.

    Key investor information documents (KIIDs)

    Philosophy and process documents

    Quarterly investor reports

    Sustainability-related disclosures and climate reports

    Risks

    Investment markets can go down as well as up and market conditions can change rapidly. The value of an investment in the Fund, and any income from it, can fall as well as rise and investors may not get back the amount invested.

    The specific risks associated with the Fund include:

    Custody

    Custody of assets involves a risk of loss if a custodian becomes insolvent or breaches duties of care.

    Single Country

    The Fund’s exposure to a single market and currency may increase share price movements.

    Foreign Currency

    The Fund has exposure to a foreign currency and changes in the rate of exchange will cause the value of any investment, and income from it, to fall as well as rise and you may not get back the amount invested.

    Volatility

    The Fund’s share price can be volatile due to movements in the prices of the underlying holdings and the basis on which the Fund is priced.

    Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

    The Fund's approach to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) means it cannot invest in certain sectors and companies. The universe of available investments will be more limited than other funds that do not apply such criteria/ exclusions, therefore the Fund may have different returns than a fund which has no such restrictions. Data used to apply the criteria may be provided by third party sources and is based on backward-looking analysis and the subjective nature of non-financial criteria means a wide variety of outcomes are possible. There is a risk that data provided may not adequately address the underlying detail around material non-financial considerations.

    Please consider all of the characteristics and objectives of the fund as described in the Key Information Document (KID) and prospectus before making a decision to invest in the Fund. For more information on how sustainability issues, such as climate change are considered, see bailliegifford.com.

    Further Details

    Further details of the risks associated with investing in the Fund can be found in the Key Information Document (KID), or the Prospectus. Copies of both the KID and Prospectus are available at bailliegifford.com.

    Definitions

    Active Share: A measure of the Fund's overlap with the benchmark. An active share of 100 indicates no overlap with the benchmark and an active share of zero indicates a portfolio that tracks the benchmark.