Important information - the value of investments and the income from them can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest.
Armed conflict overseas and political turmoil at home may have dominated the headlines during the first half of the year, but they did little to deter investors from backing the technology boom, judging by the investment choices of Fidelity’s investment trust customers.
Three trusts that broadly belong in the tech category made our top 10 best-sellers’ list, including one, Polar Capital Technology, in the top spot. The fund’s lead manager, Ben Rogoff, is a big believer in artificial intelligence and has repeatedly rejigged the portfolio to reflect AI’s rapid evolution. Results so far have justified his approach; the trust has risen by 57.7% so far this year and has outperformed its most direct rival, Allianz Technology, whose shares have gained 43%. Please remember past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
But the fund in fifth position in the top 10, Seraphim Space, has beaten them both with a rise of 51.7%, although it was up even more, by 128%, in late May. Enthusiasm about space was boosted by the flotation of SpaceX last month but is also based on the belief that a new ‘space economy’ led by commercial companies rather than governments is in the making.
The other top-10 fund we can loosely call a ‘technology trust’ was Scottish Mortgage in eighth place. The total value of the fund’s holdings, its ‘net asset value’ or NAV, received a boost from SpaceX’s listing thanks to the fund’s very substantial holding in the stock, but the trust’s share price reacted less enthusiastically, with the result that the premium at which the shares traded to the NAV in May has given way to a discount of 6.4% at the time of writing.
The other listed funds in the top 10 reflected the wide range of investment styles of interest to Fidelity’s investment trust customers.
In second position, for example, was Schroder Japan, which invests in a country that had, before the conflict in the Gulf, benefited from the rotation away from American assets that began last year – a rotation that some professional investors expect to resume now that the conflict seems to be over.
The trust is on Fidelity’s Select 50 list of recommended funds and Fundhouse, which compiles the list on our behalf, said the trust’s Japan-based management team took a ‘contrarian’ approach. One headwind for the fund is the persistent weakness of the Japanese currency, which fell to a 40-year low against the US dollar this week. A weak yen means the fund’s returns are worth less when converted into sterling.
City of London, in third place, is different again. Its focus is on generating reliable income from a portfolio of mainly London-listed stocks such as HSBC, Shell and British American Tobacco. Its current yield of 4% (variable and not guaranteed) and 59-year record of dividend increases appeal to income investors. Average annual dividend growth over the past five years is 2.3%.
Income investors will also value the 5.7% yield from fourth-placed International Public Partnerships, which invests in infrastructure assets in sectors such as transport, energy transmission and waste water. This fund is also on our Select 50 list. Fundhouse said: ‘The [management] team is highly experienced, well resourced, locally based and dedicated to infrastructure investing. They tend to invest early in projects and stay invested for the long term.’ The share price has been recovering steadily since March last year and the discount has narrowed to 7.7%.
After Seraphim Space in fifth place came Fidelity Emerging Markets at sixth. The fund is continuing a strong run that has seen it outperform the MSCI Emerging Markets index over the past year, with a gain of 94.6% against 45.9% for the index.
Uniquely for an emerging markets trust, it not only backs companies in which it believes but can bet against those it judges to be struggling, by ‘short-selling’ their shares. For example, at the end of last year it had a slight 1.3% negative net exposure to utilities, mainly because of short positions. Over the year to May, short positions in individual stocks contributed 7 percentage points to the fund’s outperformance.
Next in the top 10 table was Schroder Oriental Income. The fund, another member of our Select 50, invests in companies from across the Asia-Pacific region, in countries such as China, India and Australia, and focuses on those that pay dividends. Fundhouse said: ‘It is run by an Asia expert who has extensive relevant experience, with specialist expertise finding higher-quality dividend payers. He is backed up by an experienced and large group of company analysts, many of whom are based in the region.’ The current yield is 2.7% and the dividend has grown at an annual average of 3.4% over the past five years.
After Scottish Mortgage in eighth place came Law Debenture. This trust has some similarities with City of London – its portfolio of stocks is managed by Janus Henderson and its yield of 3.1% will appeal to some income seekers – but it also, uniquely, owns a professional services business to complement its share portfolio.
Finally came Greencoat UK Wind, an investor in wind farms. Its yield of 8.1% is comfortably the highest in the top 10, although that high figure largely reflects a slump in the share price since the autumn of 2022. While the shares have begun to recover since a low in February, they remain below their level of 10 years ago.
Top 10 best-selling investment trusts on Fidelity Personal Investing in the first half of 2026
- Polar Capital Technology
- Schroder Japan
- City of London
- International Public Partnerships
- Seraphim Space
- Fidelity Emerging Markets
- Schroder Oriental Income
- Scottish Mortgage
- Law Debenture
- Greencoat UK Wind
Source: Fidelity International. Net investment trust sales 1 January to 30 June 2026 for Personal Investors only.
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Important information - investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. Before investing, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about each investment trust. The shares in these investment trusts are listed on the London Stock Exchange and their price is affected by supply and demand. Investment trusts can gain additional exposure to the market, known as gearing, potentially increasing volatility. Overseas investments will be affected by movements in currency exchange rates. Investments in emerging markets can be more volatile than other more developed markets. Reference to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities and is included for the purposes of illustration only. Eligibility to invest in an ISA and tax treatment depends on personal circumstances and all tax rules may change in the future. This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice.
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