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1 Includes net
revenue of 0.23p.
2 Excluding
15,076,424 ordinary shares held in treasury.
3 The Company’s
ongoing charges are calculated as a percentage of average daily net
assets and using the management fee and all other operating
expenses excluding finance costs, direct transaction costs, custody
transaction charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain other
non-recurring items for the year ended 30 November 2023.
In
addition, the Company’s Manager has also agreed to cap ongoing
charges by rebating a portion of the management fee to the extent
that the Company’s ongoing charges exceed 1.25% of average net
assets.
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Commenting
on the markets, Tom Holl and Mark Hume, representing the Investment
Manager noted:
The
Company’s Net Asset Value (NAV) decreased by 7.2% in December
2024(in GBP terms).
Global equity
markets ended lower in December 2024. Positive market momentum from
November faded as US interest rate expectations shifted towards
higher for longer. The US Fed cut rates by 0.25% in December, but
signalled the pace of future rate cuts may be slower, contributing
to a move higher in longer bond yields, as FOMC member inflation
expectations were revised higher. The ECB also cut interest rates
in December 2024, guiding to likely further reductions in 2025.
Political events continued to add to market uncertainty in Europe
as France appointed its fourth prime minister of 2024. Global
equity markets represented by the MSCI All Country World Index
returned -2.4% in December 2024.
Renewable energy
stocks remained under pressure in December on market uncertainty
over possible changes to the US Inflation Reduction Act under a new
administration. Investment in AI data centres and reshoring of
clean tech manufacturing are forecast to drive an increase in US
electricity demand, which is likely to be met by a significant
increase in renewables capacity and other forms of energy.
Hyperscalers have announced large investment in renewable projects
and renewable power purchase agreements and in December, a
hyperscaler announced a strategic partnership to build $20bn of
renewable energy and storage assets by 2030 to be collocated with
data centres.
Energy equities
were broadly lower in December 2024 with an apparent reversal in
market momentum and away from energy, despite oil prices ending the
month higher. Oil demand in China for 2024 has proved weaker than
forecast at the beginning of the year, whilst oil production
continued to increase, notably from the US, Guyana and Canada,
which appeared a contributing factor to the
moves.
The
Brent oil price rose by 0.6%, whilst the WTI oil price rose by
6.1%, ending the month at $75/bbl and $72bbl respectively. The US
Henry Hub natural gas price rose by 7.7% during the month to end at
$3.63/mmbtu.
The
mining sector was impacted by concerns around US tariffs and their
potential implications for global economic growth, particularly in
relation to China. This situation has created uncertainty about the
extent of stimulus measures that China may implement, resulting in
mined commodity prices coming under pressure. During the month, the
base metals were hit the hardest, with nickel, copper and zinc
prices falling by and 3.6%, 2.7% and 5.0% respectively. Elsewhere,
the iron ore (62% fe) price fell by 2.9%. In the precious metals
space, gold and silver prices fell both fell by 1.3%, as the US
dollar strengthened significantly creating a headwind, with the DXY
Index increasing from 105.7 to 108.5. Turning to the companies, we
saw profit-taking in the US-based steel names as interest rate
expectations moved higher.
24
January 2025
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Latest
information is available by typing www.blackrock.com/uk/beri on the
internet, "BLRKINDEX" on Reuters, "BLRK" on Bloomberg or "8800" on
Topic 3 (ICV terminal).
Neither the
contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website
accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other
website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this
announcement.
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