80-20 Investor Best of the Best Selection – July 2026 Update

Commentary

June saw equity markets endure bouts of volatility, driven by a combination of growing AI exhaustion, unexpectedly hawkish interest rate guidance from the US Federal Reserve and quarter-end portfolio rebalancing exacerbated by a liquidity drain from the massive SpaceX IPO. Ultimately the BOTB selection finished in positive territory alongside its benchmarks. Interestingly the tight correlation between the performance of the BOTB (blue line) and the BOTB benchmark (red line), which tracks the impact of the BOTB's underlying asset mix, suggests that it was the asset allocation rather than the performance of individual funds, that had the biggest impact on returns during June. In fact, in the first half of the month exposure to technology and Asian/emerging market stocks was a drag on performance as these markets slumped. However, their rebound in the second half of the month saw the BOTB rebound too.

With the BOTB ending the month where it began, 17 funds have retained their place in July's BOTB.

The table below lists the top-performing funds during June, with US equity funds dominating, along with European equities doing well. It's good to see both Artemis US Select and Artemis SmartGARP European Equity make the cut as both are holdings within my £50k portfolio.

Fund	June 2026 % return
Artemis US Select	4.5
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Value Equity	3.02
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	2.8
Invesco European Focus (UK)	2.66
UBS Global Enhanced Equity Income	2.61

At the other end of the scale, funds with exposure to gold or gold mining stocks struggled, namely both Premier funds. Gold endured a tough month, falling more than 10% during June as US interest expectations were reset and the US dollar strengthened.

Fund	June 2026 % return
CT Global Emerging Market Equity	-1.42
Artemis Global Income	-1.71
Premier Miton Cautious Multi Asset	-2.02
Premier Miton Multi-Asset Growth & Income	-2.56
Schroder European Recovery	-5.2

In terms of asset mix, June's BOTB has shifted, with a reduction in exposure of European equities in favour of US equities. It means that US equities remain the largest equity component of the BOTB, with UK equities still among the smallest. The full asset breakdown can be found at the foot of this article.

Below I list this month's selection in full, with the 17 funds that retained their place in black, while the new additions are in green. As usual, I have included the full list sorted alphabetically by name and then by risk category.

July's Best of the Best Selection - (A-Z by fund name)

(funds unchanged from last month are in black while new additions are in green):

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
abrdn Global Infrastructure Equity	Infrastructure	GB00B6Z39T70	Medium risk
abrdn High Yield Bond	Sterling High Yield	GB0000938844	Lower risk
Allianz Total Return Asian Equity	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1FRQV53	Higher risk
Artemis Global Income	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561	Medium risk
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73	Medium risk
Artemis US Select	North America	GB00BMMV5105	Higher risk
AXA Framlington Global Technology	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00B4W52V57	Higher risk
BNY Mellon Global High Yield Bond	Sterling High Yield	GB00B7KWF216	Lower risk
BNY Mellon Inflation Linked Corporate Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B8HY5051	Lower risk
BNY Mellon US Equity Income	North America	GB00BGV53H32	Medium risk
CG AJ Bell Global Growth	Flexible Investment	GB00BD833W40	Medium risk
Fidelity Emerging Markets	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B9SMK778	Higher risk
Fidelity Japan	Japan	GB00B882N041	Higher risk
Fidelity Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B469J896	Lower risk
Invesco Monthly Income Plus (UK)	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B1W7J204	Lower risk
iShares Pacific ex Japan Equity Index	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B849FB47	Higher risk
L&G Pacific Index Trust	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B0CNGY27	Higher risk
L&G Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B1TWMW95	Lower risk
Liontrust Russia	Specialist	GB00B86WB793	Higher risk
Man High Yield Opportunities Fund	Sterling High Yield	GB00BJK3W057	Lower risk
Ninety One Emerging Markets Equity	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B8HWDL62	Higher risk
Premier Miton Cautious Multi Asset	Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares	GB00B0W1V856	Lower risk
Premier Miton Defensive Multi Asset	Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares	GB00B0525B66	Lower risk
Premier Miton Multi-Asset Growth & Income	Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares	GB00B78H4K93	Medium risk
Schroder QEP Global Active Value	Global	GB00B76V8G74	Medium risk
Scottish Widows High Income Bd	Sterling High Yield	GB00BKYRZ014	Lower risk
T. Rowe Price Global Technology Equity	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00BD446K01	Higher risk
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Value Equity	North America	GB00BD446M25	Medium risk
UBS Global Enhanced Equity Income	Global Equity Income	GB00BL0RSN63	Medium risk
UBS UK Equity Income	UK Equity Income	GB00B4W58959	Medium risk

 

July's Best of the Best Selection - (grouped by risk)

(funds unchanged from last month are in black while new additions are in green):

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
abrdn High Yield Bond	Sterling High Yield	GB0000938844	Lower risk
BNY Mellon Global High Yield Bond	Sterling High Yield	GB00B7KWF216	Lower risk
BNY Mellon Inflation Linked Corporate Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B8HY5051	Lower risk
Fidelity Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B469J896	Lower risk
Invesco Monthly Income Plus (UK)	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B1W7J204	Lower risk
L&G Strategic Bond	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00B1TWMW95	Lower risk
Man High Yield Opportunities Fund	Sterling High Yield	GB00BJK3W057	Lower risk
Premier Miton Cautious Multi Asset	Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares	GB00B0W1V856	Lower risk
Premier Miton Defensive Multi Asset	Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares	GB00B0525B66	Lower risk
Scottish Widows High Income Bd	Sterling High Yield	GB00BKYRZ014	Lower risk
abrdn Global Infrastructure Equity	Infrastructure	GB00B6Z39T70	Medium risk
Artemis Global Income	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561	Medium risk
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73	Medium risk
BNY Mellon US Equity Income	North America	GB00BGV53H32	Medium risk
CG AJ Bell Global Growth	Flexible Investment	GB00BD833W40	Medium risk
Premier Miton Multi-Asset Growth & Income	Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares	GB00B78H4K93	Medium risk
Schroder QEP Global Active Value	Global	GB00B76V8G74	Medium risk
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Value Equity	North America	GB00BD446M25	Medium risk
UBS Global Enhanced Equity Income	Global Equity Income	GB00BL0RSN63	Medium risk
UBS UK Equity Income	UK Equity Income	GB00B4W58959	Medium risk
Allianz Total Return Asian Equity	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1FRQV53	Higher risk
Artemis US Select	North America	GB00BMMV5105	Higher risk
AXA Framlington Global Technology	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00B4W52V57	Higher risk
Fidelity Emerging Markets	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B9SMK778	Higher risk
Fidelity Japan	Japan	GB00B882N041	Higher risk
iShares Pacific ex Japan Equity Index	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B849FB47	Higher risk
L&G Pacific Index Trust	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B0CNGY27	Higher risk
Liontrust Russia	Specialist	GB00B86WB793	Higher risk
Ninety One Emerging Markets Equity	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B8HWDL62	Higher risk
T. Rowe Price Global Technology Equity	Technology & Technology Innovation	GB00BD446K01	Higher risk

 

The funds that dropped out of the Best of the Best Selection

For reference, the funds from last month that dropped out of the 80-20 Investor Best of the Best list are listed below:

Name	Sector	ISIN Code	Risk
Artemis SmartGARP Global Equity	Global	GB00B2PLJP95	Higher risk
BNY Mellon Real Return	Targeted Absolute Return	GB00B8GG4B61	Lower risk
CT Global Emerging Market Equity	Global Emerging Markets	GB00B10SJD63	Higher risk
Fidelity Asia	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B6Y7NF43	Higher risk
Invesco European Focus (UK)	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B28J0Q84	Medium risk
Invesco High Yield (UK)	Sterling High Yield	GB00B3RW7649	Lower risk
M&G Global Strategic Value	Global	GB00B6173L33	Medium risk
Premier Miton UK Multi Cap Income	UK Equity Income	GB00B41NHD71	Medium risk
Royal London Short Duration Credit	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00BJ4KW800	Lower risk
Schroder European Recovery	Europe Excluding UK	GB0007221889	Medium risk
Schroder Global Equity Income	Global Equity Income	GB00B76V7M69	Medium risk
Schroder Tokyo	Japan	GB00B4SZR818	Higher risk
TwentyFour Monument Bond	Specialist	GB00B3V5V897	Lower risk

 

The Asset mix

The current asset mix of the new Best of the Best Selection is shown below with last month's figures in brackets:

• Global Fixed Interest 21% (22%)
• UK Fixed Interest 3% (0%)
• Alternatives 9% (13%) - includes absolute return strategies
• North American Equities 22% (17%)
• Emerging Market Equities 9% (7%)
• Asian Equities 8% (7%)
• European Equities 8% (14%)
• Japanese Equities 4% (5%)
• UK Equities 6% (6%)
• Cash 2% (4%)
• China Equities 0% (0%)
• Property Equities 0% (0%)
• Other International Equities 8% (5%)
• Gilts 0% (0%)
• Commodities and Energy 0% (0%)

80-20 Investor's outperformance continues

As you know the Best of the Best Selection is the shortlist of the best funds highlighted by our 80-20 Investor algorithm split into high, medium and low-risk categories. This shortlist is updated at the start of every month.

The green line in the chart below shows how a portfolio would have performed since inception (in August 2014) if it had been split equally between the Best of the Best Selection funds and then switched each month when each new shortlist was published. I have also charted the performance against that of the average cautious managed fund (blue line) and the average managed fund with up to 85% equity exposure (orange line). In reality, the 80-20 Investor's asset allocation typically lies between these two as it usually has 40-60% exposure to equities at any one time. So they provide a good comparison of how fund managers with a similar remit have fared over the same period.

As you can see, since launch in August 2014 the 80-20 Investor BOTB has outperformed the average managed fund and the market and has doubled in value.

 

 

 

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