Uncovering Trusts – Utilico Emerging Markets Trust (UEM): Riding infrastructure megatrends across emerging markets

In this episode, our director of content for investment companies, Milosz Papst, talks about Utilico Emerging Markets Trust (UEM), a specialist investment trust focused on infrastructure and utility companies across emerging markets. He introduces the trust and its managers’ long-term, bottom-up investment approach – a concentrated portfolio of around 70 holdings managed by Charles Jillings and Jacqueline Broers at Bermuda-based ICM. Milosz outlines the portfolio’s four key investment themes: social infrastructure, energy growth and transition, digital infrastructure, and global trade. He discusses the investment case behind each, including highlighted holdings such as Brazilian water utility Sabesp, renewable energy giant AXIA Energia, Chinese data centre operator GDS Group and Philippine port operator International Container Terminal Services.

Turning to performance, Milosz covers the trust’s strong long-term track record, with an annualised NAV total return of close to 10% since launch in 2005 and encouraging more recent results in Q126, supported by the trust’s sizeable Brazil exposure. He also highlights UEM’s progressive dividend policy, noting that the trust is the only AIC Global Emerging Markets fund designated as a next-generation dividend hero, with more than 10 consecutive years of dividend growth.

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About Uncovering Trusts: Uncovering Trusts is a podcast run by Edison analysts, which is released every two weeks. Subscribe to hear analyst interviews on how investment trusts maximise returns while managing risks for investors.