One that’s done really well for me recently (following three tricky years) is Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE:PHI). It’s invested in growth companies across the Asia Pacific region, and last year it returned nearly 37%.

In 2026, I’d like to diversify my portfolio and get more exposure to Asia. Here’s why.

High-growth region

There are a few key reasons. Firstly, there’s China, which is just too important to be ignored. We’ve already seen Chinese firms rise rapidly in e-commerce (Temu), social media (TikTok), electric vehicles (BYD), and toys (Labubu dolls).

Today, four of the 10-most downloaded apps in the US are Chinese (Temu, TikTok, CapCut, and Chinese-founded Shein). I fully expect other massive global businesses to emerge from China in areas such as semiconductors, sportswear, robotics and pharmaceuticals.

China currently makes up nearly 20% of global GDP but just 3%-or-so of global stock market indices. Even a modest reallocation away from an increasingly unpredictable US over the next decade would likely boost Chinese stocks and therefore Asia-focused funds.

Meanwhile, resilient economies like Vietnam are still growing strongly despite Trump’s tariffs. Indeed, in 2026, Goldman Sachs expects the MSCI Asia Pacific ex-Japan Index to generate 19% growth in earnings per share versus 12% for the S&P 500.

“Investors should look for opportunities for broad geographic exposure, including an increased focus on emerging markets”, the bank said.

Growth trust

But personally, I’m not keen on buying individual Chinese stocks. Instead, I prefer Asia-focused investment trusts that offer me diversified exposure, such as the Pacific Horizon Investment Trust.

As mentioned, it’s focused on growth. Its top holdings are Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Samsung Electronics, the two foundries making most of the advanced AI chips today. Elsewhere, we have TikTok owner ByteDance and copper and lithium giant Zijin Mining Group.

Currently, Pacific Horizon’s trading at an 8.4% discount to its underlying net asset value (NAV). So I’m tempted to buy more shares for my portfolio.

Adding in dividends

However, I’d like to increase my Asia exposure even further, which is why Schroder Oriental Income Fund‘s (LSE:SOI) also caught my eye.

As its name suggests, this one also focuses on dividend-paying firms from the region. As such, we see more mature businesses in the portfolio including Singapore Telecommunications, BOC Hong Kong Holdings, Telstra Group, and NetEase.

Schroder Oriental Income has grown its dividend every year since launch in 2005, and the starting yield today is a respectable 3.4%.

That said, I see concentration risk here with these two trusts. They both have TSMC as their top position with a massive 13% weighting. If the chipmaker’s shares sell off aggressively, then performance could suffer for both.

I also hold TSMC shares, so this increases the risk for my own portfolio. And another sudden round of punitive tariffs on Asia from President Trump also can’t be ruled out.

Schroder Oriental Income, which is trading at a 3.7% discount to NAV, reports its half-year results in February. If I still like what I read then, I plan to open a position in the trust.

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Essentially then, an investor can buy £1 worth of investments for, say, 90p. If that gap later closes, this can boost returns. Of course, it can also widen, so there’s risk as well as opportunity. In other words, no free lunch!

Here are three investment trusts trading at a discount that I think are worth a closer look today.

Asia growth

First up, we have Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE:PHI) from the FTSE 250. This one aims to achieve capital growth through Asian stocks (excluding Japan).

Top holdings include Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC), Samsung Electronics, Tencent, ByteDance, and Sea Limited. These companies provide exposure to plenty of era-defining trends, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), e-commerce, cloud computing, fintech, and the energy transition through miners Zijin Mining and MMG.

Long-term performance has been excellent. The trust has returned 368% over the past 10 years, versus just 163% for its benchmark (the MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index).

I mention the long term because I think that’s the best time horizon with this trust. But in the near term, there could be some turbulence from tariffs, negatively impacting the performance of some holdings.

Over the next two decades though, the Asia Pacific region is expected to drive most global growth, supported by favourable demographics and the unstoppable rise of its global middle class.

Right now, investors can pick up shares of Pacific Horizon for 760p, which represents a 9.5% discount to NAV.

Asia income

Sticking with this theme, we have Schroeder Oriental Income Fund (LSE:SOI). Despite a share price rise of 20% this year, there’s still a 4.6% discount to NAV.

As the name implies, this one focuses on income rather than out-and-out growth. Therefore, the holdings are from more mature industries such as banks (Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp and DBS Group) and telecommunications (Singapore Telecommunications and Australia’s Telstra).

The same risk applies here, with President Trump’s tariffs on Asian imported goods causing massive uncertainty. But I think the same rewards apply, with the added potential bonus of a rising income stream.

Indeed, the FTSE 250 trust has grown its payout every year since launch in 2005. The dividend yield currently starts at a respectable 3.65%.

Asian companies are increasingly world-leading and returning cash to shareholders. The Schroder Oriental Income Fund aims to tap into the Asian income story.

Schroder Oriental Income Fund.

Top hedge fund

Finally, turning to the FTSE 100, I want to highlight Pershing Square Holdings (LSE:PSH). This trust gives exposure to the hedge fund strategies of billionaire Bill Ackman.

Now in this case, I think some level of discount might be justified. That’s because Pershing manages a highly concentrated portfolio of 10-12 stocks. Arguably, this is a conviction bet on Ackman’s skill.

However, the 27.4% discount looks excessive, especially as Ackman appears to have lost none of his stock-picking skill. For example, Alphabet‘s up around 150% since Pershing started loading up in Q1 2023. Uber‘s also flying (+35% since early February when Ackman announced a position).

For investors interested in a top-performing hedge fund, I think the stock’s worth digging into.

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Here, I’ll highlight two that I think deserve closer attention. 

FTSE 100

Let’s start with the largest by far, which is HSBC (LSE:HSBA). In recent years, the FTSE 100 banking giant has been shedding western assets to focus on Asian markets like India and mainland China.

In particular, HSBC has its eyes on higher revenue from wealth management in the region. Last year, HSBC’s wealth revenues in Asia soared 32% year on year, contributing $47bn of the $64bn in net new invested assets.

In India, it has been approved to open bank branches in 20 new cities. Management says this will expand the wealth opportunity. 

Naturally, the lender faces competition in the region. And some of these growth markets can be very volatile, especially with global trade uncertainties persisting. Falling interest rates in the West will also put pressure on the net interest margin.

However, Asian wealth management is a very lucrative long-term opportunity worth pursuing. Hong Kong, which is HSBC’s most profitable market, is set to overtake Switzerland as the world’s biggest cross-border wealth hub by 2030 (possibly sooner). 

Over the medium term, HSBC is aiming to grow wealth fees by double-digits.

Despite the stock being near an all-time high, the valuation doesn’t look particularly stretched. The forward price-to-earnings multiple is 9.2, while there’s a 5% dividend yield on offer.

I reckon HSBC stock is well worth considering today.

FTSE 250

For more diversity, investors might want to consider Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE:PHI). This FTSE 250 trust offers exposure to dozens of growth companies across the region (excluding Japan).

The portfolio today looks really strong to me. The top spot goes to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s biggest semiconductor foundry, which makes chips for Apple and Nvidia. It’s expected to post 30% revenue growth this year.

Also among the top 10 holdings is Delhivery, a leading Indian logistics company, and Singapore’s Sea Limited, which operates Southeast Asia’s leading e-commerce platform (Shopee).

Meanwhile, ByteDance and PDD Holdings have experienced incredible international growth with TikTok and Temu, respectively.

Over 10 years, the trust’s outperformance has been cracking: 264% versus 126% for the MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index.

However, it’s worth point out that I do expect volatility in the coming months. President Trump’s tariffs haven’t been fully felt yet, but it could be severe for Asian economies that rely on western exports (Vietnam, for example).

But by 2050, around a third of the global population will live in just China and India. Success in these massive economies should make scaling globally far easier, raising the likelihood of more TikTok-esque giants emerging from Asia.

The stock is up 17% year to date, but remains 29% off a 2021 peak. The shares are also trading at a 10% discount to net asset value.

With more institutional capital expected to flow to Asia in future, I expect this well-managed investment trust to perform well.

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Here are three from the mid-cap index that I think are worth digging into.

USA

The first is Allianz Technology Trust (LSE: ATT), which “offers investors access to the fast moving world of technology, the single greatest contributor to global growth.”

The top holdings are unlikely to shock anyone, comprising the likes of Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and chipmaker Nvidia. While these all have commanding competitive positions, they also relentlessly invest for future growth. So there’s nothing stopping them from becoming even larger.

One thing I like here is the management team’s close proximity to Silicon Valley, where many of the world’s key technology companies — both today’s and likely future — are based. As a result, we see less-well-known tech stocks like Cloudflare and AppLovin in the portfolio.

Naturally, this concentration in predominantly US tech stocks adds risk. The trust would perform badly were this sector to sell off, as happened in 2022. The Allianz Technology share price crashed around 40% in just six months back then.

Since those lows though, the stock has doubled.

Core investment themes include artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and cybersecurity. All three are likely to become more important over the next decade.

The trust is currently trading at a 9% discount to net asset value (NAV).

Global mining

Next up is BlackRock World Mining Trust (LSE: BRWM). This holds mining stocks involved in producing copper, steel, gold, silver, and much else.

The five largest holdings today are Vale, Agnico Eagle Mines, BHP, Rio Tinto, and Wheaton Precious Metals.

Recent performance has been strong, with the shares up nearly 20% year to date. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that volatility might be on the horizon, as tariffs work their way through the system.

After all, mining stocks are usually the first to sell off aggressively if there’s any whiff of the global economy slowing down.

Investors buying today are being offered a 4% dividend yield to sit out any volatility. Longer term, the key growth theme in the portfolio is the global energy transition, which will need copious amounts of copper, steel and nickel.

Asia Pacific

Finally, something a little bit different with Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE: PHI). This one invests in growth stocks across Asia (excluding Japan).

At the end of June, the top five holdings were Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC), Tencent, Samsung Electronics, SK Square, and TikTok owner ByteDance. The largest geographical allocations were China (30%), Taiwan (15.6%), and India (14.6%).

Again, tariffs are a risk here. We don’t yet know the damage these have done to manufacturing hubs in Asia, particularly Vietnam.

Despite this, Asia is widely tipped to drive a large chunk of global economic growth over the next 20 years. Indeed, it’s projected that two out of every three people in the global middle class will be Asian by 2030.

The share price remains 32% below its November 2021 peak, while the NAV discount is 10.5%. This suggests to me that now might be a great time to consider investing.

The post 3 top FTSE 250 investment trusts to consider buying today  appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

US growth

First up is Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust (LSE: USA), which pretty much does what it says on the tin.

However, what separates this from similar trusts is the ability to invest up to 50% of assets in private growth companies. Today, unlisted firms make up 37% of the portfolio.

Admittedly, this adds extra risk because these can be harder to value. Also, by definition, they tend to be less mature enterprises, meaning there’s greater risk of some going bust.

However, the trust only needs to back a small handful of generational private companies to do well long term. One is SpaceX, the rocket and satellite internet pioneer that is today the largest holding. It’s up tenfold in value since 2018!

Beyond this, the trust is invested in loads of top-tier public companies that I expect to be larger in future. These range from internet payments firm Stripe to streaming juggernaut Netflix and language learning leader Duolingo. Other tech names include Amazon and Meta.

Just as the US led the way during the rise of the internet, it is doing so again with generative AI. We think this new technology is consequential and will usher in a period of change on a scale that we haven’t seen since the industrial revolution.

Baillie Gifford US Growth, January 2025

The trust’s shares are currently trading at an 8% discount to net asset value, which I think looks attractive. It continues to buy back shares in an attempt to control the discount.

Asia growth

The second trust is another from Baillie Gifford, namely Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE: PHI). The managers aim to invest in the top 20% of the fastest-growing companies in Asia.

Now, words like ‘Pacific’ and ‘Asia’ might immediately ring alarm bells because of all the uncertainty around global trade. The trust has 31% invested in China, the world’s second-largest economy, and another 9% in Vietnam. Both could be hit hard by US tariffs, assuming they stay punishingly high.

That said, now is arguably a great time to consider investing for the long run. Asian companies and economies are still likely to become much more influential in future, despite President Trump’s best efforts.

Just look at China’s BYD (not a holding), which is overtaking Tesla in selling EVs. Or Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s leading maker of advanced chips. It is Pacific Horizon’s largest holding. I doubt such firms’ upwards trajectory will be permanently impaired by US tariffs.

Combining Asia’s favourable macroeconomic position with its structurally faster growth rates and valuations at multi-year lows relative to developed markets, Asia ex Japan appears to be in a sweet spot. 

Pacific Horizon, March 2025

Pacific Horizon also offers exposure to India (16.8%) and Korea (10.6%), as well as strategically important firms like Zijin Mining (one of China’s largest producers of gold and copper).

Again, the shares trade at a discount to NAV (9.2%). I think they’re worth a look for a SIPP.

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But is the stock now worth considering for long-term investors? Let’s explore.

At a glance

Pacific Horizon’s managed by Baillie Gifford and invests in high-growth companies across the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan). It takes a long-term approach and isn’t afraid to back emerging companies that it thinks could be potential disruptors. 

Having said that, the portfolio’s largest holdings today are mainly heavyweights. These include Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC), Tencent, Samsung Electronics, and TikTok owner ByteDance.

Up to 15% of total assets can be invested in private companies, such as ByteDance. In March, Pacific Horizon held five unlisted firms, which together accounted for 8.5% of the portfolio.

Half-year results

Recently, the trust released underwhelming interim results for the six months to 31 January. While its net asset value (NAV) rose 3%, the share price fell 4%, with the NAV discount widening from 7.8% to 14.2%. This meant it underperformed the MSCI Asia ex Japan Index (6.7%). 

China performed strongly, as the government moved aggressively to support the economy. However, the trust’s lack of Chinese banks weighed on returns, as did limited exposure to top-performing Chinese tech stocks like Xiaomi, Meituan and Alibaba. 

Elsewhere, Taiwan’s semiconductor sector benefitted from surging AI demand, while its holding in Sea Limited (owner of the Shopee app and Free Fire game) surged over 90%. Unfortunately though, losses in South Korea (especially Samsung Electronics) and India hurt performance. 

Longer-term horizon

As a long-term investor, I don’t read too much into six-month periods. Chinese banks aren’t the sort of stocks I’d expect to see in the growth-oriented portfolio.

That said, the returns over one and three years are also below the benchmark. So longer-term underperformance looks to be creeping in.

Zooming further out though, the five- and 10-year returns are more than double the index’s (up to 31 March). But a return to form is needed soon before investors start losing faith.

Tariffs uncertainty

Pacific Horizon has nearly 34% of assets in China and around 16% in India. It thinks China has vast long-term potential due to very low valuations and more than $10trn in Chinese household savings accumulated since the pandemic.

It also said that “Vietnam remains the best structural growth story in Asia, driven by its successful export manufacturing base“. The weighting to Vietnam is roughly 10%.

However, a full-blown global trade war would certainly cause pain all round, especially for Vietnam and Pacific Horizon’s portfolio. So there are plenty of near-term risks.

Nevertheless, 1.1bn people in South Asia alone are yet to access the internet! And in just one generation, Asia’s middle class is set to be larger than the entire populations of Europe and the US combined.

Whether it’s TikTok in social media, BYD in electric vehicles, or DeepSeek with AI, Asian companies are gaining in global prominence. I don’t think Trump’s tariffs will stop this trend from continuing long term.

With the stock down 42% since late 2021, and now trading at a 9.5% discount to NAV, I think Pacific Horizon’s worth considering for patient investors.

The post Down 42% since 2021! Should investors consider this FTSE 250 trust? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

Why Asia? Well, e-commerce is booming across the region as disposable incomes rise. And by 2050, four of the world’s seven largest economies are forecast to be there.

Therefore, I reckon large institutional investors will allocate more of their funds to the region over time, potentially boosting the value of its markets.

Here are three FTSE stocks to consider buying to get some high-quality exposure.

A ready-made portfolio

First up, I’d go with Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE:PHI). This Baillie Gifford-managed trust from the FTSE 250 oversees a diverse portfolio of stocks from all over Asia Pacific (excluding Japan).

This gives instant and broad-based exposure to India and China, as well as countries like Vietnam and Indonesia that are experiencing rapid economic development and urbanisation.

Top holdings include Samsung Electronics, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, and Indiabulls Real Estate.

Performance has been great. Over the five years to 31 July 2023, the net asset value (NAV) and share price total return were 82.4% and 62.4% respectively, versus 14.1% for the MSCI All Country Far East Index.

I already have some Pacific Horizon shares in my portfolio, but I’d like to buy more. One risk here though is that the shares can trade at a discount to the fund’s underlying NAV. Currently, the discount is 9.8%, which I think offers great value, but there’s no guarantee it will narrow. It could even widen.

Asia-focused banking

Next up, I’m going to highlight HSBC Holdings (LSE:HSBA). While the FTSE 100 banking giant has its roots in Asia, it’s deliberately increasing its presence there today to capitalise on the region’s growth potential.

It has sold off operations in France and North America, while expanding its wealth management services in the East to cater to the growing middle class and high-net-worth individuals.

Mind you, it does face plenty of competition in this space, especially in China, where adverse regulations can quickly arise. Plus, China’s economy isn’t firing on all cylinders right now, which could drag on earnings growth.

Still, the bank estimates that the number of millionaires across Asia is set to more than double from about 30m in 2022 to over 76m by 2030. So this seems a smart strategic pivot from a growth perspective.

The stock is trading very cheaply and offering a 7.1% dividend yield. I’ve been buying in recent months.

Cheap insurance play

Finally, there’s Prudential (LSE:PRU). Shares of the Asia-focused insurer have fallen 46% over the past five years. This has left them trading on a very cheap forward earnings multiple of just 9.4.

Admittedly, the firm has a lot of exposure to Hong Kong and China. If economic conditions worsen there and earnings fall, the share price could head even lower.

Nevertheless, I’ve been weighting up this stock for some time now. It looks dirt cheap relative to its long-term prospects and carries a 2.4% dividend yield.

Penetration rates for insurance products in many Asian countries are still low compared to developed markets. This presents a significant growth opportunity for Prudential as insurance demand rises.

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It also said there had been an almost 31% rise in early bird savers maxing out their annual ISA allowance!

Emma Wall, head of investment analysis and research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Investor confidence is clearly alive and kicking – and while the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite, early bird stats show investors are prioritising making their savings as tax efficient as possible.”

The firm classes early bird clients as those who invest in the first 10 days of the tax year, up to and including 15 April.

The top 10 investments

Here’s what these ISA investors have been buying:

The four key investing themes here are global funds, India, technology, and financial stocks.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a spare £20k knocking about to immediately max out my allowance. I say ‘unfortunate’, but I actually prefer to spread my investments across the year.

This way, I don’t have to worry about the market tanking straight after I invest my £20k. I can take advantage of opportunities in my ISA as and when they arise.

India on my mind

Looking at that quartet of investing themes, which interests me the most?

Well, I already hold a load of US tech stocks. And I’ve been adding HSBC shares to my ISA to sit alongside Lloyds and Bank of Georgia.

I’ve also been buying Aviva and Legal & General shares for the high-yield dividends. So I have tonnes of exposure to the financial sector.

However, India does interest me. Its economy grew 6.5% in 2022 then another 7.7% last year. That was the highest annual growth rate among G20 countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Over the next three years, India is tipped to become the third-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $5trn. So it doesn’t surprise me that savvy investors are allocating to India. I’d like to do the same.

My pick

I’ll have to dig into the Jupiter India fund to see what I’m missing. But my preferred strategy is to get broad-based Asia exposure.

One stock I hold is Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE: PHI). This FTSE 250 fund aims to achieve capital growth by investing across the Asia-Pacific region (excluding Japan) and the Indian subcontinent.

As of 31 March, Pacific Horizon had nearly 28% of total assets in India. So there is a fair bit of exposure here, but then also China (22.1%) and Korea (9.4%) too. I like this diversification.

Top holdings include Samsung Electronics, TSMC, and Indian logistics firm Delhivery.

One risk here is the potential for wild swings in regional currencies. This could impact the value of the trust’s assets.

However, it has easily outperformed its benchmark (the MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index) over the long term. As of 31 March, it had returned 256.8% over 10 years versus the index’s 104.8%.

Of course, past performance is no guarantee of future returns, but this stellar record gives me great faith in the managers. I plan to increase my India exposure through buying more Pacific Horizon shares.

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High-quality UK stocks

I think Finsbury Growth and Income Trust (LSE: FGT) is a great way to capture the growth of some exceptional UK-listed firms.

The trust is managed by Nick Train, who uses a bottom-up stock picking approach to assess the fundamentals of an individual business.

Five Largest Holdings (to 31 March)

The portfolio is extremely concentrated, with 83.5% of assets in just 10 stocks. So there’s a risk this high-conviction investing style produces periods of underperformance if certain big holdings struggle.

However, the trust’s long-term performance has been exceptional, more than doubling the 10-year return of its FTSE All-Share Index benchmark.

I expect Diageo, RELX, and Burberry all to do very well over the next decade. Each is truly global, with substantial growth opportunities.

The manager has a multi-decade investing horizon, which matches my own. If I didn’t already own many of the holdings in my own portfolio, I’d add this trust to my ISA today.

The ongoing charge is 0.60%.

Global mining

My second pick is BlackRock World Mining Trust (LSE: BRWM). As the name suggests, the trust runs a diversified portfolio of global mining stocks.

My investing thesis here is that the decarbonisation of the global economy will take many decades and need a massive amount of raw materials. That includes iron ore for wind turbines, lithium for electric vehicle batteries, and copper for electrical wiring.

All of this is covered by the mining companies held in the portfolio. Top holdings include copper giants BHP Group and Rio Tinto.

Global mining has been beset by underinvestment for a long time. That means there will likely be global shortages of metals (particularly copper), which should translate into higher prices and earnings.

As well as the potential for major growth, there’s also a juicy 5.9% dividend. Growth and income is the sweet spot for me, and I reckon this trust offers both in spades. It’s why I own it.

One thing worth considering is that the mining sector can be very volatile, causing large swings in the trust’s share price.

The ongoing charge is 1.06%.

Rapid Growth

Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE: PHI) invests in the Indo-Pacific region (excluding Japan). Top holdings include Samsung and Ping An Insurance.

Asia is the fastest growing region in the world. Indeed, it’s expected to contribute more than half of global growth in the next few decades.

This investment is an ideal vehicle for me to get exposure to this rapid growth. That said, around a third of assets are invested in China, which creates risk if its relations with the US worsen.

One thing I like about the trust is that it invests wherever it sees opportunities. It’s not just the tech sector. Therefore mining and energy stocks are well represented in the portfolio. This provides welcome balance and I like the low-cost 0.74% fee.

Finally, the shares are trading at a 9.8% discount to the net asset value (NAV) of the trust. I’ve been buying recently.

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A fallen FTSE 100 star

Down 45%, Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (LSE: SMT) was one of the worst performers on the FTSE 100 last year. Yet there are a couple of reasons why I’m bullish on the shares over the next 10 years.

Firstly, a decade is a long time. It’s long enough for developing trends to go mainstream and for once-unprofitable companies to start generating substantial earnings. That’s where Scottish Mortgage’s strength lies. The long term. The managers ask investors to judge their performance over a five to 10-year period.

The trust has had great success over a long period. It found the likes of Nvidia, Tesla, and Amazon early on and generated large returns.

However, this style of investing is currently out of favour. That might not change for a while. But I think that risk is now priced into the stock, as it’s currently trading at a 10% discount to its estimated net asset value (NAV).

That means that the stock is potentially undervalued — for the first time in many years. As such, I’m ready to snap up some more shares for my pension portfolio.

Growth squared

Pacific Horizon Investment Trust (LSE: PHI) invests in the Asia-Pacific region (excluding Japan). This is the fastest growing part of the world, driven by an expanding middle-class and major exporting hubs.

The trust aims to invest in the top 20% of the fastest growing companies in the region. It summarises this approach as ‘Growth²’. That is, growth (of companies) multiplied by growth (of the region).

However, I like that this isn’t a pure tech fund. It also owns mining and energy stocks, which brings balance.

Top 10 Holdings

One risk is that of a further outbreak of Covid across Asia. China has experienced fresh waves of the virus recently and there’s every possibility it could spread further as travel opens back up.

Even so, I’m less worried about this over a 10-year horizon. Rather than Covid, I believe that the rapid development of the Asia-Pacific region will be the most important long-term factor.

Powerful tailwinds

The final stock I’d buy is BlackRock World Mining Trust. It targets both income and capital growth through investments in mining and metal shares. The stock has a dividend yield of 6%.

The portfolio is exposed to a range of compelling long-term themes, such as decarbonisation and digitalisation. Copper, iron ore, and lithium are all central to these trends, and all are well represented in the portfolio.

I think this trust is the safest way for me to gain exposure to these trends. Top holdings include BHP, Glencore, and Rio Tinto.

One risk is that mining stocks can be very volatile. However, over a decade-long period, I believe the trend will be upwards.

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