Investment Strategies

September 2026 was a difficult month for bonds and a mixed one for equities, yet 20 of the 30 LCI strategies beat their peer composite. A strong US dollar helped the CHF and EUR books and weighed on the USD range.

August was risk-on with very narrow leadership. Korea returned +15.5% and precious metals surged, lifting every multi-asset and fixed-income SE book above its semi-passive twin. Eight of the fifteen SE sleeves beat their benchmark, against four on the S side.

July 2026 was flat-to-down in reference-currency terms for the multi-asset and bond books but positive for equities, yet 25 of the 30 LCI strategies beat their benchmark. European defence and emerging-market equities led; Korea and USD credit dragged. Active-enhanced sleeves outpaced their semi-passive counterparts in every family.

June was a tale of two sleeves. Firm equities and a stronger dollar carried the metals-free S sleeves ahead of benchmark, while a sharp silver and gold sell-off pulled every SE sleeve down — yet all 18 strategies stayed positive year-to-date.

May 2026 was a risk-on month and all 18 LCI strategies posted positive absolute returns. The semi-passive sleeves tracked their benchmarks closely, while the active-enhanced sleeves gave up some relative upside — exactly as the gold and hedging overlay is designed to in a sharp equity rally.

LCI’s April 2026 strategy review highlights a difficult month for active-enhanced (SE) portfolios, mainly due to gold weakness and a newly added European defence ETF position. Despite short-term underperformance versus benchmarks, all strategies remain ahead year-to-date, supported by strong contributions from Korean equities and resilient portfolio positioning.

The 12 months to 31 December 2025 were an equity-driven year for La Côte Invest’s strategies. Global equity carried every sleeve, the active-enhanced sleeves earned a second leg of return from gold, and currency was the dominant relative swing factor — a USD-weakness drag on CHF and EUR sleeves and a tailwind for USD-referenced ones.