Robeco Life Cycle Fund 2060 F EUR

Ernesto Sanichar is Portfolio Manager and member of the Sustainable Multi Asset team. He responsible for the Robeco Multi Asset funds, Robeco ONE and Defined contribution funds. His asset specialties are fixed income and FX. He has been part of Robeco's Investment Solutions department since 2005. Previously, he was Treasury Manager for four years. Prior to joining Robeco in 2001, Ernesto worked at ING Barings as a Product controller at the cash equities and derivatives desk for three years. Ernesto started his career in the investment industry in 1998. He holds a Master's in Financial Economics from Erasmus University Rotterdam.

The fund is established in Luxembourg and is subject to the Luxembourg tax laws and regulations. The fund is not liable to pay any corporation, income, dividend or capital gains tax in Luxembourg. The fund is subject to an annual subscription tax ('tax d'abonnement') in Luxembourg, which amounts to 0.05% of the net asset value of the fund. This tax is included in the net asset value of the fund. The fund can in principle use the Luxembourg treaty network to partially recover any withholding tax on its income.

The fiscal consequences of investing in this fund depend on the investor's personal situation. For private investors in the Netherlands real interest and dividend income or capital gains received on their investments are not relevant for tax purposes. Each year investors pay income tax on the value of their net assets as at 1 January if and inasmuch as such net assets exceed the investor’s tax-free allowance. Any amount invested in the fund forms part of the investor's net assets. Private investors who are resident outside the Netherlands will not be taxed in the Netherlands on their investments in the fund. However, such investors may be taxed in their country of residence on any income from an investment in this fund based on the applicable national fiscal laws. Other fiscal rules apply to legal entities or professional investors. We advise investors to consult their financial or tax adviser about the tax consequences of an investment in this fund in their specific circumstances before deciding to invest in the fund.

The fund invests a minimum of 80% in other Robeco managed or externally managed funds which are classified under Article 8 or 9 of SFDR and either promote environmental or social characteristics or have sustainable investment as their objective. Sustainability is thus one of the considerations in the fund selection.

The global manufacturing cycle picked up steam. For the first time in six months, the JP Morgan Global Manufacturing indicator moved back towards 50, an indication that manufacturing activity is recovering. The Asia-Pacific region is leading the pack, showing the largest positive macro surprises. The combination of stronger macro data and falling inflation was a goldilocks environment for risky assets. There are questions surfacing about how long this will last, given that inflation data has been persistently 'sticky' and has not fallen as quickly as investors had anticipated. US rate cuts for 2023 have been almost fully priced out. It is also becoming clear that the ECB will need to do more. In short, the peak of the rates cycle has been pushed out. Few asset classes delivered a positive return this month. With a loss of -0.1% in EUR, global equities was one of the best-performing asset classes. Both commodities and emerging market equities lost more than 4%. Global investment grade corporates lost 2.7% and lagged behind government bonds and global high yield.

Based on transaction prices, the fund's return was -0.41%. Developed market equities delivered a loss in February, but were still one of the better performing assets. The better-than-expected data that came out, triggered a move higher in rates, as markets started to expect central banks to increase rates further than initially anticipated, which was painful for bonds. Both corporate debt and government bonds lost value this month. The rise of yields had a greater impact on the Robeco Life Cycle Funds with a shorter maturity. All Robeco Life Cycle Funds lost value this month and returns varied between -0.4% and -1.10%.

The equity exposure of the Life Cycle Funds was neutral during the month.