Robeco Indian Equities F EUR

Indian equities rose 3.7% (in USD terms), outperforming the MSCI APxJ/EM by 1.7%/+1.6% in December. The INR ended at ~74.34/USD, appreciating 1.1% in December. The performance of mid caps (+2.5%) was in line with large caps (+2.5%), while small caps (+4.1%) outperformed significantly, reflecting the dominance of retail investors. IT, industrials and materials ended the month higher, while communication services, financials and energy were notable laggards in December. FIIs remained net sellers (-USD 1.8 bln, following USD 0.8 bln in November), but the trend seems to have reversed, based on the data so far, this month. DII buying continued, recording a tenth successive month of positive inflows (+USD 4.1 bln). Belying market pricing of a reverse repo rate hike, the RBI kept all policy rates on hold and continued with its voluntary liquidity draining strategy. Importantly, the Governor and MPC's statements repeatedly focused on the need for a more durable recovery, underscoring the policy bias towards growth.

The fund is allowed to pursue an active currency policy to generate extra returns.

The fund does not distribute dividend; any income earned is reinvested.

The fund incorporates sustainability in the investment process through exclusions, ESG integration, engagement and voting. The fund does not invest in issuers that are in breach of international norms or where activities have been deemed detrimental to society following Robeco's exclusion policy. Financially material ESG factors are integrated in the bottom-up investment analysis to assess existing and potential ESG risks and opportunities. In the stock selection the fund limits exposure to elevated sustainability risks. In addition, where a stock issuer is flagged for breaching international standards in the ongoing monitoring, the issuer will become subject to engagement. Lastly, the fund makes use of shareholder rights and applies proxy voting in accordance with Robeco's proxy voting policy.

Robeco Indian Equities is an actively managed fund that invests in stocks listed on the major Indian stock exchanges. The selection of these stocks is based on fundamental analysisThe fund's objective is to achieve a better return than the index. The fund promotes ESG (i.e. Environmental, Social and corporate Governance) characteristics within the meaning of Article 8 of the European Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation and integrates ESG and sustainability risks in the investment process. In addition, the fund applies an exclusion list on the basis of controversial behavior, products (including controversial weapons, tobacco, palm oil and fossil fuel) and countries, next to voting and engaging. The fund focuses on largecap stocks, supplemented by select high-conviction midcap stocks. Managed by our Asia-Pacific team in Hong Kong, the fund combines the market expertise of local Indian investment adviser Canara Robeco (Mumbai) with Robeco's operational strength as an international asset manager.The majority of stocks selected through this approach will be components of the Benchmark, but stocks outside the Benchmark index may be selected too. The fund can deviate substantially from the weightings of the Benchmark. The fund aims to outperform the Benchmark over the long run, whilst still controlling relative risk through the applications of limits (on countries, currencies and sectors) to the extent of deviation from the Benchmark. This will consequently limit the deviation of the performance relative to the Benchmark. The Benchmark is a broad market weighted index that is not consistent with the ESG characteristics promoted by the fund.

Monitored by an independent department in Rotterdam, risk management is fully integrated into the investment process to ensure that positions always meet predefined guidelines.