Monthly Investment Report - June 2025

10 July 2025

RUFFER INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED

(a closed-ended investment company incorporated in Guernsey with registration number 41966)

(the "Company")

Attached is a link to the Monthly Investment Report for June 2025:

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/4154Q_1-2025-7-9.pdf

US equities shrugged off concerns about trade war fallout and an all-too-real 12-day Iran-Israel war to reach all-time highs at the end of June. The fund made further progress over the month, boosted by equities and call options on the S&P 500 Index, the latter held to profit from a resumption of the US/AI-centric rally now in progress. We trimmed cash equities by around 2%, taking profits amidst the continuing market rally. The board have continued their buybacks. Over the second quarter, they have purchased 8 million shares. This brings the year to date total to 31 million shares, or £85.5m, which equates to 9% of the shares outstanding at the start of the year.

The US dollar suffered its worst first half year since 1973, falling by more than 10% against a basket of peers. Even a Gulf war failed to provide a durable lift to the greenback (the US does relatively well in periods of energy crisis thanks to its status as a net energy exporter), reflecting in part investors' desire to hedge more of their US dollar exposure. Many global investors are heavily exposed to US assets, often unhedged in currency terms. Since the credit crunch, the US dollar has been strong, boosted by capital inflows chasing US assets. But it has also been a great offset for overseas investors, rising versus many currencies (eg GBP, EUR) when stocks fall. No such luck this year. It's another sign of the growing instability of previously reliable asset correlations in an era of greater volatility, including of inflation. Both bonds and dollars are likely to be less reliable hedges than in recent decades.

Precious metals exposure - boosted by geopolitical unrest and a weakening dollar - was another performance tailwind. We took profits here, too, across gold mining stocks and silver and platinum bullion. The fund's derivative-based protections and non-sterling foreign exchange exposure (mainly yen) were the primary headwinds as volatility fell and the pound rallied. Equity markets' resilience year to date owes much to plentiful liquidity and monetary easing by central banks globally, plus reduced angst around the more market unfriendly elements of Trump's agenda. DOGE's austerity campaign has been replaced by the tax-cutting, big spending One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which deepens the US fiscal deficit for years to come. Having failed to bring spending under control, Trump has now pivoted to a 'run it hot' attempt to grow out of the excess debt whilst pursuing deregulation to allow banks to hoover up more government bonds. We initiated a small copper position, reflecting a higher chance of a reflationary dynamic into 2026. If current conditions persist, equities could grind higher over the summer. We topped up the fund's S&P call options to reflect this.

But the outlook is mixed. July sees the possible expiry of US tariff pauses; delayed Liberation Day fallout will likely reveal slower growth; US housing looks soggy. And, although passing the OBBBA will resolve the US debt ceiling crisis, it will also trigger a rebuild of the US government's cash balance (Treasury General Account) causing large-scale debt issuance and reducing market liquidity. Simultaneously, Trump is accelerating his campaign against the Federal Reserve under Chair Jay Powell and its failure - in his eyes - to cut rates fast enough. There's talk of a shadow chair to be appointed soon, which could further erode confidence in the US' attractiveness for capital. Consequently, we have bolstered the portfolio's protections, including extra equity put options. Whatever the summer weather, the fund should be well prepared.

Enquiries:

Apex Fund and Corporate Services (Guernsey) Limited

Company Secretary

Nicole Liebenberg

DDI: +44(0)20 3973 3700

Email: [email protected]

LEI: 21380068AHZKY7MKNO47