Manulife Mutual Funds today announced a number of enhancements to its simplified prospectus, including the introducion of two new funds.

“These additions and enhancements provide Canadians with additional sources of diversification and access to top-ranked investment management.” says Jeff Ray, assistant vp.

Two new funds

Manulife Global Opportunities Balanced Fund combines two existing Manulife Mutual Funds, Manulife Global Opportunities Class and Manulife Strategic Income Fund. The new fund will have a target asset mix of 60-80% equities and the balance in fixed income or money market securities. The equity component will invest in securities located anywhere in the world and will be based on the successful strategy used in the Manulife Global Opportunities Class. The fixed-income portion of the fund may be a combination of direct and indirect investments. The indirectly invested fixed-income component of the fund will initially be comprised of securities of the Manulife Strategic Income Fund which provides exposure to global fixed-income securities.

Manulife Global Natural Resources Fund will seek to provide long term capital appreciation by investing in companies involved in global natural resource industries, or that supply goods and services to these industries. The fund was launched Aug. 24, 2007 but until now, was only available to institutional investors.

Enhancements to Simplicity Portfolios

Manulife says its Simplicity Portfolios will be undergoing several enhancements, including the addition of four new funds:

  • Manulife Canadian Fixed Income Fund, sub-advised by Addenda Capital
    Inc.;
  • Manulife Canadian Large Cap Growth Fund, sub-advised by Greystone Managed Investments Inc.;
  • Manulife Canadian Equity Value Fund, sub-advised by Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd.;
  • Manulife U.S. Diversified Growth Fund, sub-advised by Wellington Management Company, LLP.

Elite T Series and Series T

Designed to help provide tax-efficient income and price flexibility to high-net-worth clients, Manulife Mutual Funds Elite T Series combines the best attributes of Series T with the reduced management fees and customizable advisor fees available in Elite Series.

Manulife has also launched a customized cash flow option to Series T and Elite T Series funds, allowing investors to customize their monthly cash flow up to a fund’s maximum payout rate of 6% or 8%. The group of 13 Series T and Elite T Series funds provide attractive investment options for investors seeking tax-efficient monthly income.

Dollar-Cost Averaging plan

The Dollar Cost Averaging Plan now allows investors to switch money from the Manulife Money Fund into any other Manulife Fund on a regular basis. Switching may only be made to another fund within the same Series and sales charge option, if applicable. Investments may be made on a monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or annual basis.

Automatic Rebalancing Service

A revised Automatic Rebalancing Service allows investors to rebalance their portfolios on a selected frequency (quarterly, semi-annual or annual) if one or more of their investments varies from the target allocation by more than the client’s selected variance. This new service will replace any existing rebalancing service offered by Manulife Mutual Funds.