Toronto-based Mackenzie Financial Corp. has launched Mackenzie Universal Gold Bullion Class Fund, which will invest 80%-100% of its assets under management in gold bullion and/or permitted gold certificates. The fund may also invest, directly or indirectly, in silver, platinum, palladium and/or equity securities of companies that produce or supply precious metals. Lead manager for the fund is Benoît Gervais, vice president of investments at Mackenzie, who has 10 years of natural resources investment and industry experience. Gervais is also lead manager of Mackenzie Universal Precious Metals and Mackenzie Universal World Precious Metals Class funds. He will be supported by Fred Sturm, executive vice president and chief investment strategist with Mackenzie. In addition, the new bullion fund is part of Mackenzie’s Capitalcorp structure and offers investors the ability to switch between Mackenzie Universal Gold Bullion Class and more than 50 other Capitalcorp funds on a tax-deferred basis. Mackenzie Universal Gold Bullion Class is available in both Canadian and U.S.-dollar versions. Advisor commissions for front-end sales are 0%-5%; 5% for deferred sales; and 2.5% for the low-load option. Redemption fees begin at 5.5% in Year 1 and end at zero in Year 7 of the regular DSC schedule. Trailing commissions are 1% for front-end sales; 0.5% for the first seven years of deferred sales and 1% thereafter; and 0.5% for the first three years of low-load sales and 1% thereafter. Management fees are 1.85% for A-class units and 0.85% for F-class units. Minimum investment is $500.

Name changes at Dynamic

Toronto-based Goodman & Co. Investment Counsel Ltd. has renamed four of its Dynamic mutual funds. Dynamic Focus+ Diversified Income Fund becomes Dynamic Equity Income Fund; Dynamic Focus+ Energy Income Trust Fund becomes Dynamic Energy Income Fund; Dynamic Focus+ Small Business Fund becomes Dynamic Small Business Fund; and Dynamic Focus+ Real Estate Fund becomes Dynamic Global Real Estate Fund, which better reflects its global mandate. Goodman’s equities income team is led by Oscar Belaiche, vice president and portfolio manager, and includes portfolio managers Jason Gibbs and Andrew Taylor, as well as senior portfolio strategist John Harris.

PH&N launches two funds

Toronto-based RBC Phillips Hager & North Investment Counsel Inc. has introduced two new offerings for investors: PH&N Monthly Income Fund and PH&N Canadian Equity Value Fund. PH&N Monthly Income Fund is designed to meet the needs of investors seeking a reliable income stream by drawing on a stable, conservative mix of income-producing investments, including Canadian government bonds, Canadian corporate bonds and conservative high-yield bonds. With an emphasis on conservatism, the fund seeks to offer investors a target annual distribution of 5%. PH&N Canadian Equity Value Fund extends PH&N’s offerings in the Canadian equities arena and offers investors the opportunity for additional style diversification within the domestic market, says RBC PH&N. This fund will focus on providing downside protection while generating long-term returns for inves-tors. Management fees are 0.65% for F-class units of PH&N Monthly Income Fund and 0.75% for F-class units of PH&N Canadian Equity Value Fund. Minimum investment is $1,000.

New yield fund at Manulife

Waterloo, Ont.-based Manulife Mutual Funds, a division of Elliott & Page Ltd., has introduced Manulife Yield Opportunities Fund. Its aim is to generate income and long-term capital growth through a portfolio of yield-oriented Canadian and global fixed-income and equity securities. Investors looking for higher yields may benefit from a targeted distribution of 5¢ per unit per month, an initial distribution yield of approximately 6%, exposure to a portfolio of attractive yield opportunities across the globe and flexibility to allow the fund managers to seek out securities from various yield-producing asset classes and geographical regions, says Manulife. Terry Carr, vice president and managing director of fixed-income for MFC Global Investment Management, will be the lead manager of the fund, while Alan Wicks, vice president and senior portfolio manager of MFC Global Investment Management, will be co-manager. The fund is available in two versions. Manulife Yield Opportunities Fund (trust version) is suited to investors seeking regular income distributions, while Manulife Yield Opportunities Class (corporate-class version) is designed for investors who are looking to minimize taxable income outside of their registered plans. Advisor commissions for front-end sales are 0%-5%; 5% for deferred sales; or 2% for the low-load option. Redemption fees begin at 6% in Year 1 and end at zero after Year 6 for the regular DSC schedule; or begin at 3% in Year 1 and end at zero after Year 2 for the low-load schedule. Trailing commissions are 1% for front-end and low-load sales; or 0.5% for the first six years of deferred sales and 1% thereafter. Management fees are 1.9% for A-class units and 0.9% for F-class units. Minimum investment is $500.

@page_break@Compiled by Clare O’Hara (cohara@investmentexecutive.com).