Given recent market volatility caused by geopolitical tensions and uncertainty of the impact on energy related commodities due to the Iranian war, CQS Natural Resources Growth and Income PLC (LON:CYN) would like to provide an update on the current portfolio position.
Since December 2025, the portfolio managers have been steadily reallocating from precious metals to energy related equities. As a result, the current gold and silver miner weighting in the portfolio is currently approximately 37% (down from 49% as at end-Jan & 56% as at end-Dec), whilst the portfolio’s energy weighting (including oil and gas producers, refiners, rigs, shipping and coal) is at approximately 34% (up from 24% as at end-Jan & 17% as at end-Dec). The Company also maintains a further 11% in uranium miners (down from 13% as at end-Jan 12% as at end-Dec).
While the portfolio managers continue to hold a positive outlook on the precious metal miners, with it remaining the portfolio’s single largest weighting, they took a conscious decision to re-weight the portfolio over recent months given the evolving geopolitical situation in the Middle East that was felt to warrant a higher energy risk premium. As a result, profits derived from the precious metals exposure were used to fund this reallocation into energy.
This re-weighting has proven to have been the right decision as, year to date (6 March 2026), the Company’s net asset value has grown from 349.88 pence per share to 420.85 pence per share at the close on 6 March 2026, a total return uplift of 22.6%, versus 17.6% for the MSCI World Metals and Mining and 24.3% for the MSCI World Energy indices (sterling adjusted). Events around the Straits of Hormuz remain dynamic and as a result your Board may provide future ad hoc updates on the portfolio positioning if deemed appropriate.
While market conditions remain highly volatile, the portfolio managers continue to keep a close eye on developments in the Middle East and will continue to adjust the portfolio to maximise the performance of the Company and shareholder value. Despite a co-ordinated global release of strategic oil reserves in an effort to calm markets, at the time of writing, Brent crude has risen 26% in March and gained 50% higher since the beginning of the year. The medium-term view of the portfolio managers underpinning this re-weighting is that the fundamental backdrop for energy related equities has now improved. Having kept a low weighting in energy for the last two years, as OPEC focused on regaining share, it is likely that the oil market is moving from a position of oversupply to one of balance, leaving the market exposed to supply shocks.
Despite efforts by the US Administration to talk down the duration of the war, at this point in time there remains risk of protracted disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 million barrels of oil pass each day, equivalent to 20% of global supply, alongside 25% of global LNG supplies. As an example, Yemen Houthi rebels inflicted disrupted shipping through the Red Sea for two years: a better equipped and organised Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) represents a significant threat to continued disruption of global oil and gas supply, despite the presence of a western naval fleet amassing in the area. This will likely manifest itself through a restriction in the availability of shipping and cargo insurance thereby impacting trade flows through the Strait. Furthermore, the Iranian response to the US attacks has been focused on targeting energy infrastructure in recognition that a higher oil price may be their best method of applying pressure on the US Administration. In addition, as seen with the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the use of low-tech strike drones by Iran may deplete the West’s supply of defence interceptors that are both more expensive and have a longer resupply lead time. This suggests the planned swift resolution to conflict may become a war of attrition, which could prolong the disruption to shipping and warrant a more sustained energy risk premium which the manager believes is not fully reflected in related equities.
The portfolio managers believe that precious metals and energy are likely to fare well in this unfolding and uncertain geopolitical environment and global economic stress, as investors seek safe haven investments. In this macroeconomic and geopolitical environment, the portfolio managers believe that copper exposure is less attractive given lacklustre demand from consumers, especially in China which is the largest consumer of copper. This rationale supports CQS Natural Resources’s low copper and base metal exposure and the portfolio manager’s preference for a high precious metals and energy weightings.
