Active Global Equity Shariah ETF Report | April 2025

Shariah Active ETF Key Takeaways

March saw a continuation of the trends established in the first two months of the year – further downdrafts in US markets, especially within technology, while Europe, Japan, Asia ex-Japan and emerging markets demonstrated greater resilience. In the US, markets have gyrated based on the tariff policy of the day emanating from the White House, while much of the rest of the world took a wait and see approach. Having waited until April 2nd and seen the tariff schedule that was unveiled, the reaction has, understandably, been less sanguine than what preceded it.

In March, the Shariah ETF fell -6.02%, a greater decline than that suffered by appropriate Islamic and conventional benchmarks. Technology was the largest contributor to underperformance as the benchmark concentrates its technology exposure on Microsoft, one of the more resilient technology stocks. Our more diversified exposure, including Nvidia, Broadcom, Adobe and ServiceNow, generally declined by greater amounts.

Healthcare was another weak spot as Novo Nordisk was punished for weight-loss drug trial results that failed to meet expectations. Communication services have typically been an area of strength, but the benchmark contains neither of the Fund’s investments – Alphabet and Nintendo – both of which fell during the month.

In the past we have noted that the Fund carries a sustainability mandate that includes no investments in fossil fuels. The benchmark, on the other hand, has substantial exposure to oil, and energy was the best performing sector in March. One area of relative strength was the consumer discretionary sector thanks to the fact that we have not invested in Tesla: a significant benchmark component that declined by double-digits during the month.

Source of all performance data: HANetf / Bloomberg as of 31.03.2025. Additional sources available upon request. Please note that all performance figures are showing net data. Past performance is not indicative of future performance and when you invest in ETFs your capital is at risk.

Difficulty interpreting

The most significant market declines since the start of the pandemic in 2020 were sparked by the April 2nd White House tariff announcement. A minimum 10% global tariff was supplemented by “reciprocal” tariffs against a variety of countries. The method for calculating the tariffs had nothing to do with tariff rates in the affected countries and rested upon the US trade balance with those countries. Services, in which the US runs a surplus, were not included.

The question now becomes, how will the affected countries respond. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned “Do not Retaliate.” China promptly retaliated with matching 34% tariffs on US goods. Of course, China is large and powerful. Smaller countries, such as Vietnam, appear eager to do a deal, while the Australian PM stated that the country will not participate in a “race to the bottom.”

Europe faces a more difficult task. It has a significant surplus with the US in traded goods but a deficit in services. In may take some time for them to decide how best to respond. Europe is further challenged by the fact that China’s tariff combativeness potentially leads to a tsunami of Chinese goods, formerly destined for the US, seeking a new home. Does Europe allow those goods to land on their shores, or do they impose their own tariff barriers to protect domestic manufacturers? Such is the risk with trade wars – they easily escalate.

Meanwhile, equity markets that have declined sharply, buoyant fixed income markets pushing the yield on the US ten-year treasury below 4% and a declining USD in currency markets all point in one direction – recession.

Shariah Active ETF Performance Table                                                                                                                
As of 31.08.2026

AMAL (Fund)
1M2.99%
3M-0.21%
6M6.42%
YTD11.54%
12M16.65%
3Y59.20%
Since Inception (28/09/2020)55.12%

Please note that all performance figures are showing net data. Source: Bloomberg / HANetf. Data as of 31.08.2026

Performance before inception is based on back-tested data. Back testing is the process of evaluating an investment strategy by applying it to historical data to simulate what the performance of such a strategy would have been. Back-tested data does not represent actual performance and should not be interpreted as an indication of actual or future performance. Past performance for the index is in USD. Past performance is not an indicator for future results and should not be the sole factor of consideration when selecting a product. Investors should read the prospectus of the Issuer (“Prospectus”) before investing and should refer to the section of the Prospectus entitled ‘Risk Factors’ for further details of risks associated with an investment in this product. When you invest in ETFs your capital is at risk.

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