June 2025: a calm month

Peaks portfolios level in June

The stock market was relatively quiet in June, despite all the tensions in the world such as the brief war between Israel and Iran. The Peaks portfolios fell 0.2% to 0.3% in June compared to May, with very small differences between them. The risk of the Peaks portfolios was only half in June compared to the previous months. 

Table 1: Net returns of Peaks portfolios

Important to know: These net returns reflect Peaks' portfolios in June 2025, all of 2025 and since the launch of Peaks, after deducting Peaks, fund, and transaction fees. The value of investments can fluctuate, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The above figures assume a portfolio value of €10,000 without any deposits or withdrawals. If you made deposits or withdrawals this month, your personal return may differ. Your return will also vary if you have invested less or more than €10,000 due to the monthly fees Peaks charges.

Table 2: Risk of Peaks portfolios

Important to know: This table shows the risk levels of the four Peaks portfolios over different time periods (last month, this year, and the average since Peaks launched). Risk, also known as volatility, reflects the variation in annualised returns and is measured using the standard deviation of daily net returns converted to an annual basis.

'Non-sustainable' investing is currently on-trend

If you compare the performance of the sustainable ETFs in the Peaks portfolios with that of well-known stock market indices, you can see that the Peaks index funds are lagging this year. This is especially true for the North America ETF, which you use to invest in US stocks. The reason: 'sustainable investing' is currently out of fashion.

For instance, the ETFs you invest in with Peaks exclude arms manufacturers. But because there's so much war in the world and large budgets are being allocated to weapons (most recently at the NATO summit), listed arms manufacturers have soared in value in recent months. In addition, Trump is also pursuing policies that curb sustainable investments. This doesn't support sustainable investments in the short term.

Nobody knows how this will develop in the future. However, it seems likely that countries and companies must eventually become more sustainable to keep the world livable. So it could well be that the lagging prices you see now are temporary. And that in time, the more sustainable companies will regain the wind in their sails.

So, again, focus on the long term and don't let the latest fashion trends trick you. Thereby, it's also nice to invest sustainably. You're not only investing in your own future, but also in the future of the world.

US economy grows slower

Next, the figures keep on indicating that growth in the global economy is gradually slowing down. In the US, the confidence of both producers and service providers (measured by the ISM index) fell slightly in May, to just below the 50-point level. This suggests that the US economy is still growing, but at a slower pace. US consumers are also spending less money.

We see a similar picture in Europe, where consumers are also hardly spending any money. The current uncertain political climate, with lots of war and political unrest, makes businesses and consumers more cautious. For the (global) economy, it would be better if the current conflicts in the world stopped. This is not only positive for the people living in the conflict zones, but also for economic growth and long-term issues such as sustainability.

Table 3: Net returns of index funds in standard Peaks portfolios

Important to know: These net returns reflect the performance of index funds in April 2025, all of 2025, and since Peaks launched, after deducting Peaks, fund, and transaction fees. The value of investments can fluctuate, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.