Fund-vs-fund · International Equities
AMP International Shares Managed Fund vs Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund
Both are International Equities funds available to NZ retail investors. Numbers below are sourced from the FMA Disclose register via Sorted Smart Investor and reflect the latest published quarterly fund updates.
Why these two differ
The most material structural difference between these two funds is cost. The AMP International Shares Managed Fund discloses an annual fund charge of 0.79%, while the Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund charges 1.69% — a gap of 0.90 percentage points that compounds meaningfully over time on otherwise similarly constructed portfolios. Both funds sit at risk indicator 5 on the standard seven-point scale and hold an identical growth assets allocation of 98.31%, meaning the fee difference is not explained by a materially different risk or asset-mix profile.
On returns, the Mercer fund discloses a five-year return of 9.26% per annum in its latest quarterly fund update; the AMP fund's five-year return figure is not available in our current snapshot, so a like-for-like performance comparison cannot be made here. Fund size is similar — AMP at approximately NZD 10.97 million and Mercer at approximately NZD 12.85 million — though both are relatively small pools by market standards.
Portfolio construction at the top-holdings level is strikingly alike: both funds lead with Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet in near-identical weights, suggesting broad global index-like exposure. The Mercer fund's "Responsible" mandate implies ESG screening criteria, which its name signals but which the holdings data alone does not fully describe; investors interested in that dimension should review Mercer's statement of investment policy and objectives directly.
Always verify fees, returns, and holdings against each fund's current product disclosure statement and latest quarterly fund update on FMA Disclose before relying on any of this information.
Cached comparison generated 2026-05-21 from each fund's latest FMA Disclose QFU. Regenerated when the underlying facts change.
What's different at a glance
- AMP International Shares Managed Fund charges 0.90% lower in annual fund charges (0.79% vs 1.69%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
- Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund applies responsible-investment / ESG screening. The other fund does not.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 81 international equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
AMP
0.79%
Upper half of cohort
Mercer
1.69%
Highest 7% of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
AMP
—
—
Mercer
9.26%
Upper half over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
AMP
NZ$11m
Smallest 8% in cohort
Mercer
NZ$13m
Smallest 10% in cohort
| Metric | AMP | Mercer | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 0.79% | 1.69% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | — | 9.26% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$11m | NZ$13m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 98% / 2% | 98% / 2% | More growth = higher long-run return + volatility |
| NZ tax structure | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE = simpler. FIF = annual return. |
| Currency hedging | — | — | Hedged smooths NZD/foreign FX moves at a small cost. |
| Responsible investment screening | No | Yes | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | Direct | Direct | Platforms accepting retail subscriptions. |
Portfolio overlap
How many top-10 positions both funds hold, and at what weight. Computed from each fund's most recently disclosed top-10 holdings — exact-name matched (Microsoft Corp. = Microsoft Corporation), with a Cash / Cash & Equivalents collapse rule.
Matching holdings
9
of each fund's top 10
AMP weight in shared
24.9%
of AMP International Shares Managed Fund top 10 is shared
Mercer weight in shared
23.8%
of Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund top 10 is shared
| Holding | AMP | Mercer |
|---|---|---|
 NVIDIA Corp US | 5.48% | 5.29% |
 Apple Inc US | 4.84% | 4.90% |
 Microsoft Corp US | 3.30% | 3.08% |
 Amazon.Com Inc US | 2.69% | 2.39% |
 Alphabet Inc Class A US | 1.76% | 2.53% |
 Broadcom Inc US | 1.87% | 1.68% |
 Meta Platforms Inc US | 1.44% | 1.63% |
| Alphabet Inc Class C US | 2.10% | 1.27% |
 Tesla Inc US | 1.40% | 0.99% |
"Min weight" = the smaller of the two weights — a conservative read of how much exposure you'd have to that position if you held both funds.
What each fund says it does
AMP
AMP International Shares Managed Fund
This is a single sector fund with exposure to a diversified international equities portfolio. The fund aims to achieve long term capital growth through exposure to equities of companies listed on stock exchanges around the world.Full AMP AMP International Shares Managed Fund profile →
Mercer
Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund
The fund invests in shares listed on international share markets managed within a sustainable approach. The fund is managed to include specific additional responsible exclusions criteria which aims to avoid investment in certain companies or activities, and is manaed with reference to environmental, social and governance factors. This fund has additional exclusions applied as described in our Sustainable Investment Policy and has been certified by the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA). The fund aims to outperform the MSCI World Index withFull Mercer Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
AMP
LiveLast verified 2026-05-08
Common questions
What's the difference between the AMP International Shares Managed Fund and the Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, AMP International Shares Managed Fund or Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Does either fund apply responsible-investment screening?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
