Fund-vs-fund · International Equities
Mercer Core Global Shares Fund vs NZ Funds Global Utilities
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 their portfolio construction and sector focus. The Mercer Core Global Shares Fund allocates 98.31% to growth assets and concentrates its top holdings in large-cap US technology companies — Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon — reflecting a broad global equities mandate with heavy tech exposure. NZ Funds Global Utilities holds 78.48% in growth assets, with the remaining allocation suggesting a meaningful income or defensive component, and its top holdings are European utilities and renewable energy operators including Fortum, Verbund, Ørsted, and EDP. Goldman Sachs Futures appearing as a top-five holding at 4.18% indicates active use of derivatives, which introduces a different risk profile despite both funds sharing a risk indicator of 5.
On fees, Mercer charges 1.24% per annum against NZ Funds' 2.53% — a gap of 1.29 percentage points that compounds materially over time. Fund sizes are comparable: Mercer at NZD 60.9 million, NZ Funds at NZD 62.2 million. The five-year return for Mercer stands at 13.93% per annum; NZ Funds Global Utilities does not disclose a five-year return figure in this snapshot, so a like-for-like performance comparison cannot be made. Both sit within the same International Equities category, but their underlying exposures — diversified global tech versus concentrated European utilities with derivatives — represent meaningfully different economic bets.
Verify all figures against the source PDS 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
- Mercer Core Global Shares Fund charges 1.29% lower in annual fund charges (1.24% vs 2.53%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 82 international equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Mercer
1.24%
Highest 18% of cohort
NZ Funds
2.53%
Highest 3% of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Mercer
13.93%
Top 6% over 5 years
NZ Funds
—
—
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Mercer
NZ$61m
Lower half by size
NZ Funds
NZ$62m
Lower half by size
| Metric | Mercer | NZ Funds | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.24% | 2.53% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 13.93% | — | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$61m | NZ$62m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 98% / 2% | 78% / 22% | 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 | No | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | InvestNow · 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.
What each fund says it does
Mercer
Mercer Core Global Shares Fund
The fund invests in shares listed on share markets predominately in developed economies. The portfolio uses multiple managers and is diversified by region, manager and investment approaches. Environmental, Social and Governance characteristics are integrated into the underlying investment managers’ investment processes. The fund aims to provide a Gross Return above the return of the MSCI World Index with net dividends reinvested (in NZD) on a rolling three-year basis.Full Mercer Mercer Core Global Shares Fund profile →
NZ Funds
NZ Funds Global Utilities
The objective of the Global Utilities fund is to mitigate the impact of inflation on your investment over the medium and/or long term with active management. The fund is anticipated to mainly own and trade international utility company shares. The fund may also hold other actively managed authorised asset classes.Full NZ Funds NZ Funds Global Utilities profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
NZ Funds
Common questions
What's the difference between the Mercer Core Global Shares Fund and the NZ Funds Global Utilities?
Which fund has lower fees, Mercer Core Global Shares Fund or NZ Funds Global Utilities?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
