The INREV Pan-European Quarterly Fund Level and Asset Level indices for the fourth quarter of 2020 revealed the strongest quarterly results since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a second consecutive quarter of positive performance, with total returns rising close to pre-crisis territory. That said, the early signs of a rebound are far from uniform.

Investment appetite and outperformance were concentrated in the core open-ended vehicle space, almost regardless of geography, sector or market segment. Core strategies continued to outperform value added, and this was even more pronounced in the annual 2020 results, with total returns of 2.71 percent and –5.29 percent, respectively. The divergence of performance was equally strong by vehicle structure, with open-ended funds delivering an annual total return of 3.50 percent, against –3.82 percent for closed-end vehicles.

Turning a corner

A rapid fall in the use of material uncertain