Jan Willem de Moor is Portfolio Manager Investment Grade in the Credit team. Prior to joining Robeco in 2005, he worked at the Dutch Medical professionals’ pension fund as an Equity Portfolio Manager and at SNS Asset Management as an Equity Portfolio Manager. Jan Willem has been active in the industry since 1994. He holds a Master's in Economics from Tilburg University. Jan Willem Knoll is Portfolio Manager Investment Grade in the Credit team. He joined the Credit team in 2016. Previously, Jan Willem headed the Financials Equity sell-side research team at ABN AMRO. He started his career in the industry in 1999 at APG, where he held several positions including Portfolio Manager of a global insurance portfolio and subsequently a pan-European financials portfolio. Jan Willem holds a Master’s in Business Economics from the University of Groningen and he is a CFA® charterholder. Joost Breeuwsma is Portfolio Manager Investment Grade in the Credit team. Prior to starting his career and joining Robeco in 2017, he obtained a Master’s with Distinction in Financial Mathematics from King’s College London. The Robeco Euro SDG Credits fundis managed within Robeco’s credit team, which consists of nine portfolio managers and twenty-three credit analysts (of which four financials analysts). The portfolio managers are responsible for the construction and management of the credit portfolios, whereas the analysts cover the team’s fundamental research. Our analysts have long term experience in their respective sectors which they cover globally. Each analyst covers both investment grade and high yield, providing them an information advantage and benefiting from inefficiencies that traditionally exist between the two segmented markets. Furthermore, the credit team is supported by dedicated quantitative researchers and fixed income traders. On average, the members of the credit team have an experience in the asset management industry of seventeen years, of which eight years with Robeco.

The fund is established in Luxembourg and is subject to the Luxembourg tax laws and regulations. The fund is not liable to pay any corporation, income, dividend or capital gains tax in Luxembourg. The fund is subject to an annual subscription tax ('tax d'abonnement') in Luxembourg, which amounts to 0.01% of the net asset value of the fund. This tax is included in the net asset value of the fund. The fund can in principle use the Luxembourg treaty network to partially recover any withholding tax on its income.

Investors who are not subject to (exempt from) Dutch corporate-income tax (e.g. pension funds) are not taxed on the achieved result. Investors who are subject to Dutch corporate-income tax can be taxed for the result achieved on their investment in the fund. Dutch bodies that are subject to corporate-income tax are obligated to declare interest and dividend income, as well as capital gains in their tax return. Investors residing outside the Netherlands are subject to their respective national tax regime applying to foreign investment funds. We advise individual investors to consult their financial or tax adviser about the tax consequences of an investment in this fund in their specific circumstances before deciding to invest in the fund.

Sustainability is incorporated in the investment process by the means of a target universe, exclusions, ESG integration, and a minimum allocation to ESG-labeled bonds. The fund solely invests in credits issued by companies with a positive or neutral impact on the SDGs. The impact of issuers on the SDGs is determined by applying Robeco's internally developed three-step SDG Framework. The outcome is a quantified contribution expressed as an SDG score, considering both the contribution to the SDGs (positive, neutral or negative) and the extent of this contribution (high, medium or low). In addition, the fund does not invest in credit issuers that are in breach of international norms or where activities have been deemed detrimental to society following Robeco's exclusion policy. ESG factors are integrated in the bottom-up security analysis to assess the impact of financially material ESG risk on the issuer's fundamental credit quality. Furthermore, the fund invests at least 10% in green, social, sustainable, and/or sustainability-linked bonds. Lastly, where a credit issuer is flagged for breaching international standards in the ongoing monitoring, the issuer will become subject to exclusion.For more information please visit the sustainability-related disclosures.The index used for all sustainability visuals is based on Bloomberg Euro Aggregate: Corporates.

February delivered a volatile ride for European credit markets amid macroeconomic and geopolitical shifts. Early on, the European corporate index tightened, buoyed by a delay in US tariffs on Canada and Mexico and optimism from discussions hinting at a halted war in Ukraine. However, the mood soured by month-end as tariff headlines intensified, peace talks in Ukraine collapsed, and geopolitical risks in Europe escalated. The European corporate index ended the month flat at 90 bps. Investors pivoted to safe havens such as sovereign bonds and gold, and 10-year Bund yields ended the month 6 basis points tighter. Inflation stayed in focus, with the US CPI being higher than expected and the PCE at 2.5%, pushing the 1-year inflation swap up 27 bps to 2.92%. Some ECB speakers stroke a more cautious tone about future rate cuts. European credit outperformed dollar-denominated credit in February. The German election on February 23 resulted in a largely expected outcome, with the CDU/CSU bloc beginning talks with the SPD to form a new government. Though there's uncertainty around securing a two-thirds majority for constitutional changes, the result brought stability to German credit markets.

Based on transaction prices, the fund's return was 0.73%. The portfolio performed ahead of its benchmark index before fees. Government bond yields largely drove the benchmark's performance, as credit spreads ended the month flat. The Euro Corporate Index concluded the month at 90 basis points over government bonds. The yield on 10-year German Bunds declined by 6 basis points, settling at 2.40%. Performance attribution is split into beta positioning and issuer selection, in line with our investment process. The beta for the month was close to neutral and there was therefore no performance contribution from our top-down positioning. Issuer selection contributed positively to performance. The majority of the performance came from single A-rated issuers, such as Česká spořitelna and TenneT. By the end of the quarter we further lowered the risk profile of the fund, as we saw increased geopolitical risks. We targeted long-dated bonds, also to reduce the spread duration of the fund.

Credit markets have shown resilience in 2024, navigating challenges such as political turmoil, rate volatility, and geopolitical tensions. Despite tight spreads near historic lows, strong demand driven by attractive total yields persists, creating a valuation conundrum. The US economy has defied expectations of a downturn, supported by fiscal stimulus, pent-up demand, and long-term debt obligations, with little fear of recession or inflation resurgence in 2025. Europe lags, facing sluggish growth and energy cost pressures, but potential fiscal and Chinese stimulus provide some optimism. Donald Trump's re-election introduces uncertainty, including risks of tax cuts and trade wars, though his focus on market stability and conflict resolution could mitigate impacts. Emerging markets remain resilient with improved corporate fundamentals. While risks to spreads remain, strong technical factors such as robust reinvestment flows and pension demand bolster credit. Given these strong technical factors, we are aligning overall risk with the benchmark, based on current valuations. Without the robust demand dynamics mentioned earlier, we would likely take a more conservative approach.