Traditional cautious managed funds, a mainstay of conservative investors, have been dealt a triple blow of poor equity performance, falling bond values and a downturn in the property market.

Many of these funds have lost more than 15 per cent in the past year even though their principal aim is to soften the blow of market falls. The worst hit have been the traditionally allocated funds, which have up to 60 per cent in equities, with the remainder mostly in bonds and a small amount in property.