There are trusts for different overseas markets and ones which concentrate on specific sectors such as technology or metals.
You also have to consider the level of risk you are comfortable with. Buying shares in investment trusts could not be easier. Most banks and building societies now deal in shares on the spot or over the phone, and bigger high streets will even have stockbrokers’ offices for more traditional share-buying. The Yellow Pages should yield a crop of outfits that will do share- buying over the telephone. But buying shares in investment trusts involves complex decisions.

For starters, there is a wide variety of funds: some offer a high income, others look for a balance of income and growth. This illustrates the risks inherent in single-country investments.. Some of the worst performers have been trusts specialising in Japan, South Korea, Thailand and companies in the former East Germany. Flemings, with its long association with the Far East, is well known for its Chinese and Indian funds as well as its more conventional range.

Some of the best-performing funds over the last year are in these exotic stockmarkets, with top spot going to Baring Emerging Europe trust, which specialises in the former Iron Curtain economies.But beware. However, a word of warning: the more specialised a fund, the more volatile its share price is likely to be, and the higher the associated risks.Investment trusts can invest in virtually any country. There are a couple of funds that specialise in property, while BZW, Flemings and Mercury each run trusts that invest in commodities and natural resources.Some investment managers, such as Templeton, have a reputation for their expertise in emerging markets. Almost anywhere on the globe, there is bound to be an investment trust offering a managed portfolio of investments for that region.