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But is now the right time to cast – using depleted portfolios – a vote of confidence to far-flung jurisdictions?

Those who had taken the plunge 10 years ago have been handsomely rewarded, but not from by recent favourites, the Bric countries. Latin America was where the adventurous money travelled to in the late 1990s.

The best – Threadneedle Latin America – has returned 369.98 per cent performance over the period. The worst-performing regional fund in the IMA Specialist sector over this period, Baring German Growth (sterling), returned 49.58 per cent.

While Latin America funds have been heavily punished by the global slowdown, losing around 30 per cent in the past year, funds that focused on Europe – Credit Suisse, Jupiter, JPMorgan and Invesco Perpetual, in particular – have lost almost half their value.

Dean Newman, manager of Invesco Perpetual’s £193m Latin American fund, says: “From 2003 to last year, we had a succession of years where Latin America produced very good absolute returns. This achievement was due to a benign global economic backdrop and the fact they had taken some hard medicine.”

But some countries, Mexico, for example, have suffered from weak economies, swine flu and its inevitable effect on tourism, and subdued commodity prices, increasing volatility in the region.

Of the Bric countries, India is moving centre stage, its fortunes lifted by last month’s elections, which sent the Bombay stock exchange into overdrive and the rupee soaring. The three India funds in the IMA Specialist sector enjoy top-quartile positions over one year, in in spite of producing negative returns. Jupiter’s Avinash Vazirani, manager of its £45m India fund, believes the ramifications of a new pro-business government will push India’s GDP to 7 per cent this year.

With barely half of this sub-group of Specialist funds offering three-years track performance, selecting the right country at the right time is the key to success - but, as many IFAs will testify, that is often easier said than done.