The easiest way to buy infrastructure is the iShares S&P Global Infrastructure Index FundIGF, but it may not be ideal for diversification as it has correlated very closely to the S&P 500. An investor willing to consider individual stocks might want to consider a combination of SNC LavalinSNCAF from Canada and Swiss engineering firm ABBABB.
The special opportunities allocation could be viewed as a place to really go for outsized returns by isolating narrow themes such as countries or big macro trends.[excellent point] Brazil has a lot going for it in this light. Some choices here are the iShares MSCI BrazilEWZ, and plenty of stocks including PetrobrasPBR, which which stand to dramatically alter Brazil's role in the global energy market in the next decade.
Agriculture is another theme that has been going in the right direction. The Market Vectors Agribusiness ETFMOO is a good proxy for this segment, and anyone who knows about agribusiness knows about stocks like PotashPOT and MosaicMOS. These stocks should continue to perform well.
The special opportunities portion of the portfolio will require active participation on the investor's part. These things go up a lot, and although the moves seem to be fundamentally justified, they often turn around very quickly. Investors in these sorts of themes should be willing to increase and decrease exposure with any dramatic price swings.
Any sort of portfolio has strengths and weaknesses. The drawback to the portfolio suggested by El-Erian is that very little can be added from country selection, sector weightings, stock picking or increasing dividends. The advantages include a likelihood of below-market volatility, and a very good chance no matter the market condition that something will always be doing well.
