A growing divergence between the United States and other developed countries has created a volatile investment environment, says investment fund Argo Investments.
Argo on Monday reported a record profit for the six months to December 31, 2014 of $104.8 million - up 2.9 per cent on the profit one year earlier.
Argo said it had benefited from increased dividends and distributions from its portfolio of more than 100 stocks.
Argo managing director Jason Beddow said global economic uncertainty had unwound a positive start to the 2014/15 financial year.
The Australian share market fell more than five per cent during the December quarter, and expectations of company earnings were being downgraded as commodity prices fell.
Mr Beddow said the US economy was strengthening, leading to a stronger US dollar and potentially higher interest rates.
This contrasted with the continued aggressive easing of monetary policy in both the European Union and Japan.
"These events have created a volatile and more-difficult-to-navigate investment environment," Mr Beddow said in a statement on Monday.
"Whilst the defensive, higher yielding sectors such as banks and utilities, and offshore earners, are trading at or near all-time highs, other sectors have lagged significantly."
Mr Beddow said business activity and investment in Australia would continue to rotate towards the non-mining sectors as mining-related capital expenditure continued to fall.
He said Australia's rising unemployment rate posed a risk to consumer spending, but the housing market was robust and the fall in the Australian dollar was potentially positive for the Australian economy in 2015.
Argo said the stocks in its portfolio which contributed most positively to performance during the half-year were Twenty-First Century Fox, Ramsay Health Care, Lend Lease Group, APA Group, Medibank Private and Sydney Airport.
Stocks that did not do so well were largely energy-related, including Santos, MMA Offshore, Origin Energy and ALS.
Shares in Argo were steady at $7.99 at 1204 AEDT.
ARGO INVESTMENTS BOOKS RECORD FIRST-HALF PROFIT
* Half-year net profit of $104.8m, up 2.9 per cent from $101.9m in 2013/14
* Revenue of $112.6m, up 3.2 per cent from $109.2m
* Interim dividend of 14 cents per share, up from 13.5 cents
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