Savers putting their money in funds investing in UK stocks and shares would have made more money since 2000 by putting it in savings accounts instead.

If £1,000 was invested at the start of the decade, it would now be worth £1,094 in an average UK unit trust but £1,358 in a typical savings account.

The research by Thomson-Reuters Lipper, commissioned by the BBC, questions the returns from long-term investments.

But industry experts say that timing was key to how much money can be made.

The same calculations, but up to July 2007, would have seen shares perform comfortably ahead of cash, according to Jane Lowe, director of markets at the Investment Management Association (IMA).

Returns

The exclusive research for the BBC found that £1,000 invested in a UK equity income fund would also have made less than in an instant savings account – now being worth £1,302.

“It [stock market investment] is a longer term question of when you are putting your money in and when you are taking money out” Jane Lowe, IMA

But if anyone made the unusual decision at the time of investing in a commodities or natural resources fund eight years ago, their £1,000 would now be worth £3,260.

The fund management industry often suggested that over the long-term shares would outperform a typical savings account.

Ms Lowe said that stocks and shares were not an investment for those wanting to make a “quick buck”.

“It is a longer term question of when you are putting your money in and when you are taking money out,” she said.

She said it was difficult to predict the peaks and troughs of the market, but over the long-term this form of investment was still a better bet than savings accounts.

She suggested that people drip-feed their investments into funds to flatten out the cycle.

William Claxton Smith, of Insight Investments, also pointed out that over the last eight years interest rates have been relatively high in the UK, leading to better returns from savings accounts.

News reported by The BBC

Arcelor Mittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, has bought the Brazilian iron ore assets from Anglo-African miner Lonmin for $810m (£435.2m).

The purchase comes as the firm seeks to secure access to raw materials in the face of soaring costs.

It wants to generate 75% of its iron ore supply by 2012 – up from the current level of 45%.

Arcelor Mittal said it would consider investing an additional $700m into expanding production in the region.

“The acquisition of London Mining Brasil ensures that our iron ore base is further diversified in the face of tighter supply for raw materials,” said Arcelor Mittal’s chief financial officer Aditya Mittal.

Anglo-African miner Lonmin said it had initiated a review of its Brazilian business, which it bought in May last year for $89m, after a number of expressions of interest.

It said it aimed to return about $427m of the proceeds from the sale to its shareholders, while the rest will be used to pay back debt and for the development of new and existing projects.

“We trust that investors will start to fully recognise our other iron ore and coal assets, as well as the strength of our management and technical teams,” said Lonmin’s managing director Christopher Brown.

Commodity prices, including iron ore, have rocketed on rampant demand to feed China’s booming economy.

This has sparked concern that profits at firms which depend on these raw materials to do business, such as steelmakers, could suffer.

News reported by The BBC