Anthony Bolton, one of the UK’s best-known and successful fund managers, is to retire from running the Fidelity China Special Situations investment trust, admitting it had proved more difficult to make money from China than he had anticipated.

Mr Bolton came out of semi-retirement – at his request – in 2010 to set up and run the China-focused fund. He had made his name running the UK-focused Fidelity Special Situations fund, which enjoyed a compound annual rate of return of 19.5 per cent during his 28 years at the helm.

The China fund has not done so well; after a good start, it endured a poor 2011 and although performance has improved recently, shares in the fund are still below their 2010 launch price and trade at a 10 per cent discount to the value of its assets.