Ian Henderson, manager of JP Morgan Asset Management's Natural Resources and Global Natural Resources funds, will step down at the end of January 2012.

Full management of the funds will pass to Neil Gregson, who has worked alongside Henderson for the past year, the group confirmed. 

Henderson will stay on in an advisory capacity for 12 months from March next year.

Gregson joined JP Morgan's Natural Resources team in September 2010, having spent nearly two decades at Credit Suisse Asset Management, where he was head of Emerging Markets and Related Sector Funds.

In this capacity, he was responsible for US $10 billion (£625 million) in assets under management. 

Gregson held various positions at mining and natural resource companies early in his career. He is also a qualified mining engineer.

The group confirmed that Henderson had chosen Gregson as his successor.

Henderson commented, ‘The world of natural resources and the investment opportunities within the sector remain as compelling now as ever and I am still very much a believer in the commodities super-cycle. 

‘I have been aware of Neil’s expertise for many years and we share a very similar style of investment. He is the natural successor to take these funds forward.'

Gregson said he shared Henderson's conviction about the long term opportunities within the sector and continued, 'With the help of the Natural Resources team, I am committed to delivering compelling investment returns and extending the funds’ success. 

‘We will continue to focus on research-led stock picking and our long term approach of investing in a diversified portfolio of growing natural resources companies, with a small and mid-cap bias,' he added.

Sheridan Adams, investment research manager at The Share Centre, said confidence remained high in the fund, despite the change of management.

'Having 20 years’ experience managing assets and a wealth of knowledge of the resource sector, Ian handpicked Neil as his successor. Neil has been working with Ian on the fund for some time, so we expect the transition to be smooth.

'Obviously Ian Henderson will be sorely missed as his reputation for managing resource assets has been exceptional since he took over the running of this fund in 2000', he added.

 Figures released by JP Morgan said the Natural Resources Fund had returned 764 per cent over 10 years, in sterling terms, while the Global Fund had returned over 100 per cent, in Euro terms, since its inception in December 2004.

Morningstar rated both the funds as "above average" in the equity natural resources sector.