1

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORTLIPPER RESEARCH SERIES

DECEMBER 31, 2018

The Month in Closed-End Funds: December 2018

Authored by:

TOM ROSEENHEAD OF RESEARCH SERVICESLIPPER

The Month in Closed-End Funds: December 2018

• For the first month in three, equity closed-end funds (CEFs) and fixed income CEFs on average witnessed a gain, rising 0.67% and 0.11%, respectively, on a net-asset-value (NAV) basis for November.

• Only 12% of all CEFs traded at a premium to their NAV, with 15% of equity CEFs and 10% of fixed income CEFs trading in premium territory. National municipal debt CEFs witnessed the largest narrowing of discounts for the month among Lipper’s CEF macro-groups—236 basis points (bps) to 9.92%.

• Emerging Market CEFs (+3.36%) posted the strongest return for the month of all the equity CEF classifications.

• None of the domestic taxable fixed income CEF classifications posted positive returns for the month.

• For the first month in three, the municipal debt CEFs macro-group posted a plus-side return on average (+1.10%), with all classifications in the group witnessing positive returns for November.

PERFORMANCEFor the third month in four, equity CEFs on average witnessed negative performance on both a NAV basis and a market basis, declining 6.13% and 8.53%, respectively, for December. Also for the third month in four, their fixed income CEF counterparts posted returns in the red on both a NAV basis (-0.37%) and a market basis (-1.50%). Investors shrugged off a Goldilocks November nonfarm payroll report and focused on the implications of an imminent government shutdown, declining global growth, and uncertain U.S./China trade relations, pushing U.S. stocks deep into the red for the month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Price Only Index and the S&P 500 Price Only Index—declining 8.66% and 9.18%, respectively—mitigated losses better than the other U.S. broad-based indices for the month, while the Russell 2000 Price Only Index (-12.05%) suffered the largest loss.

At the beginning of December, investors continued to pressure stocks as global trade issues weighed on investor psyche. The three broad-based U.S. indices suffered their worst December start since 2008. The United States Department of Labor reported the U.S. economy had added 155,000 new jobs for November, missing analyst expectations of 190,000. The unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%, but hourly earnings showed a 3.1% year-over-year rise, their largest increase since 2009.

The following week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (declining 10.17% from its October 3 record high) joined the S&P 500 and NASDAQ in correction territory as stocks plummeted on news that Chinese data showed November industrial output and retail sales missed economists’ expectations. Investors ignored reports that November retail sales rose 0.2% and U.S. industrial production rose 0.6%.

As expected, on December 18 the Federal Reserve Board hiked its key lending rate 25 basis points (bps) to a range of 2.25% to 2.50%, but lowered expectations for hikes in 2019 to two. Nonetheless, the Dow experienced another day of volatility, swinging 900 points on the day, finishing in negative territory once again. By the end of the week, the Dow posted its worst one-week return since 2008 as the government shutdown loomed and the NASDAQ entered bear-market territory (down 21.9% from its most recent market high on August 31).

Toward month end, on low holiday volume, stocks posted their first weekly gain for December, with the S&P 500 logging a 2.9% rise for the week. Investors appeared to ignore the unresolved government shutdown and a 0.7% decline in November pending homes sales. U.S. stocks finished the month on a positive note, with the Dow rising 265.06 points on December 31 after President Donald Trump tweeted that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping made “big progress” in trade talks over the weekend. Many analysts believe that a combination of window dressing and bargain hunting, along with the encouraging trade news, provided the shot in arm for equities at month end.

2

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORT DECEMBER 2018

CLOSED-END FUNDS LAB

TABLE 4 AVERAGE SIZE OF IPOs, SELECTED PERIODS, $MIL

3 MONTHS THROUGH 11/30/2018 -

COMPARABLE YEAR-EARLIER 3 MONTHS 112

CALENDAR 2017 AVERAGE 339

Source: Lipper

TABLE 1 CURRENT-MONTH PERFORMANCE, P&D, P&D SHIFTS (% OF UNIVERSE)

NAV RETURNS POSITIVE

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT NOW TRADING AT

BETTER WORSE PREMIUM DISCOUNT

Equity Funds 7 24 75 10 90

Bond Funds 56 20 78 8 92

ALL CEFs 35 22 77 9 91

TABLE 2 AVERAGE NAV RETURNS, SELECTED PERIODS (%)

DECEMBER YTD 3-MONTH CALENDAR-2017

Equity Funds -6.13 -8.89 -10.98 14.35

Bond Funds -0.37 -0.76 -1.42 7.98

ALL CEFs -2.87 -7.28 -5.55 10.80

TABLE 3 NUMBER OF IPOs, YTD VERSUS PRIOR YEAR

DECEMBER 2018 CALENDAR-2017

Conventional CEFs 2 12

Interval CEFs 28 25

A rise in market volatility along with the slowing of global growth lead many investors to bid up safe-haven plays such as gold and Treasury issues. For the month of December, the Treasury curve continued to flatten, with yields rising at the short end of the curve and declining at the long end. The one- and two-month yields witnessed the largest increases for the month—rising 13 bps and 12 bps, respectively, to 2.44% and 2.45%, while the three-year yield saw the largest decline—37 bps, to 2.46%. The two-/ten-year Treasury spread ended the month at 21 bps after a decline to 11 bps on December 4.

For December, the dollar strengthened marginally against the pound (+0.19%), but weakened against the euro (-1.77%), and the yen (-3.38%). Commodities prices were mixed for the month, with near-month gold prices gaining 4.76% to close the month at $1,278.3/ounce, and with front-month crude oil prices declining 10.84% to close at $45.41/barrel.

For the month, 35% of all CEFs posted NAV-based returns in the black, with only 7% of equity CEFs and 56% of fixed income CEFs chalking up returns in the plus column. For the second month in three, Lipper’s mixed-assets CEFs macro-group (-4.60%) outpaced/mitigated losses better than its two equity-based brethren: world equity CEFs (-4.85%) and domestic equity CEFs (-7.04%).

The Pacific ex-Japan CEFs classification (-0.80%) mitigated losses better than all the other equity classifications, followed by Emerging Markets CEFs (-2.22%) and Real Estate CEFs (-2.99%). For a second month in a row, Energy MLP CEFs (-12.64%) was the cellar dweller of the equity universe, bettered by Natural Resources CEFs (-10.35%) and Growth CEFs (-9.19%). For the remaining equity classifications, returns ranged from minus 8.92% (Core CEFs) to minus 4.09% (Income & Preferred Stock CEFs).

Two of the five top-performing equity CEFs were housed in the Emerging Markets CEFs classification. However, at the top of the chart was ASA Gold & Precious Metals Limited (ASA, housed in Lipper’s Sector Equity CEFs classification), rising 11.60% on a NAV basis and traded at a 15.99% discount on December 31. ASA was followed by Mexico Fund, Inc. (MXF, housed in the Emerging Markets CEFs classification), gaining 3.93% and traded at a 13.57% discount at month end; Mexico Equity & Income Fund, Inc. (MXE), rising 3.34% and traded at a 9.85% discount on December 31; Gabelli Global Small & Mid Cap Value Trust (GGZ, housed in the Global CEFs classification), gaining 1.84% and traded at a 21.20% discount at month end; and Variant Alternative Income Fund; Institutional Class Shares (NICHX, an interval hybrid fund housed in the Income & Preferred Stock CEFs classification), posting a 0.74% return.

For the month, the dispersion of performance in individual equity CEFs—ranging from minus 20.73%

TABLE 5 NUMBER OF MERGERS & LIQUIDATIONS, YTD VERSUS PRIOR YEAR

DECEMBER 2018 CALENDAR-2017

ALL CEFs 37 20

3

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORT DECEMBER 2018

to positive 11.90%—was much wider than November’s spread and more skewed to the negative side. The 20 top-performing equity CEFs posted returns at or above minus 0.09%, while the 20 lagging equity CEFs were at or below minus 12.62%.

For the month, only 12 CEFs in the equity universe posted plus-side returns. The worst performing fund was housed in the Natural Resources CEFs classification: Tortoise Energy Independence Fund, Inc. (NDP) shed 20.73% of its November-closing NAV price and traded at a 5.17% discount on December 31. The second worst performing CEF was Goldman Sachs MLP and Energy Renaissance Fund (GER, warehoused in the Energy MLP CEF classification), declining 17.59% and traded at an 8.16% discount at month end.

As mentioned earlier, the Treasury yield flattened during the month. The ten-year Treasury yield settled down 32 bps for the month, at 2.69%, after hitting 3.15% on December 3. For the third consecutive month, domestic taxable bond CEFs posted a loss on average (-2.13%), bettered by world income CEFs (-0.36%) and municipal bond CEFs (+1.32%).

Two of the domestic taxable fixed income CEF classifications posted plus-side returns for the month: U.S. Mortgage CEFs (+0.90%) and Corporate Debt BBB-Rated CEFs (+0.85%). Loan Participation CEFs (-3.35%) and High Yield CEFs (Leveraged) (-2.85%) were the macro-group’s laggards. The world income CEFs macro-group was weighed down by the performance of Emerging Markets Debt CEFs (-0.21%) and Global Income CEFs (-0.44%).

For the second consecutive month, the municipal debt CEFs macro-group posted a return in the black (+1.32%) on average, with all the classifications in the group experiencing plus-side returns for December. The New Jersey Municipal Debt CEFs (+1.53%), Other States Municipal Debt CEFs (+1.52%), and Pennsylvania Municipal Debt CEFs (+1.47%) classifications posted the strongest returns of the group, while Intermediate Municipal Debt CEFs (+1.00%) was the relative laggard. National municipal debt CEFs (+1.24%) underperformed their single-state municipal debt CEF counterparts (+1.43%).

Three of the five top-performing individual fixed income CEFs were housed in Lipper’s domestic taxable fixed income CEFs macro-group. At the top of the fixed income universe chart was Vertical Capital Income Fund; Class C Shares (VCCPX, an interval hybrid fund housed in the U.S. Mortgage CEFs classification), returning 4.16%. Following VCCPX were DoubleLine Funds: DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (DBL, housed in the General Bond CEFs classification), returning 2.37% and traded at a 4.58% discount on December 31; BlackRock Taxable Municipal Bond Trust (BBN, also housed in the General Bond CEFs

classification), posting a 2.16% return and traded at a 6.33% discount at month end; Eaton Vance Ohio Municipal Bond Fund (EIO housed in the Other States Municipal Debt CEFs classification), tacking 2.13% onto its November month-end value and traded at a 14.40% discount on December 31; and Eaton Vance Massachusetts Municipal Income Trust (MMV, housed in the Other States Municipal Debt CEFs classification), returning 2.10% and traded at a 14.84% discount on December 31.

For the remaining funds in the fixed income CEFs universe, monthly NAV-based performance ranged from minus 6.98% for XAI Octagon Floating Rate & Alternative Income Term Trust (XFLT, housed in Lipper’s Loan Participation CEFs classification and traded at a 14.30% discount on December 31) to 1.95% for Eaton Vance New York Municipal Income Trust (EVY, housed in Lipper’s New York Municipal Debt CEFs classification). The 20 top-performing fixed income CEFs posted returns at or above 1.80%, while the 20 lagging CEFs were at or below minus 4.06%. There were 188 fixed income CEFs that witnessed plus-side NAV-based performance for December.

PREMIUM AND DISCOUNT BEHAVIORFor December, the median discount of all CEFs widened 178 bps to 11.97%—wider than the 12-month moving average median discount (8.42%). Equity CEFs’ median discount widened 144 bps to 10.27%, while fixed income CEFs’ median discount widened 117 bps to 12.74%. National municipal CEFs’ median discount witnessed the largest widening among the CEF macro-groups—220 bps to 12.12%, while the world income CEF macro-group witnessed the smallest widening of discounts—33 bps to 11.99%.

PIMCO Strategic Income Fund, Inc. (RCS, housed in the Global Income CEFs classification) traded at the largest premium (+39.68%) in the CEFs universe on December 31, while Foxby Corp (FXBY, housed in the Core CEFs classification) traded at the largest discount (-31.30%) at month end.

For the month, 22% of all funds’ discounts or premiums improved, while 77% worsened. In particular, 24% of equity CEFs and 20% of fixed income CEFs saw their individual discounts narrow, premiums widen, or premiums replace discounts. The number of funds traded at premiums on December 31 (42) was 17 less than the number on November 30.

4

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORT DECEMBER 2018

CEF EVENTS AND CORPORATE ACTIONS

IPOs

Nuveen has successfully completed the initial public offering of the Nuveen High Income 2023 Target Term Fund (JHAA). The new closed-end fund’s investment objectives are to provide a high level of current income and to return the original $9.875 net asset value (NAV) per common share on or about its termination date of December 1, 2023. The fund seeks to achieve its investment objectives by investing at least 80% of its managed assets in corporate debt securities (including bonds and senior loans). The fund began trading on the NYSE on December 19, 2018, under the symbol JHAA.

The fund raised approximately $70 million (before deduction of the sales load and offering expenses payable by the fund) in its common share offering, excluding any exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional shares. If the underwriters exercise that option in full, the fund will have raised approximately $80 million.

JHAA will employ a disciplined bottom-up investment process to identify securities across diverse sectors and industries that it believes are undervalued, mispriced, or provide attractive income consistent with the objectives of the fund. JHAA has a five-year term and the fund intends to pay regular monthly distributions, and on or about December 1, 2023, liquidate its portfolio and distribute substantially all of its net assets to shareholders.

City National Rochdale, a direct subsidiary of City National Bank, announced the launch of the City National Rochdale Strategic Credit Fund (CNROX), a closed-end interval fund registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940.

The fund’s primary objective is to generate current income, while its secondary objective is long-term capital appreciation. The fund is focused on the collateralized loan obligation (CLO) market. It seeks to take advantage of generally attractive yields from underlying senior secured loans and capitalizes on City National Rochdale’s extensive understanding of the potential benefits associated with being an equity tranche investor in a fixed-income diversified pool of loans.

The fund’s shares have no history of public trading and the fund does not currently intend to list its shares for trading on any national securities exchange. There currently is no secondary market for the fund’s shares and the fund expects that no secondary market will develop. The shares are, therefore, not readily marketable. Even if such a market were to develop, shares of closed-end funds frequently trade at prices lower than their NAV. Even though the fund will make quarterly repurchase offers to repurchase a portion of the shares to provide some liquidity to shareholders,

shares should be considered to be an illiquid investment. There is no assurance that every investor will be able to tender their respective shares when, or in the amount, that the investor desires. An investment in the fund is suitable only for long-term investors who can bear the risks associated with the limited liquidity of the shares.

RIGHTS, REPURCHASES, TENDER OFFERSThe board of trustees of The Gabelli Global Utility & Income Trust (GLU) announced the completion of its transferable rights offering in which the fund will issue approximately 1.2 million common shares and 1.2 million newly issued Series B Cumulative Puttable and Callable preferred shares, totaling $85 million.

Pursuant to the offer, the fund issued one transferable right for each common share of the fund to shareholders of record as of November 12, 2018. Holders of rights were entitled to purchase one common share and one newly issued Series B preferred share by submitting three rights and $67.50 per share (the subscription price). The offer expired on December 14, 2018, and the rights no longer trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). All of the common and preferred shares subscribed for were to be issued on or about December 19, 2018.

The board of directors of the RENN Fund, Inc. (RCG) announced it approved a non-transferable rights offering to holders of its common shares of record at the close of business on December 28, 2018 (the record date). Each shareholder will receive one non-transferable right for every share owned of the fund held on the record date, and the number of rights will be rounded up to the nearest whole number evenly divisible by three. For every three rights each shareholder receives, such shareholder will be entitled to buy one new share of the fund (initial subscription). The subscription price per share will be the lesser of: (i) 105% of the average closing NAV per share over the three days of trading leading up to and including the expiration of the offering, or (ii) 90% of the average closing market price per share over the three days of trading leading up to and including the expiration of the offering.

Record date shareholders who fully exercise their rights under the offering will be entitled to over-subscribe for any additional shares not purchased (over-subscription). The purchase price for all shares will be payable in cash.

Horizon Asset Management LLC (Horizon), the investment manager to the fund, has agreed to pay for all fees and expenses in connection with the offering. As such, the full amount of the subscription proceeds will be contributed to the fund’s assets. Additionally, Horizon has entered into a backstop agreement with the fund whereby Horizon will purchase all remaining

Authored by:

TOM ROSEENHEAD OF RESEARCH SERVICESLIPPER

5

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORT DECEMBER 2018

unsubscribed shares, if any, after the initial subscription and over-subscription periods by shareholders. The offering and the rights issued thereunder will expire on February 8, 2019, unless extended by the fund.

MERGERS AND REORGANIZATIONSAt special meetings of shareholders held on December 20, 2018, shareholders of each acquired fund listed below approved the merger of the acquired fund into its corresponding acquiring fund.

Eaton Vance New Jersey Municipal Bond Fund (EMJ), Eaton Vance Ohio Municipal Bond Fund (EIO), and Eaton Vance Pennsylvania Municipal Bond Fund (EIP) are being acquired by Eaton Vance Municipal Bond Fund (EIM) and Eaton Vance Massachusetts Municipal Income Trust (MMV), Eaton Vance Ohio Municipal Income Trust (EVO), and Eaton Vance Pennsylvania Municipal Income Trust (EVP) are being acquired by Eaton Vance Municipal Income Trust (EVN).

Each approved merger listed above was expected to be completed as of the close of business of the NYSE on or about January 18, 2019, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Each acquired fund shareholder will be issued common shares of the associated acquiring fund at an exchange ratio based on the funds’ respective NAV per share. Each merger is a separate and distinct transaction.

The special meeting of shareholders of Eaton Vance Municipal Bond Fund II (EIV) relating to its proposed merger into Eaton Vance Municipal Bond Fund (EIM) was adjourned to January 24, 2019 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time at Two International Place, Boston, Massachusetts.

The following mergers were completed at the close of the New York Stock Exchange on December 14, 2018: Eaton Vance New York Municipal Bond Fund II (NYH) was acquired by Eaton Vance New York Municipal Bond Fund (ENX), Eaton Vance California Municipal Bond Fund II (EIA) was acquired by Eaton Vance California Municipal Bond Fund (EVM), Eaton Vance Massachusetts Municipal Bond Fund (MAB) was acquired Eaton Vance Municipal Bond Fund (EIM), Eaton Vance Michigan Municipal Bond Fund (MIW) and Eaton Vance Michigan Municipal Income Trust (EMI) were acquired by Eaton Vance Municipal Income Trust (EVN).

Each merger was based upon the funds’ closing net assets on December 14, 2018. The exchange ratio at which common shares of each acquired fund were converted to common shares of the relevant acquiring Fund were as follows:

Acquired Fund (Trading Symbol) Exchange Ratio

Eaton Vance New York Municipal Bond Fund II (NYH) 0.960888, Eaton Vance California Municipal Bond Fund II (EIA) 1.026034, Eaton Vance Massachusetts Municipal

Bond Fund (MAB) 1.103422, Eaton Vance Michigan Municipal Bond Fund (MIW) 1.125559, Eaton Vance Michigan Municipal Income Trust (EMI), 1.105497

Fractional shares of the relevant acquiring fund’s common shares were not issued in the mergers and consequently cash will be distributed for any such fractional amounts.

Morgan Stanley Asia-Pacific Fund, Inc. (APF) announced that, after considering the recommendation of the fund’s investment adviser, Morgan Stanley Investment Management Inc., the board of directors of the fund determined that it would be in the best interest of shareholders of the fund to approve an agreement and plan of reorganization by and between the Fund and Morgan Stanley Institutional Fund, Inc., on behalf of its series Emerging Markets Portfolio (“MSIF Emerging Markets”), pursuant to which substantially all of the assets and liabilities of the fund would be transferred to MSIF Emerging Markets and shareholders of the fund would become shareholders of MSIF Emerging Markets, receiving common shares of MSIF Emerging Markets equal to the value of their holdings in the fund (the reorganization). Upon execution of the reorganization, shares of the fund would cease to trade on the NYSE. After the reorganization, however, shares of MSIF Emerging Markets may be purchased and redeemed at the option of shareholders at NAV on a daily basis, subject to the terms described in the registration statement for MSIF Emerging Markets.

It is currently anticipated that, in connection with the reorganization, Japanese shareholders of the fund will receive a cash payment equal to the NAV of their holdings, rather than shares of MSIF Emerging Markets. Upon execution of the reorganization, shares of the fund would be delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange upon determination by the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The reorganization is subject to certain conditions, including shareholder approval and customary closing conditions such as the performance of certain obligations contained in the agreement and plan of reorganization. The reorganization of the fund will be submitted for shareholder approval at a special meeting of shareholders scheduled to be held on March 8, 2019, and any adjournments or postponements thereof, to shareholders of record on January 14, 2019.

The Nuveen High Income December 2018 Target Term Fund (JHA) successfully completed its termination and liquidation following the close of business on November 30, 2018. The termination and liquidation was performed in accordance with the fund’s investment objectives and organizational documents, consistent with the fund’s previously announced liquidation plans. The Nuveen High Income December 2018 Target Term Fund launched on November 12, 2015 as a short duration strategy that invested primarily in high yield corporate debt, with two investment objectives, to provide high current income

6

FUNDMARKET INSIGHT REPORT DECEMBER 2018

and return the original NAV of $9.86 per common share upon termination on or about December 1, 2018.

The fund is returning to shareholders an extended NAV of $9.9435 per common share as its liquidating distribution, $0.0835 more than the original $9.86 NAV. Over its three-year term, the fund paid 34 monthly distributions and one long-term capital gain distribution totaling $1.3987 per share, which equates to an average distribution rate of 4.65% on NAV and 4.58% on market. The annualized total return on NAV for shareholders who invested at the initial public offering was 4.96% and the market price total return was 4.49%.

OTHERThe Nuveen Credit Strategies Income Fund (JQC) announced that the fund’s board of trustees at its December meeting approved adoption of a capital return plan. The plan is the latest in a series of actions undertaken with the goal of enhancing fund competitiveness and investment returns for current and prospective common shareholders. Under the plan, JQC will return to shareholders 20% of common assets, or approximately $240 million of its capital as of December 14, 2018, over the next three years through supplemental amounts included in the fund’s regular monthly distributions.

John Hancock Financial Opportunities Fund (BTO), John Hancock Hedged Equity & Income Fund (HEQ), John Hancock Income Securities Trust (JHS), John Hancock Investors Trust (JHI), John Hancock Premium Dividend Fund (PDT), and John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund (HTD) announced that the board of trustees has renewed the funds’ share repurchase plans that were set to expire on December 31, 2018.

The board of trustees approved the renewal of the share repurchase plans as part of its ongoing evaluation of options to enhance shareholder value and potentially decrease the discount between the market price and the NAV per share of the funds’ common shares. Under the share repurchase plans, each fund may purchase, in the open market, between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019, up to an additional 10% of its outstanding common shares (based on common shares outstanding as of December 31, 2018). The board of trustees will review the plan periodically and may authorize adjustment of its terms and size.

The share repurchase plans allow the repurchase of common shares in the open market at a discount to NAV. The plans could allow the funds to realize incremental accretion to their NAV to the benefit of existing shareholders. They could also have the benefit of providing additional liquidity in the trading of common shares. Year-to-date through November 30, 2018, the funds had not repurchased shares.

RiverNorth/DoubleLine Strategic Opportunity Fund, Inc. (OPP) announced that its board of directors approved a new level distribution policy effective January 1, 2019. The fund is also maintaining its previously declared monthly distribution for December 2018. The board approved an amended level distribution policy (the level distribution policy) for the fund, effective January 1, 2019. The fund intends to continue its current practice of making monthly distributions to stockholders, but at

a constant and fixed (not guaranteed) rate that is reset annually. The rate will be set equal to 12.5% of the average of the fund’s NAV per share for the final five trading days of the preceding calendar year.

The board believes that a high, predictable distribution rate, through a level distribution policy, results in better premium/discount management and may benefit all shareholders. Further, since the distribution amount is tied to the fund’s NAV and will be adjusted each calendar year, the level distribution policy should better allow the fund to maintain stable, consistent and predictable rates of distribution that are more sustainable over the long-term. The distribution amount will not always reflect the fund’s investment income or capital gains, does not represent yield, and could be a return of capital.

The Swiss Helvetia Fund, Inc. (SWZ), a non-diversified registered closed-end investment company, announced that its board of directors has approved a stock repurchase program, pursuant to which the fund may purchase up to 250,000 shares of its common shares. The principal purpose of the share repurchase program is to enhance shareholder value by increasing the fund’s NAV per share.

Any repurchase by the fund of its common shares is subject to various factors, including the limitations imposed by the federal securities laws governing the repurchase of an issuer’s shares by the issuer, the ability of the fund’s investment adviser to raise cash to repurchase shares of the fund in a tax-efficient manner, and general market conditions. There can be no assurance that the program will enhance shareholder value. The fund’s board of directors may amend this program, solely at its discretion, at any time during the duration of the program. Any such amendment will be publicly disclosed.

The fund also announced the continued suspension of its managed distribution plan due to the significant reduction in the size of the fund and the increased weight of illiquid securities as a result of the completion of the tender offer. The board of directors will consider whether to reinstitute or modify the plan.

The China Fund, Inc. (CHN), a closed-end investment company, announced that at a special meeting of its shareholders, Matthews International Capital Management, LLC (Matthews Asia) was approved as the fund’s new investment manager by more than 95% of the shares voted at the special meeting. It was expected that Matthews Asia would commence managing the fund’s portfolio on or about January 1, 2019. The fund is a diversified closed-end investment company, which seeks long term capital appreciation primarily through investments in Chinese companies.

© Refinitiv 2019. All Rights Reserved. The Financial and Risk business of Thomson Reuters is now Refinitiv. Lipper FundMarket Insight Reports are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute investment advice or an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security of any entity in any jurisdiction. No guarantee is made that the information in this report is accurate or complete and no warranties are made with regard to the results to be obtained from its use. In addition, Lipper will not be liable for any loss or damage resulting from information obtained from Lipper or any of its affiliates.

For immediate assistance, feel free to contact Lipper Client Services toll-free at 877.955.4773 or via email at LipperClientServices@thomsonreuters.com. For more information about Lipper, please visit our website at financial.tr.com or lipperalphainsight.com