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30/06/2011
Inception Date
-6.19%
YTD Return (USD)
(as of 10/08/2022)
$21.23
NAV (USD)
(as of 10/08/2022)
+0.07
1 Day NAV Change
(as of 10/08/2022)
Seeks to achieve long term capital appreciation.
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, directly or indirectly, at least 65% of its total net assets, in publicly traded common stocks, preferred stocks and convertible securities of companies located in India, and may invest the remainder of its net assets in other permitted assets on a worldwide basis.
The value of an investment in the Fund can go down as well as up and possible loss of principal is a risk of investing. Investments in international, emerging and frontier market securities may involve risks such as social and political instability, market illiquidity, exchange-rate fluctuations, a high level of volatility and limited regulation, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund's assets. The Fund invests in holdings denominated in foreign currency, and is exposed to the risk that the value of the foreign currency will increase or decrease. The Fund invests primarily in equity securities, which may result in increased volatility. Investments in a single-country fund may be subject to a higher degree of market risk than diversified funds because of concentration in a specific country.
These and other risks associated with investing in the Fund can be found in the prospectus.
| Inception Date | 30/06/2011 | |
| Fund Assets | $26.73 million (31/07/2022) | |
| Base Currency | USD | |
| ISIN: | LU0594557885 (USD) LU0594558263 (GBP) | |
| Bloomberg Symbol | MAINDIU:LX (USD) MAINDGI:LX (GBP) | |
| Benchmark | S&P Bombay Stock Exchange 100 Index | |
| Geographic Focus | India | |
| Management Fee | 0.75% | |
| Total Expense Ratio As of 31/03/2022 | 1.00% ( USD ) 1.00% ( GBP ) | |
| Objective | Seeks to achieve long term capital appreciation. |
| Strategy | The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, directly or indirectly, at least 65% of its total net assets, in publicly traded common stocks, preferred stocks and convertible securities of companies located in India, and may invest the remainder of its net assets in other permitted assets on a worldwide basis. |
| Risks |
The value of an investment in the Fund can go down as well as up and possible loss of principal is a risk of investing. Investments in international, emerging and frontier market securities may involve risks such as social and political instability, market illiquidity, exchange-rate fluctuations, a high level of volatility and limited regulation, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund's assets. The Fund invests in holdings denominated in foreign currency, and is exposed to the risk that the value of the foreign currency will increase or decrease. The Fund invests primarily in equity securities, which may result in increased volatility. Investments in a single-country fund may be subject to a higher degree of market risk than diversified funds because of concentration in a specific country.
The risks associated with investing in the Fund can be found in the prospectus |
Source: Brown Brothers Harriman (Luxembourg) S.C.A.
Since inception performance for share classes with less than one year of history represents actual performance, not annualised. In addition, for share classes less than a year old, Year to Date Return is calculated since inception. Where no past performance is shown there was insufficient data available in that year to provide performance.
Performance details provided are based on a NAV-to-NAV basis with any dividends reinvested, and are net of management fees and other expenses. Performance data has been calculated in the respective currencies stated above, including ongoing charges and excluding subscription fee and redemption fee you might have to pay.
All performance quoted represents past performance and is not indicative of future performance. Investors may not get back the full amount invested. Investors investing in funds denominated in non-local currency should be aware of the risk of currency exchange fluctuations that may cause a loss of principal.
Additional performance, attribution, liquidity, value at risk (VaR), security classification and holdings information is available on request for certain time periods.
Sources: Factset Research Systems, Inc.
Fund Risk Metrics are reflective of Class I USD ACC shares.
Sources: Zephyr StyleADVISOR
Top 10 holdings may combine more than one security from the same issuer and related depositary receipts.
Source: Brown Brothers Harriman (Luxembourg) S.C.A
Sector data based on MSCI’s revised Global Industry Classification Standards. For more details, visit www.msci.com.
Source: FactSet Research Systems unless otherwise noted.
Percentage values in data are rounded to the nearest tenth of one percent, so the values may not sum to 100% due to rounding. Percentage values may be derived from different data sources and may not be consistent with other Fund literature.
(as of 31/07/2022)
CATEGORY: India Equity
| OVERALL | 4 stars |
| 3 YEAR | 3 stars |
| 5 YEAR | 3 stars |
| 10 YEAR | 4 stars |
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. High ratings and rankings does not assure favorable performance.
Overall Morningstar RatingTM is reflective of the noted share class. Fund ratings represent an opinion only and are not a recommendation to buy or sell any fund. Copyright ©2021 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is provided for reference purposes only.
The Overall Morningstar®️ Rating for a fund is derived from a weighted-average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five- and (if applicable) ten-year ratings.
Morningstar RatingTM for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The Morningstar Rating does not include any adjustment for sales loads. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods.
Lead Manager
Portfolio Manager
Peeyush Mittal is a Portfolio Manager at Matthews Asia and manages the firm's India Strategy. Prior to joining the firm in 2015, he spent over three years at Franklin Templeton Asset Management India, most recently as a Senior Research Analyst. Previously, he was with Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management New York, from 2009 to 2011, researching U.S. and European stocks in the industrials and materials sectors. Peeyush began his career in 2003 with Scot Forge as an Industrial Engineer, and was responsible for implementing Lean Manufacturing systems on the production shop floor. Peeyush earned his M.B.A from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He received a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from The Ohio State University and received a Bachelor of Technology in Metallurgical Engineering from The Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He is fluent in Hindi.
Co-Manager
Portfolio Manager
Sharat Shroff is a Portfolio Manager at Matthews Asia and manages the firm’s Pacific Tiger Strategy and co-manages the India Strategy. Prior to joining Matthews Asia in 2005, Sharat worked in the San Francisco and Hong Kong offices of Morgan Stanley as an Equity Research Associate. Sharat received a Bachelor of Technology from the Institute of Technology in Varanasi, India and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, in Calcutta, India. He is fluent in Hindi and Bengali.
Performance figures discussed in the Fund Manager Commentary above reflect that of the Institutional Accumulation Class Shares and has been calculated in USD. Performance details provided for the Fund are based on a NAV-to-NAV basis, with any dividends reinvested, and are net of management fees and other expenses. Past performance information is not indicative of future performance. Investors may not get back the full amount invested.
The information contained herein has been derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate at the time of compilation, but no representation or warranty (express or implied) is made as to the accuracy or completeness of any of this information. Matthews Asia and its affiliates do not accept any liability for losses either direct or consequential caused by the use of this information.
Information contained herein is sourced from Matthews Asia unless otherwise stated. The views and opinions in this commentary were as of the report date, subject to change and may not reflect the writer’s current views. They are not guarantees of performance or investment results and should not be taken as investment advice. Investment decisions reflect a variety of factors, and the managers reserve the right to change their views about individual stocks, sectors, and the markets at any time. As a result, the views expressed should not be relied upon as a forecast of the Fund’s future investment intent. It should not be assumed that any investment will be profitable or will equal the performance of any securities or any sectors mentioned herein. The information does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any securities mentioned.
Investors should not invest in the Fund solely based on the information in this material alone. Please refer to the Prospectus for further details of the risk factors.
The Markit iBoxx Asian Local Bond Index tracks the total return performance of a bond portfolio consisting of local-currency denominated, high quality and liquid bonds in Asia ex-Japan. The Markit iBoxx Asian Local Bond Index includes bonds from the following countries: China (on- and offshore markets), Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.
The J.P. Morgan Asia Credit Index (JACI) tracks the total return performance of the Asia fixed-rate dollar bond market. JACI is a market cap-weighted index comprising sovereign, quasi-sovereign and corporate bonds and is partitioned by country, sector and credit rating. JACI includes bonds from the following countries: China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.
The MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index is a free float–adjusted market capitalization–weighted index of the stock markets of China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.
The MSCI All Country Asia Pacific Index is a free float–adjusted market capitalization–weighted index of the stock markets of Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.
The MSCI China Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index of Chinese equities that includes H shares listed on the Hong Kong exchange, B shares listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges, Hong Kong-listed securities known as Red chips (issued by entities owned by national or local governments in China) and P Chips (issued by companies controlled by individuals in China and deriving substantial revenues in China) and foreign listings (e.g. ADRs).
The MSCI China All Shares Index captures large and mid-cap representation across China A shares, B shares, H shares, Red chips (issued by entities owned by national or local governments in China), P chips (issued by companies controlled by individuals in China and deriving substantial revenues in China), and foreign listings (e.g. ADRs). The index aims to reflect the opportunity set of China share classes listed in Hong Kong,Shanghai, Shenzhen and outside of China.
The MSCI China A Onshore Index captures large and mid cap representation across China securities listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges. Index is for comparative purposes only and it is not possible to invest directly in an index.
The S&P Bombay Stock Exchange 100 (S&P BSE 100) Index is a free float–adjusted market capitalization–weighted index of 100 stocks listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The MSCI Japan Index is a free float–adjusted market capitalization–weighted index of Japanese equities listed in Japan.
The MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Small Cap Index is a free float–adjusted market capitalization–weighted small cap index of the stock markets of China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.
The MSCI China Small Cap Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted small cap index of the Chinese equity securities markets, including H shares listed on the Hong Kong exchange, B shares listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges,Hong Kong-listed securities known as Red Chips (issued by entities owned by national or local governments in China) and P Chips (issued by companies controlled by individuals in China and deriving substantial revenues in China), and foreign listings (e.g., ADRs).
Commentary
Period ended 30 June 2022
For the first half of 2022, the Matthews India Fund returned -14.76%, while its benchmark, the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange 100 Index, returned -13.58% over the same period. For the quarter ending June 30, 2022, the Fund returned -8.62%, while the benchmark returned -12.62%.
Market Environment:
Rising inflation in developed markets continues to impact investor sentiment negatively while monetary policy tightening is posing a substantial challenge for equity markets globally, India included. Given the aggression the U.S. Federal Reserve has shown toward containing inflation, the Reserve Bank of India has reversed its accommodative stance by hiking policy rates by a cumulative 90 basis point (0.90%) in two separate moves so far this year.
Russia’s war in Ukraine has gone on longer than anyone anticipated. Europe’s dependence on Ukraine for food grain and on Russia for energy implies that the future is going to be challenging from the perspective of securing food and energy supplies. Lack of energy supply-security along with high oil and gas prices has sent power costs soaring in some of the largest European economies and the risk of prolonged recession in the region is increasing with every passing day. Developments in Europe at the very least have negative growth repercussions for global growth.
Against this backdrop India seems to be faring reasonably well though it has its own challenges. The rural economy continues to be weak and thus far has not shown any signs of reversal. High prices of thermal coal along with supply chain issues are beginning to have a negative impact on the financial health of power distribution companies which will have an adverse impact on fiscal math at the state level.
Amid these challenges, discretionary consumption continues to normalize despite rising interest rates. Automotive production in India has improved month-over-month and is helping to boost manufacturing gross domestic product (GDP). Automakers couldn’t produce enough vehicles over the last two years due to chip shortages and that has created a lot of pent-up demand. We expect this trend to sustain in the coming quarters.
Performance Contributors and Detractors:
Our lack of ownership in commodity-led sectors like utilities and underweight in energy detracted from relative performance in the first half. We have historically not focused on these sectors due to our inability to predict underlying commodity prices. On the other hand, our stock selection in industrials and materials were the biggest contributors to relative performance. In the second quarter, Fund performance improved. A reversal in prices of many hard commodities meant that the negative drag we experienced in the first quarter due to lack of ownership in commodity-related sectors switched positively.
At the stock level, industrials and consumer discretionary holdings were among the top performers in the first half. Ashok Leyland, a commercial vehicle manufacturer, was the best performer. Commercial vehicle production in India is expected to see robust growth in fiscal year (FY) 2023 after seeing some stabilization of production in FY2022. Ashok Leyland is a leading manufacturer in the space and is expected to benefit tremendously from improvements in the sector’s production rate. Further, a reduction in the price of copper, aluminum and steel implies that margins are likely going to be better than what investors were anticipating at the start of the fiscal year. Both these developments bode well for continued positive investor sentiment toward Ashok Leyland. On the flip side, information technology (IT) companies were among the biggest detractors in the first six months. Most IT stocks including Infosys didn’t perform well as investors worried about prospects for these businesses given that rampant employee-wage inflation is pressuring their margins and fears are growing of recession in developed markets.
Notable Portfolio Changes:
In the second quarter, we reduced our holdings in IT stocks like Tech Mahindra. Companies in the sector have benefited from mass adoption of digitization globally and from being insulated from supply chain challenges faced by other sectors. However, the emergence of recession concerns in the U.S. and Europe is going to have a negative impact on the growth outlook for all large Indian IT services firms which derive meaningful revenues come from these markets. Supply-side constraints are also forcing IT services firms to give higher-than-anticipated wage increases to retain employees and that is leading to lower margins compared to long-run averages and investor expectations.
In the quarter we increased our exposure to the auto sector. We initiated a position in TVS Motor which is a leading domestic manufacturer of motorcycles in India. TVS Motor has demonstrated an ability to launch successful new products in both scooter and motorcycle categories and we expect the company to use electrification-related disruption to gain market share in the country. Further, motorcycle demand has been subdued in India for a long time. We expect to see a cyclical recovery in FY2023 from the bottom which would bode well for TVS Motor’s financial performance.
Outlook:
We are beginning to see some light at the end of tunnel as it relates to inflationary pressures around the world. Notwithstanding the efforts central banks are making to tighten monetary policy we have also seen supply chain-led price disruptions for many products and commodities ease in the last few months and that is having a cooling-off effect on commodity prices globally. Two very important industrial commodities—copper and aluminum—are down substantially from recent highs and the same is true for crude oil too. That bodes well from the perspective of an impending reduction in inflation.
We think monetary policy tightening globally has some way to go before it stabilizes. We expect the Reserve Bank of India to follow this path though the impact of the higher rates in the country is unlikely to be as adverse as it may be in developed markets. Interest rates are likely going to normalize back to pre-COVID levels in India and hence we think that the adverse impact of higher rates is likely going to be only marginal.
We continue to be optimistic in our outlook for India. We think there will be a further revival in domestic consumption and we think easing of inflation is going to support that further. We also think discretionary consumption is going to surprise positively given the pent-up demand from last two years. Easing hard commodity prices bodes well for profitability in the consumer discretionary sector and we think it is a good hunting ground for investors to evaluate and invest.
Rolling 12 Month Returns For the period ended 30/06/2022 - I (Acc)
Sources: Brown Brothers Harriman (Luxembourg) S.C.A, Matthews Asia, FactSet Research Systems, Bloomberg