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Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund

Snapshot

Effective 30 August 2024, the Fund was renamed from the China Dividend Fund to the China Total Return Equity Fund.

  • Total return strategy seeks to access the growth of China with lower volatility
  • Unconstrained all-cap portfolio with a quality bias
  • Flexible approach offers participation in both growth and value markets

31/01/2013

Inception Date

-1.93%

YTD Return (USD)

(as of 20/01/2025)

$16.75

NAV (USD)

(as of 20/01/2025)

+0.29

1 Day NAV Change

(as of 20/01/2025)

Objective

Seeks total return through capital appreciation and current income.

Sustainability

The Fund promotes environmental and social characteristics according to Article 8 of SFDR. Furthermore, the Fund uses both activity- and norm-based exclusions. Information relating to the environmental and social characteristics of this Fund is available in the prospectus.

Strategy

The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, directly or indirectly, at least 65% of its total assets, in income-paying publicly traded common stocks, preferred stocks, convertible preferred stocks, and other equity-related instruments of companies located in China. For purpose of this policy, China includes the People's Republic of China, its administrative and other districts, such as Hong Kong, as well as Taiwan. The Fund may also invest in convertible fixed-income securities.

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. Investing in Chinese securities involve risks. Heightened risks related to the regulatory environment and the potential actions by the Chinese government could negatively impact performance. 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. There is no guarantee that the Fund or the companies in its portfolio will pay or continue to pay dividends. 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.

Fund Facts
Inception Date 31/01/2013
Fund Assets $2.65 million (31/12/2024)
Base Currency USD
ISIN: LU0871673488 (USD)
Bloomberg Symbol MATACDI:LX (USD)
Benchmark MSCI China Index
Geographic Focus China and Taiwan: China includes its administrative and other districts, such as Hong Kong
SFDR Classification Article 8
Fees & Expenses
Management Fee 0.75%
Total Expense Ratio 1.00% ( USD )

Performance

  • Monthly
  • Quarterly
  • Calendar Year
  • Rolling 12 Month
    Returns
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As of 31/12/2024
Annualized Returns
Name 1MO 3MO YTD 1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR Since Inception Inception Date
Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund (USD)
2.40% -6.41% 15.72% 15.72% -8.40% -0.84% 4.54% 4.60% 31/01/2013
MSCI China Index (USD)
2.69% -7.66% 19.68% 19.68% -5.92% -3.29% 2.05% 2.39%
As of 31/12/2024
Annualized Returns
Name 1MO 3MO YTD 1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR Since Inception Inception Date
Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund (USD)
2.40% -6.41% 15.72% 15.72% -8.40% -0.84% 4.54% 4.60% 31/01/2013
MSCI China Index (USD)
2.69% -7.66% 19.68% 19.68% -5.92% -3.29% 2.05% 2.39%
For the years ended December 31st
Name 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015
Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund (USD)
15.72% -20.65% -16.29% 0.32% 24.30% 14.82% -10.44% 38.09% 6.09% 7.94%
MSCI China Index (USD)
19.68% -11.04% -21.80% -21.64% 29.67% 23.66% -18.75% 54.33% 1.11% -7.62%
For the period ended 31/12/2024
Name 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 Inception Date
Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund (USD)
15.72% -20.65% -16.29% 0.32% 24.30% 31/01/2013
MSCI China Index (USD)
19.68% -11.04% -21.80% -21.64% 29.67%

Source: Brown Brothers Harriman (Luxembourg) S.C.A.

All returns over 1 year are annualized

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.

Yield

(as of 31/12/2024)
3.45% Dividend Yield

Source: FactSet Research Systems, Bloomberg, Matthews Asia

Portfolio Characteristics

(as of 31/12/2024)
Fund Benchmark
Number of Positions 44 581
Weighted Average Market Cap $104.4 billion $158.0 billion
Active Share 66.9 n.a.
P/E using FY1 estimates 10.7x 10.4x
P/E using FY2 estimates 9.7x 9.7x
Price/Cash Flow 6.8 6.6
Price/Book 1.5 1.4
Return On Equity 13.8 12.9
EPS Growth (3 Yr) 13.7% 6.0%

Sources: Factset Research Systems, Inc.

Risk Metrics (3 Yr Return)

(as of 31/12/2024)
-4.82%
Alpha
0.83
Beta
70.40%
Upside Capture
91.15%
Downside Capture
-0.45
Sharpe Ratio
-0.32
Information Ratio
7.80%
Tracking Error
96.10

Fund Risk Metrics are reflective of Class I USD ACC shares.

Sources: Zephyr StyleADVISOR

Top 10 Holdings

(as of 31/12/2024)
Name Sector % Net Assets
Tencent Holdings, Ltd. Communication Services 9.9
Alibaba Group Holding, Ltd. Consumer Discretionary 6.1
Ping An Insurance Group Co. of China, Ltd. Financials 4.9
Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co., Ltd. Consumer Discretionary 3.5
Anhui Expressway Co., Ltd. Industrials 3.2
China Merchants Bank Co., Ltd. Financials 3.2
China Construction Bank Corp. Financials 3.2
China Suntien Green Energy Corp., Ltd. Energy 3.0
China Everbright Environment Group, Ltd. Industrials 3.0
Meituan Class B Consumer Discretionary 2.7
TOTAL 42.7

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

Portfolio Breakdown (%)

(as of 31/12/2024)
  • Sector Allocation
  • Asset Type Breakdown
  • Market Cap Exposure
  • China Exposure
Sector Fund Benchmark Difference
Consumer Discretionary 30.9 29.8 1.1
Financials 14.5 18.7 -4.2
Industrials 14.3 4.8 9.5
Communication Services 11.1 21.5 -10.4
Consumer Staples 11.1 4.0 7.1
Energy 5.1 3.2 1.9
Information Technology 4.6 7.4 -2.8
Health Care 4.1 3.5 0.6
Materials 1.9 2.8 -0.9
Real Estate 1.3 1.8 -0.5
Utilities 0.0 2.4 -2.4
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 1.1 0.0 1.1

Sector data based on MSCI’s revised Global Industry Classification Standards. For more details, visit www.msci.com.

Asset Type Fund
Common Equities and ADRs 98.9
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 1.1
Equity market cap of issuer Fund Benchmark Difference
Mega Cap (over $25B) 48.6 71.8 -23.2
Large Cap ($10B-$25B) 10.7 14.6 -3.9
Mid Cap ($3B-$10B) 32.0 13.5 18.5
Small Cap (under $3B) 7.5 0.1 7.4
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 1.1 0.0 1.1
China Exposure Portfolio Weight
Hong Kong Listed Companies 74.6
Mainland China Listed Companies 12.5
Other 8.2
ADR/GDR 3.4
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 1.1

Mainland China listed companies includes A Share and B Shares. A Shares are Mainland Chinese companies incorporated in China and listed on the Shanghai or Shenzhen exchanges, available mostly to local Chinese investors and qualified institutional investors. B Shares are mainland Chinese companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, available to both Chinese and non-Chinese investors. ADRs are American Depositary Receipts and GDRs are Global Depositary Receipts. Hong Kong Listed Companies include SAR (Hong Kong) companies, China-affiliated corporations, and H Shares. SAR companies are companies that conduct business in Hong Kong and/or mainland China. China-affiliated corporations [CAC], also known as "Red Chips," are mainland China companies with partial state ownership listed in Hong Kong, and incorporated in Hong Kong. H Shares are mainland Chinese companies listed on the Hong Kong exchange but incorporated in mainland China. Other represents Chinese companies listed in other countries or non-China companies with a majority of revenue coming from China such as Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and the United States or other non-China companies.

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.

ESG Characteristics

(as of 30/09/2024)
  • Business Involvement
  • Sustainability Attributes
Name Fund Benchmark Difference
Controversial Weapons
Fund Coverage: 100% Benchmark Coverage: 99%
0.0 0.0 0.0
Tobacco
Fund Coverage: 100% Benchmark Coverage: 99%
0.0 0.1 -0.1
Name Fund Benchmark Difference
UN Global Compact Violators
Fund Coverage: 100% Benchmark Coverage: 99%
0.0 0.0 0.0
Board Diversity
Fund Coverage: 100% Benchmark Coverage: 99%
22.2 20.3 1.9

Board Diversity: Represents the weighted average ratio of female board members in investee companies.
Tobacco: Represents companies that generate more than 5% of revenue from tobacco manufacturing exposure to or production or that generate more than 50% of revenue from tobacco retail. 
UN Global Compact Violators: Represents companies that have been assessed as failing to comply with the 10 United Nations Global Compact Principles by ISS-ESG Norms-Based Research. Different ESG research providers may come to different conclusions on the severity of the violation.
Controversial weapons include companies with involvement in the following: anti-personnel mines; biological and chemical weapons; cluster weapons; depleted uranium; nuclear weapons and white phosphorus. A company is excluded if it is directly involved in the production, selling and/or distribution of (parts of) controversial weapons and this involvement concerns the core weapon system, or components/services of the core weapon system that are tailor-made and essential for the lethal use of the weapon.

Source: Sustainalytics, Factset, MSCI, Matthews Asia.

GHG Intensity

(as of 30/09/2024)

Fund Coverage: 99%; Benchmark Coverage: 98% as of 30/09/2024

GHG Intensity: Represents the normalized portfolio’s total weighted average (scope 1 + scope 2) carbon emissions intensity, using the most recently available data (emissions data from 2020, 2021). Carbon intensity represents the issuer’s total carbon emissions per EUR million of revenue (tCO2e divided by EUR million in revenue).

Source: Sourced from ISS ESG. Where not covered by external data providers, we have tried to source these data points.

Sustainability-related Disclosures

This Fund Yes No
Complies with Article 8 of SFDR  
Investment process integrates ESG factors and sustainability risks based on proprietary and third-party research  
Applies norms- and activity-based exclusions  
Promotes environmental and social characteristics  
Has a sustainable investment objective  
Conducts engagement  
Exercises Voting Rights  

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 Fund’s investment objective and risk factors.

For more information, please refer to our Responsible Investment and Stewardship Policy and our ESG-Related Investment Policy of Matthews Asia Funds.

Ratings

  • OVERALL
  • 3 YEAR
  • 5 YEAR
  • 10 YEAR

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 ©2023 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.

Portfolio Managers

Sherwood  Zhang, CFA photo
Sherwood Zhang, CFA

Lead Manager

Winnie  Chwang photo
Winnie Chwang

Lead Manager

Andrew  Mattock, CFA photo
Andrew Mattock, CFA

Co-Manager

Elli  Lee photo
Elli Lee

Co-Manager

Hardy  Zhu photo
Hardy Zhu

Co-Manager

Commentary

Period ended 31 December 2024

Market Environment

  • China was one of the best-performing emerging markets in 2024. Chinese equities had a volatile start to the year and then rallied through the spring helped by government initiatives to support the property sector. The market sagged through the summer before surging in September when the government unveiled a broad and aggressive package of stimulus measures aimed at kickstarting the real estate market, ramping up growth and boosting stock market liquidity.
  • During the year, companies listed in China’s offshore markets, typically in technology, consumer and ecommerce segments, delivered improvements in earnings growth as they contained costs and bolstered margins rather than chasing revenue and market share. In many cases they were also shrewd managers of capital, buying back shares and increasing dividends.
  • The performance of the mainland or A-share market, including consumer staples, real estate, industrials and manufacturing, lagged offshore equities, being more directly impacted by weak demand and the struggling property sector. Manufacturing and industrials-related stocks performed slightly better but they were also affected by a sluggish domestic economy.

Contributors and Detractors

  • For the year ended December 31, 2024, the China Total Return Equity Fund returned 15.72%, (I Acc USD) while its benchmark, the MSCI China Index, returned 19.68% over the same period.
  • On a sector basis, the top three contributors to relative performance were consumer discretionary and industrials due to stock selection and health care due to an underweight allocation. The top three detractors were financials, communication services and utilities due to stock selection.
  • The top three contributors to absolute performance included Tencent Holdings, an online gaming and social media conglomerate, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Holdings, one of China’s largest privately owned shipbuilding company, and Meituan, China’s largest food delivery service and internet platform company. The largest detractors included CITIC Telecom International Holdings, a telecommunication connectivity services provider, Guangdong Investment, an infrastructure company, and Tam Jai International, a restaurant operator.

Outlook

  • It was reassuring to see China’s leadership introduce measures to encourage economic growth, particularly in easing monetary policy and implementing steps to address weak demand and oversupply in the property sector. More stimulus is anticipated at the National People’s Congress in March.
  • The key to China’s recovery will be how effectively it executes new stimulus initiatives and policies. Meanwhile, the economy will likely face headwinds from a toughening trade posture and an increase in tariffs from the new Trump administration in the U.S. While exports are a small contributor to GDP, a ratcheting up of U.S. tariffs will undoubtedly hurt China’s economy.
  • Amid negative sentiment over potential U.S. tariffs and uncertainty over the economy’s growth prospects, valuations in China’s equity market are generally very cheap. We think there is potential for companies in the ecommerce and financials space to continue to improve cost structures, revenue and profitability. For more domestic-focused businesses, the eventual impact of China’s ongoing stimulus measures will be more critical—if successful they could provide a meaningful tailwind.

 

Rolling 12 Month Returns For the period ended 31/12/2024 - I (Acc)
Name 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 Inception Date
Matthews China Total Return Equity Fund (USD)
15.72% -20.65% -16.29% 0.32% 24.30% 31/01/2013
MSCI China Index (USD)
19.68% -11.04% -21.80% -21.64% 29.67%

Sources: Brown Brothers Harriman (Luxembourg) S.C.A, Matthews Asia, FactSet Research Systems, Bloomberg

To find documents in additional languages, please visit the Fund Literature page in our Resources section.

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. 

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