JPMAM to launch Emerging Markets Income Fund

J.P. Morgan Asset Management has announced the launch of the JPM Emerging Markets Income Fund, drawing on its longstanding track record of successful emerging markets investment processes and the vast experience of its investment team.

The fund aims to provide investors with exposure to high dividend-paying emerging market companies, helping to form part of a diversified income portfolio. It will be managed by Richard Titherington, Chief Investment Officer for emerging market equities at J.P. Morgan Asset Management and will target a yield of 4%. Richard will be drawing on the expert insight of the company's Emerging Markets Equity team and the Emerging Market Debt team, led by Pierre Yves Bareau, given its ability to have exposure to emerging market debt of up to a maximum of 20%.

The key benefits of the fund include:

1. Diversification for income portfolios: it will look beyond the concentrated UK equity income market to allow investors access to high yielding stocks across a wide range of emerging market companies, markets and sectors.

2. Access to a powerful combination of income and growth: emerging market stocks offer sustainable and growing income, with the potential for long-term capital growth.

3. Access to J.P. Morgan Asset Management's 35 years of experience in emerging market investing: the J.P. Morgan Asset Management fundamental emerging market investment process has focussed on understanding the dividend component of equities since its inception.

Mike Parsons, Head of UK Fund Sales at J.P. Morgan Asset Management commented: "As an investment house, we have a long established and proven track record in emerging market investment processes, having been the first to pioneer emerging market income investing in the UK with the launch of the Global Emerging Markets Income Trust. Our new JPM Emerging Markets Income Fund will offer investors who are looking to diversify their portfolios and seeking an additional source of income, an attractive option. We believe this is a truly exciting fund, particularly with its ability to invest up to 20% of the portfolio in emerging market debt. This will allow the fund manager the flexibility to off-set some of the volatility in equity markets and offer the opportunity to deliver superior risk-adjusted returns."

Parsons continued: "I have said for a long time that UK investors have too much reliance on UK-centric funds for their income needs and are missing out on more compelling returns from overseas companies. Dividend income from UK equities is currently very concentrated. In the first quarter of 2012, 87% of dividends came from just 15 companies, and 58% came from just five companies. As UK interest rates remain at record lows, it is time for investors to start diversifying their income portfolios with exposure to a wider universe of higher yielding stocks that overseas markets can offer."