Matisse’s Boughton: International, emerging-markets stocks are ‘dirt cheap’

Eric Boughton, chief analyst at Matisse Capital and portfolio manager for the Matisse Discounted Closed-End Fund Strategy, says that the war in Ukraine has been creating deep discounts and bigger buying opportunities for closed-end fund investors, noting that emerging markets and international stocks went into the conflict already at low levels, which now means investors are getting ‘a discount on a discount.’ He notes that international equity closed-end funds now are trading at a median discount of 12 percent, compared to a long-term discount of 10 percent; international bond closed-end funds now trade at a median discount of 11 percent, compared to a normal average of 8 percent. Those conditions – and wider discounts – should improve investor confidence that the investments can rebound quickly from the war.