The Korea Fund, Inc. (KF)

Korea has been one of the more resilient Asian markets this year. But fundamental headwinds lurk beneath the surface. Actively managed KF doesn't offer as much upside potential here.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of The Korea Fund, Inc. (NYSE: KF) (the “Fund”) has appointed Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated (the “Program Manager”) to serve as its agent and broker for purposes of implementing the Fund's Discount Management Program (the “Program”), with effect as of December 16, 2024. The Program provides that the Fund may repurchase annually up to 10% of its common shares outstanding as of the close of business on June 30th of the.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Directors of The Korea Fund, Inc. (the "Fund") (NYSE:KF) announced today they have declared a dividend distribution of $0.454161 per share. This dividend distribution represents payment of the Fund's 2024 spillback distribution pursuant to Section 855 of the Internal Revenue Code. The distribution will be payable on January 6, 2025 to shareholders of record on December 23, 2024 which is also the ex-dividend date. As of today until January 6, 2025, being t.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of The Korea Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) (NYSE: KF) today announced the final results of its tender offer. As previously announced, the Fund conducted a tender offer to purchase for cash up to 12.5% of its issued and outstanding common stock, at a price equal to 98.5% of its net asset value (“NAV”) per share determined on the expiration date. The Fund's tender offer, which expired at 5:00 p.m. New York City time, on Monday, September 1.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of The Korea Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) (NYSE: KF) today announced the preliminary results of the Fund's tender offer. As previously announced, the Fund conducted a tender offer to purchase for cash up to 12.5% of its issued and outstanding common stock, at a price equal to 98.5% of its net asset value (“NAV”) per share determined on the expiration date. The Fund's tender offer expired at 5:00 p.m. New York City time, on Monday, Septe.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Korea Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) (NYSE: KF) announced today that the tender offer (the “Tender Offer”) to purchase for cash up to 12.5% of the Fund's issued and outstanding common stock, at a price per share equal to 98.5% of the net asset value per share, determined on the date the tender offer expires, will commence on Friday, August 16, 2024 and expire, unless otherwise extended, at 5:00 p.m., New York City Time, on Monday, September 16, 2024. The Fund's Board of.

The closed-end Korea Fund has benefited from a narrowing NAV discount. Expect more of the same ahead of a potentially catalyst-rich next few months. Despite its flaws, KF ticks a lot of boxes as a Korean large-cap play.

Korean large-cap fundamentals remain very attractive. The Korea Fund stands to benefit from more tech-led outperformance. A narrowing NAV discount adds compelling optionality.

The Korea Fund Inc. is an old foreign CEF (30-year history) that focuses on Korean stocks and is currently managed by John Cho. Korean stocks offer one of the most alluring valuations to earnings trade-offs. KF's earnings are benefiting from the bounce back of the memory chip market and South Korea's positive export growth.

For the third month in four, equity CEFs (+1.81%) witnessed gains while their fixed income CEF (+0.52%) counterparts for the fourth month in a row posted plus-side returns.

The Korea Fund is a closed-ended fund focused on South Korean equities with performance that is slightly ahead of its benchmark over the last decade. The fund has a discount to NAV of over 17% in the last 6 months, which may contract substantially in a bullish run in South Korean stocks. South Korea is taking cues from Japan's corporate governance reforms, potentially leading to improved shareholder activism and better market performance.

South Korean equities rally on positive economic data and export growth. The Korea Fund's discount to NAV remains favorable, and South Korea trades at a substantial discount to India and Taiwan. South Korean equities are attractive in terms of valuation and innovation potential, with Samsung outperforming IBM in 2022.

After a topsy-turvy year, Korean stocks are ending 2023 on a high. The 2024 micro/macro setup looks interesting as well, particularly at current valuations. Playing Korea through an active fund like KF has its drawbacks, but there are mitigating factors worth considering.

For the first month in four, both equity (+6.05% on a NAV basis) and fixed income (+5.81%) CEFs on average posted handsome plus-side returns. At month end, 9% of all CEFs traded at a premium to their NAV, with 10% of equity CEFs and 8% of fixed income CEFs trading in premium territory. Developed Markets CEFs (+8.93%), for the first month in eight, outpaced the other classifications in the equity CEF universe for November.

The JPM-managed Korea Fund is undergoing a period of relative underperformance. But there are mitigating factors, including relatively discounted portfolio valuations and a wide NAV discount. The broader Korean market remains cheap relative to its underlying fundamentals and could still rebound from here.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of The Korea Fund, Inc. (NYSE: KF) (the “Fund”) has appointed Citigroup Global Markets Inc. (the “Program Manager”) to serve as its agent and broker for purposes of implementing the Fund's Discount Management Program (the “Program”). The Program provides that the Fund may repurchase annually up to 10% of its common shares outstanding as of the close of business on June 30th of the prior year in open market transactions when such sh.