Seafarer®

Pursuing Lasting Progress in Emerging Markets®

Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund

Portfolio Review

Seoul, South Korea

Andrew Foster reports that holdings added in the past year – which feature strong brands, distribution, and pricing power – should help the Growth and Income Fund independently derive growth rather than be dependent on broad macro conditions. He notes that the sustained growth of Fund holdings is vital when the EM outlook remains uncertain.

Portfolio Review
Seafarer Overseas Value Fund

Portfolio Review

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Paul Espinosa discusses the unique market position of Salik, a toll road operator in the United Arab Emirates and recent addition to the Value Fund. He notes that Fund holdings from smaller emerging markets (the UAE, Georgia, Vietnam) drove the Fund’s performance.

Portfolio Review

Value Investor Insight – Bottoms Up

In an interview with Value Investor Insight, Paul Espinosa discusses Anheuser-Busch InBev’s improved performance in non-U.S. markets and ongoing efforts to deleverage its balance sheet.

Value Investor Insight Interview

Mutual Fund Observer – In Conversation with Andrew Foster

In an interview with Mutual Fund Observer, Andrew Foster explains why he expects the biggest fundamental change in EM stocks to come through stock buybacks. : As of September 30, 2023, the Seafarer Funds did not own shares in the securities referenced in the article. View the Top 10 Holdings for the Growth and Income Fund and the Value Fund. Holdings are subject to change.

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Prevailing Winds

Can Consumption Save the Chinese Economy?

To avoid a long-term slowdown in economic growth, Chinese policymakers need to change tactics and boost household consumption.

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Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund

Portfolio Briefing – Third Quarter 2023

Paul Espinosa and Lydia So discuss two additions to the Growth and Income Fund: Salik, a toll road operator in the UAE, and Hermès, a French luxury goods company that derives significant revenue from EM. Lydia explains that she looks for companies that can drive structural growth due to brand, pricing power, and critical infrastructure.

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Seafarer Overseas Value Fund

Portfolio Briefing – Third Quarter 2023

Paul Espinosa explains that Value Fund performance was led by holdings from countries with low weightings in the EM benchmark: the United Arab Emirates, Georgia, and Vietnam. He discusses how stock selection helped the Fund mitigate the impact of the falling Chinese market.

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Prevailing Winds

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Prevailing Winds

Testimony – China’s Economy: Implications for Investors

In testimony to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, Nicholas Borst discusses the causes of China’s economic slowdown and the risks of local government debt.

Testimony – China’s Current Economy
Prevailing Winds

China’s Reopening and Corporate Expansion Overseas

After a recent trip to China, Nicholas Borst reports on China’s reopening, the operating environment for the country’s private sector, and Chinese companies’ efforts to expand internationally.

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Prevailing Winds

Of Profits and Peril: Corporate China’s Push Abroad

Chinese companies are making an unprecedented effort to expand internationally, yet they face growing restrictions in the U.S. and other global markets.

Of Profits and Peril: Corporate China’s Push Abroad

News and Commentary

Money Life – Interview with Andrew Foster

In an interview with Money Life’s Chuck Jaffe, Andrew Foster discusses how some EM companies are transforming from government-owned entities to private sector enterprises, and reaping productivity gains in the process, while others are reshaping entire industries. Listen

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Letter to Shareholders

Tianjin, China

Lydia So explains that the current environment presents opportunities to invest in durable businesses that can consolidate and gain market share, as less competitive companies either fail or retreat from markets. She describes the characteristics she seeks in growth securities.

Letter to Shareholders
Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund

Value Investor Insight – Roads Less Traveled

In an interview with Value Investor Insight, Andrew Foster explains that he searches for companies that can grow with sustainable profitability, and whose stocks are cheap enough to make them relatively immune to economic and cyclical risks.

Value Investor Insight Interview
Seafarer Overseas Value Fund

Mutual Fund Observer – Seafarer Overseas Value Fund

In Mutual Fund Observer’s profile of the Value Fund, Paul Espinosa describes EM corporates that are expanding internationally, led by management teams with experience in navigating challenging market conditions. : As of March 31, 2023, Samsung Biologics Co., Ltd. comprised 4.3% of the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Pfd. comprised 3.5% of the Fund, Samsung SDI Co., Ltd. comprised 2.6% of the Fund, Samsung C&T Corp. comprised 1.4% of the Fund, Samsung Electronics, Co., Ltd. comprised 1.4% of the Fund, WH Group, Ltd. comprised 1.3% of the Fund, Ambev SA comprised 2.1% of the Fund, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA comprised 2.2% of the Fund, and DFI Retail Group Holdings, Ltd. comprised 1.4% of the Fund. As of March 31, 2023, Samsung SDI Co., Ltd. comprised 3.1% of the Seafarer Overseas Value Fund, Samsung C&T Corp. comprised 2.0% of the Fund, Samsung C&T Corp., Pfd. comprised 0.2% of the Fund, WH Group, Ltd. comprised 2.7% of the Fund, Ambev SA comprised 2.3% of the Fund, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA comprised 2.8% of the Fund, Melco International Development, Ltd. comprised 3.5% of the Fund, Shangri-La Asia, Ltd. comprised 3.3% of the Fund, and DFI Retail Group Holdings, Ltd. comprised 2.4% of the Fund. View the Top 10 Holdings for the Growth and Income Fund and the Value Fund. As of March 31, 2023, the Seafarer Funds did not own shares in the other securities referenced in this commentary. Holdings are subject to change.

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CSIS ChinaPower Podcast – Interview with Nicholas Borst

In an interview with the CSIS ChinaPower Podcast, Nicholas Borst discusses how growing debt levels in China – concentrated among local governments, real estate developers, and state-owned enterprises – stem from an imbalanced fiscal system, and why they are a source of financial risk. Listen

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Field Notes

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Field Notes

Mumbai: Cashless is King

A national digital payments platform in India is changing how individuals and merchants transact.

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Field Notes

Dubai: A New Beacon for Capital

Dubai is ascending as a global financial center as policies attract foreign capital and companies demonstrate improved corporate governance.

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Field Notes

Mexico City: Corporate Underinvestment

One reason for Mexico’s slow economic growth is that companies are underinvesting, largely in response to the country’s current political environment.

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