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Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund
MAPTX

Snapshot
  • Seeks alpha in Asia’s emerging economies by capitalizing on the rising Asia consumer
  • High-conviction equity portfolio focused on sustainable growth companies
  • All-cap fundamental approach driven by on-the-ground, proprietary research

09/12/1994

Inception Date

-4.98%

YTD Return

(as of 04/17/2025)

$16.80

NAV

(as of 04/17/2025)

+0.18

1 Day NAV Change

(as of 04/17/2025)

Objective

Long-term capital appreciation

Strategy

Under normal circumstances, the Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its net assets, which include borrowings for investment purposes, in the common and preferred stocks of companies located in Asia Ex Japan. The Fund seeks to invest in companies capable of sustainable growth based on the fundamental characteristics of those companies, including balance sheet information; number of employees; size and stability of cash flow; management’s depth, adaptability and integrity; product lines; marketing strategies; corporate governance; and financial health.

Risks

Investments in Asian securities may involve risks such as social and political instability, market illiquidity, exchange-rate fluctuations, a high level of volatility and limited regulation. Investing in emerging and frontier markets involves different and greater risks, as these countries are substantially smaller, less liquid and more volatile than securities markets in more developed markets.

These and other risks associated with investing in the Fund can be found in the prospectus.

Fund Facts
Inception Date 09/12/1994
Fund Assets $693.65 million (03/31/2025)
Currency USD
Ticker MAPTX
Cusip 577-130-107
Benchmark MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index
Geographic Focus Asia Ex Japan - Consists of all countries and markets in Asia, including developed, emerging, and frontier countries and markets in the Asian region, excluding Japan
Fees & Expenses
Gross Expense Ratio 1.12%

Performance

  • Monthly
  • Quarterly
  • Calendar Year
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As of 03/31/2025
Average Annual Total Returns
Name 1MO 3MO YTD 1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR Since Inception Inception Date
Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund - MAPTX
09/12/1994
MAPTX
-0.68% -0.28% -0.28% 4.29% -4.20% 3.88% 1.91% 6.83%
MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index
0.06% 1.89% 1.89% 11.90% 2.22% 7.60% 4.57% 4.42%
As of 03/31/2025
Average Annual Total Returns
Name 1MO 3MO YTD 1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR Since Inception Inception Date
Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund - MAPTX
09/12/1994
MAPTX
-0.68% -0.28% -0.28% 4.29% -4.20% 3.88% 1.91% 6.83%
MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index
0.06% 1.89% 1.89% 11.90% 2.22% 7.60% 4.57% 4.42%
For the years ended December 31st
Name 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015
Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund - MAPTX
MAPTX
3.41% -4.87% -20.73% -4.41% 28.83% 10.72% -11.11% 39.96% -0.16% -1.30%
MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index (USD)
12.51% 6.34% -19.36% -4.46% 25.36% 18.52% -14.12% 42.08% 5.76% -8.90%

MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index since inception value calculated from 08/31/94.

Source: BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. All performance is in US$.

Assumes reinvestment of all dividends and/or distributions before taxes. All performance quoted represents past performance and is no guarantee of future results. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate with market conditions so that when redeemed, shares may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the return figures quoted. Returns would have been lower if certain of the Fund’s fees and expenses had not been waived. Performance differences between the Institutional class and the Investor class may arise due to differences in fees charged to each class.

Additional performance, attribution, liquidity, value at risk (VaR), security classification and holdings information is available on request for certain time periods.

Growth of a Hypothetical $10,000 Investment Since Inception

(as of 03/31/2025)

Source: BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. All performance is in US$.

The performance data and graph do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on dividends, capital gain distributions or redemption of fund shares.

Ratings

  • OVERALL
  • out of 38 funds
  • 3 YEAR
  • out of 38 funds
  • 5 YEAR
  • out of 37 funds
  • 10 YEAR
  • out of 27 funds

Ratings agency calculation methodology

Portfolio Managers

Sean  Taylor photo
Sean Taylor

Lead Manager

Inbok  Song photo
Inbok Song

Lead Manager

Andrew  Mattock, CFA photo
Andrew Mattock, CFA

Lead Manager

Winnie  Chwang photo
Winnie Chwang

Co-Manager

Peeyush  Mittal, CFA photo
Peeyush Mittal, CFA

Co-Manager

Jeremy  Sutch, CFA photo
Jeremy Sutch, CFA

Co-Manager

Portfolio Characteristics

(as of 03/31/2025)
Fund Benchmark
Number of Positions 73 1,020
Weighted Average Market Cap $184.7 billion $170.5 billion
Active Share 56.0 n.a.
P/E using FY1 estimates 14.0x 13.1x
P/E using FY2 estimates 12.2x 11.8x
Price/Cash Flow 9.3 8.4
Price/Book 2.3 1.8
Return On Equity 18.7 17.5
EPS Growth (3 Yr) 15.4% 11.6%

Sources: Factset Research Systems, Inc.

Risk Metrics (3 Yr Return)

(as of 03/31/2025)
-6.13%
Alpha
1.03
Beta
83.94%
Upside Capture
110.13%
Downside Capture
-0.42
Sharpe Ratio
-1.42
Information Ratio
4.51%
Tracking Error
95.20

Fund Risk Metrics are reflective of Investor share class.

Sources: Zephyr StyleADVISOR

Top 10 Holdings

(as of 03/31/2025)
Name Sector Country % Net Assets
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Information Technology Taiwan 9.5
Tencent Holdings, Ltd. Communication Services China/Hong Kong 6.1
Alibaba Group Holding, Ltd. Consumer Discretionary China/Hong Kong 4.6
China Merchants Bank Co., Ltd. Financials China/Hong Kong 4.0
ICICI Bank, Ltd. Financials India 2.9
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Information Technology South Korea 2.7
JD.com, Inc. Consumer Discretionary China/Hong Kong 2.4
PDD Holdings, Inc. Consumer Discretionary China/Hong Kong 2.4
DBS Group Holdings, Ltd. Financials Singapore 2.2
Bharti Airtel, Ltd. Communication Services India 2.1
TOTAL 38.9

Top 10 holdings may combine more than one security from the same issuer and related depositary receipts.

Source: BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc.

Portfolio Breakdown (%)

(as of 03/31/2025)
  • Sector Allocation
  • Country Allocation
  • Market Cap Exposure
Sector Fund Benchmark Difference
Financials 26.3 22.6 3.7
Information Technology 22.3 24.5 -2.2
Consumer Discretionary 18.7 15.7 3.0
Communication Services 11.0 11.3 -0.3
Industrials 5.6 7.1 -1.5
Health Care 3.8 3.5 0.3
Consumer Staples 3.1 3.8 -0.7
Real Estate 2.4 2.2 0.2
Materials 0.0 3.7 -3.7
Energy 0.0 3.2 -3.2
Utilities 0.0 2.5 -2.5
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 6.7 0.0 6.7

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

Country Fund Benchmark Difference
China/Hong Kong 39.4 40.5 -1.1
Taiwan 18.1 19.1 -1.0
India 17.0 21.1 -4.1
South Korea 8.1 10.2 -2.1
Singapore 4.6 4.2 0.4
Indonesia 1.6 1.4 0.2
Malaysia 1.5 1.5 0.0
Philippines 1.1 0.6 0.5
Vietnam 1.1 0.0 1.1
Thailand 0.8 1.3 -0.5
Macau 0.0 0.1 -0.1
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 6.7 0.0 6.7

Not all countries are included in the benchmark index(es).

Equity market cap of issuer Fund Benchmark Difference
Mega Cap (over $25B) 65.5 63.9 1.6
Large Cap ($10B-$25B) 16.3 20.6 -4.3
Mid Cap ($3B-$10B) 10.6 15.2 -4.6
Small Cap (under $3B) 0.9 0.2 0.7
Cash and Other Assets, Less Liabilities 6.7 0.0 6.7

Source: FactSet Research Systems.

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.

Distributions

Record Date Ex, Pay and
Reinvest Date
Ordinary
Income
Short Term
Capital Gains
Long Term
Capital Gains
Total Distributions
Per Share
% of NAV Nondividend Distribution (Return of Capital)
12/17/2024 12/18/2024 $0.58609 $0.00000 $0.99319 $1.57928 8.0% N.A.
12/13/2023 12/14/2023 $0.54465 $0.00000 $0.00000 $0.54465 3.0% N.A.
12/13/2022 12/14/2022 $0.00000 $0.09181 $1.62570 $1.71751 7.7% N.A.
12/14/2021 12/15/2021 $0.00000 $0.50110 $5.35902 $5.86012 17.4% N.A.
12/15/2020 12/16/2020 $0.08242 $0.42745 $1.49657 $2.00644 6.0% N.A.

 

There is no guarantee that the Fund will pay or continue to pay distributions. 

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate with changing market conditions so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

Commentary

Period ended March 31, 2025

Market Environment

  • Asia performed better than expected in the first quarter of 2025 thanks in part to a more favorable macro environment. Many investors had expected the strength in the dollar and U.S. equity market to continue into 2025 and contribute to a weaker performance in the region but that didn’t happen.
  • At the country level, performance was mixed. China led markets in Asia higher while Taiwan and India faced pressure. China technology shares were buoyed by the success of the DeepSeek artificial intelligence (AI) platform which in turn spurred a selloff in U.S. big tech stocks and negatively impacted Taiwan, a market that is almost a direct play in a narrow area of technology driven by AI.
  • India’s market was challenged as earnings disappointed amid softening economic growth caused by weaker government spending and tight monetary policy. South Korea posted a respectable gain as valuations declined and opportunities emerged unrelated to the global cycle.
  • In more peripheral markets, Southeast Asia should have benefited from a weakening U.S. dollar but was hurt by political disruption. As the quarter progressed, optimism toward the region receded as U.S. economic data deteriorated and concerns gathered over the prospect of new far-ranging reciprocal U.S. tariffs and a trade-related global economic slowdown.

Contributors and Detractors

  • For the quarter ended March 31, 2025, the Matthews Pacific Tiger Fund returned -0.28%, (Investor Class) and -0.23% (Institutional Class) while its benchmark, the MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index, returned 1.89% over the same period.
  • On a country basis, the top three contributors to relative performance were the Philippines and South Korea due to stock selection, and Macau due to an underweight allocation. The top three detractors were India and Taiwan due to stock selection, and Vietnam due to an off-benchmark allocation.
  • On a sector basis, the top two contributors to relative performance were energy and consumer staples due to an underweight allocation. The top three detractors were information technology (IT), financials and communication services due to stock selection.
  • The largest contributors to absolute performance included Alibaba Group, the largest e-commerce platform company in China, Tencent Holdings, a Chinese online gaming and social media conglomerate, and Pinduoduo (PDD), one of China's largest e-commerce platforms that started its businesses with a focus on lower-tier city, price sensitive consumers. The top three detractors included Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), a globally leading chipmaker, Eternal Ltd., operator of Zomato, a leading Indian online restaurant booking and food delivery company, and Infosys, an Indian consulting services firm.

Outlook

  • Front and center to our outlook is the impact of U.S. tariffs on the global economy and markets. The Trump administration’s tariff policy has shown itself to be fluid and unpredictable. We may see some new tariffs rolled back in certain markets and a different picture coming into focus in the coming weeks and months.
  • At this point, what we can conclude is that from a U.S. perspective, the administration’s tariff policy is growth negative and inflation positive. It probably means that inflation stays around 3% and that has implications for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy and in turn for markets in the region.
  • When the global economy is under pressure we believe domestic drivers are more important than global drivers. For Asia, that means we need to be cautious of markets that are correlated to the U.S. and of companies that are selling into the US. Domestic demand-driven markets like India and China, which rely less on the global economy, we think will be more resilient.
  • Many investors are expecting the Federal Reserve to maintain a rate-cutting trajectory this year which would be a tailwind for Asia with the exception of Japan where monetary policy is tightening. We believe markets will also be supported by a pick-up in earnings on valuations that are still cheap. We think there are opportunities for experienced active managers to pick their spots and focus on fundamentals.

 

View the Fund’s Top 10 holdings as of March 31, 2025. Current and future holdings are subject to change and risk.

Average Annual Total Returns - MAPTX as of 03/31/2025
1YR 3YR 5YR 10YR Since Inception Inception Date
4.29% -4.20% 3.88% 1.91% 6.83% 09/12/1994

All performance quoted is past performance and is no guarantee of future results. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate with changing market conditions so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the return figures quoted. Returns would have been lower if certain of the Fund's fees and expenses had not been waived. For the Fund's most recent month-end performance visit matthewsasia.com

Fees & Expenses
Gross Expense Ratio 1.12%

Investments in Asian securities may involve risks such as social and political instability, market illiquidity, exchange-rate fluctuations, a high level of volatility and limited regulation. Investing in emerging and frontier markets involves different and greater risks, as these countries are substantially smaller, less liquid and more volatile than securities markets in more developed markets.

 

Visit our Glossary of Terms page for definitions and additional information.

Index Definitions

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. Neither the funds nor the Investment Advisor accept any liability for losses either direct or consequential caused by the use of this information.

The views and opinions in the commentary were as of the report date, subject to change and may not reflect 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.