These 2 Closed-ends Are Now Holds

Article Excerpt

BRAZIL FUND $62 (New York symbol BZF) (CWA Rating: Aggressive) will not convert into an open-ended fund, as proposed by its managers. Shareholders rejected the plan at a special meeting. Brazil Fund now trades at a 6% discount to its net asset value. Brazil is the most populous country in South America, and it has the biggest economy. Brazil Fund is up over 24% already his year, and continues to hit record highs. It’s up 68% since March, 2005. The gains are largely on the strength of the Brazilian economy, which grew 4.9% in 2004, but slowed to 2.3% in 2005. Brazil Fund is managed by Scudder Investments. The fund has net assets of $654.7 million U.S. Brazil’s pro-free market government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has used conservative monetary and inflation policies to gain the confidence of foreign investors and lenders. However, the Brazilian economy needs a sustained economic recovery in the U.S. to show continued growth in key exports. The country…