Annual Financial Report

RNS Number : 0847W

Martin Currie Global Portfolio Tst

21 April 2021

Martin Currie Global Portfolio Trust plc (the "Company")

L egal Entity Identifier: 549300RKB85NFVSTBM94

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Annual Financial Results - Year to 31 January 2021

The financial information set out below does not constitute the Company's statutory accounts for the years ended 31 January 2021 or 2020 but is derived from those accounts. Statutory accounts for 2020 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and those for 2021 will be delivered following the Company's annual general meeting.

The auditor has reported on those accounts; their report was unqualified.

The unedited full text of those parts of the annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 January 2021 which are required to be published are set out on the following pages.

The annual general meeting of the Company will be held on 9 June 2021. The notice of meeting will shortly be issued to shareholders and a copy will also be made available on the Company's website ( www.martincurrieglobal.com ).

A copy of the full annual report and accounts will be submitted to the National Storage Mechanism when published and will be available for inspection.

Financial

Total returns*

	Year ended 31 January 2021	Year ended 31 January 2020
Net asset value per share**	20.2%	24.8%
Benchmark***	12.3%	17.1%
Share price****	20.5%	30.4%

Source: Martin Currie Investment Management.

* Total returns is the combined effect of the rise and fall in the share price, net asset value or benchmark together with any dividend paid. See the annual report and accounts for more details on Alternative Performance Measures.

** The net asset value per share total return is calculated using the cum income net asset value with dividends reinvested on the ex-dividend date. The net asset value per share total return as at 31 January 2020 has been restated from 24.6% to 24.8%. This is an Alternative Performance Measure.

*** The benchmark for the financial year ended 31 January 2020 and prior financial years was the FTSE World index. The chart above shows the performance of the FTSE World index from launch to 31 January 2020 and of the MSCI All Country World index thereafter.

**** The share price total return is calculated with dividends reinvested on the ex-dividend date. This is an Alternative Performance Measure.

Chairman's Statement

This is my first annual report as Chairman of the Company and I would like to start by thanking my predecessor, Neil Gaskell. Neil has expertly guided the Board while overseeing significant growth throughout his nine year tenure as a director and Chairman and leaves the Company in excellent shape. I am delighted to be taking on the role of Chairman at this exciting time in the Company's evolution.

Investment performance

The financial year ended 31 January 2021 has included one of the most turbulent periods in peacetime in the modern era. At the end of January this year the news media reminded us how "normal" the world was a year ago, just before the extent of the Covid-19 pandemic became apparent. When it did, stock markets immediately became very volatile and fell sharply in March 2020 as many countries imposed various restrictions due to the pandemic. The subsequent stock market recovery has proven to be resilient and over the period under review your Company's net asset value (NAV) total return was +20.2% with a share price total return of +20.5%, both of which compare well with a benchmark total return of +12.3%. This level of return could be labelled "strong" in any year, but in the circumstances it was exceptional.

Investment returns over the longer term have also been strong. Zehrid Osmani became the lead portfolio manager in the third quarter of 2018 and has built on the previous track record. Over three years the NAV total return was +52.2% (compared with a benchmark total return of +32.7%), over five years was +120.8% (benchmark +99.7%) and over ten years was +228.2% (benchmark +199.3%).

Income and dividends

Revenue earnings per share for the period amounted to 1.97 pence, a reduction of 22% compared with the last financial year. The Company has paid three interim dividends of 0.9 pence per share and intends to pay a fourth interim dividend of 1.5 pence per share on 30 April 2021 to shareholders onthe register on 9 April 2021. The total dividends with respect to the year to 31 January 2021 will be 4.2 pence per share, maintaining the same level of dividend as the previous year. This means that dividends for the year will not be covered by net revenue earnings. The Company has substantial distributable reserves which can be used alongside current year net revenue earnings to permit the payment of the dividends already paid and the planned fourth interim dividend. The Board recognises the importance of dividends to many shareholders and our distributable reserves provide us with the flexibility to maintain the dividend while not compromising our portfolio manager's investment approach. The primary focus of the portfolio manager remains on capital growth and is not constrained by any income target.

Environmental Social and Corporate Governance (ESG)

Martin Currie is a leading proponent of ESG as an essential element of the investment management process and the Board fully supports our manager's approach. Active engagement not only helps to improve the investee managements' behaviours but also supports the performance of the portfolio by deepening the investment manager's understanding of companies. Martin Currie has retained its triple A+ rating for Strategy and Governance, Incorporation and Active Ownership, the three categories in the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment ('UNPRI') rating which places it among the very best of investment managers. Further, Morningstar, the investment research adviser, has awarded your Company not only a five-star rating for its performance, but the maximum 'Five Globes' for sustainability, the only investment trust in the AIC Global sector to have achieved this accolade and placing it in the top 2% of the over 6,700 funds around the world categorised by Morningstar as Global Equity Large Cap. Martin Currie recently published an electronic magazine 'Trust in Sustainability'. I encourage you to download a copy of this. Up to date details of current ESG initiatives are available on our website at martincurrieglobal.com.

Operations

As well as impacting our investment portfolio, the Covid-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on the way that our investment manager and other suppliers operate. While professional service companies all have disaster recovery plans, these were generally based on an assumption that individuals may not be able to access their workplace for a few days. In practice the entire industry has been largely working from home for a year. The Board took a close interest in ensuring that we could maintain business as usual and I am pleased to report that all of our suppliers were able to continue to operate effectively under the restrictions which were brought in to control the spread of the pandemic. The Board would like to record its thanks to all involved.

Share issuance and buybacks

As detailed above, the Company has performed well and is experiencing significant increased demand for its shares from a wide range of investors. We continue to operate a 'zero discount' policy with the objective of providing shareholders, in normal market conditions, with assurance that the share price is in continuing alignment with the prevailing NAV per share and liquidity so that investors can buy or sell as many shares as they wish at a price which is not significantly different from the NAV. This involves the Company both buying back shares (which are then held in Treasury) and reissuing shares from Treasury or issuing new shares.

In February 2021 we reached a point where almost all of the Directors' authority to issue shares on a non-preemptive basis granted at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in July 2020 had been utilised. At a General Meeting on 10 March 2021 shareholders gave the Directors increased authority to issue up to 15% of the Company's issued equity share capital as at 12 February 2021 on a non-preemptive basis. This renewed and increased authority expires at this year's AGM.

At this year's AGM we will again request that shareholders grant authority both to issue and to buy back shares so that we can continue with our established 'zero discount' policy as well as meet increasing new demand. Shares will only be issued at a price above the prevailing NAV per share and when the Board considers issuing shares to be in the best interests of existing shareholders. Similarly, shares will only be bought back at a discount and when in the best interests of existing shareholders.

Our management company

The acquisition of Legg Mason by Franklin Resources Inc. was announced during the financial year and completed on 31 July 2020. While most of our support functions have been integrated into the broader Franklin Templeton organisation, with the associated advantages of scale, the Board has been assured that Martin Currie will maintain its autonomy as an affiliate and its investment philosophy and processes will remain unchanged.

Management fees

The strong performance which I describe above resulted in Martin Currie earning a performance fee of £2,819,000 for the period to 31 January 2021.

Looking forward, we announced in January a simplified fee structure which includes the removal of the performance fee element. The new structure consists solely of a two-tiered management fee. The first tier applies a fee of 0.5% per annum to the first £300 million of the Company's NAV (excluding income); the second applies a reduced fee of 0.35% per annum to NAV (excluding income) exceeding £300 million. This is a positive step and the Board is confident that the new structure will maintain a competitive ongoing charge and contribute to increasing shareholder value.

Gearing introduced

We announced on 23 November 2020 that the Company had entered into an unsecured sterling term loan facility agreement with The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited which was fully drawn the next day at a fixed interest rate of 1.181% for a three year term. At the time of drawing, the loan represented approximately 10% of the then NAV and at the 31 January 2021 year end, the loan represented 9.9% of NAV. While recognising that the use of the loan may increase volatility, the Board is confident in the ability of the investment manager to take advantage of this facility and deliver investment returns over the long term in excess of the cost of this debt.

The Board

As described above, Neil Gaskell was the Chairman of the Company during the year under review and stepped down from that role on 1 February 2021.

As a result of my taking the Chair, Gary Le Sueur has taken on the role of Senior Independent Director and Christopher Metcalfe has taken over the chairmanship of the marketing and communications committee.

Neil Gaskell will not stand for re-election at this year's AGM.

The Board has decided that after Neil steps down from the Board it will continue to operate with four Directors for the time being. We will, however, keep this under regular review.

Outlook

At the time of writing many parts of the world remain affected by the Covid-19 pandemic with restrictions on movement, companies particularly in the entertainment and travel sectors unable to operate and a high proportion of the working population unable to go to their normal place of work. The development of effective vaccines provides hope that the world may return to some semblance of normality in the near future and this has been reflected in upward movements in stock market valuations. Recovery from the economic impact caused by the pandemic will not be uniform, many businesses will be damaged either permanently or will take a long time to recover and governments have incurred substantial debts in an attempt to limit economic damage. In the Board's view, as the long-term effects unfold over time, an investment approach which focuses on a limited number of holdings researched in great depth and promising excellent growth prospects provides, we believe, an effective way to invest for the future.

Our ambition remains to grow the Company and Martin Currie, along with its parent company Franklin Resources Inc., has committed to a sales and marketing strategy with the aim of maintaining and increasing demand for the Company's shares.

Our ability to grow the Company is driven by our focus on a combination of strong investment performance, market leading ESG credentials and effective marketing. Recent performance has been recognised by increased demand for the shares which resulted in our holding an additional meeting in March 2021 to request shareholders' approval to issue further shares on a non-preemptive basis. The Board believes that the Company is well placed to continue to deliver attractive investment returns and that this should enable us to grow the size of the Company over time.

Annual General Meeting

Our AGM this year will be held at 12:30 on Wednesday 9th June in Edinburgh. Full details are in the Notice of Annual General Meeting. At the date of this report, Covid-19 restrictions remain in place which may prevent shareholders from attending the AGM in person.

We have made arrangements for shareholders to submit any questions to the AGM on their proxy forms and a written response will be posted on the Company's website following the AGM. We will continue to monitor developments and if there are any changes to the AGM arrangements we will notify shareholders, post information on our website and also announce this via a Regulatory Information Service as soon as possible. In the circumstances, shareholders are strongly advised to submit a proxy form in advance of the meeting so that your votes are registered, whether or not you intend to attend the meeting in person. If you do plan to attend in person, please check our website in the days before the meeting.

Keep in touch

The Company's website at www.martincurrieglobal.com is a comprehensive source of information and includes regular portfolio manager updates and outlook videos, monthly performance factsheets and independent research reports. I recommend that you subscribe for regular email updates that will keep you abreast of the news on your Company.

I thank you for your continued support. Please contact me if you have any questions regarding your Company by email at: MCGPTChairman@martincurrie.com.

Gillian Watson

Chairman

20 April 2021

Manager's Review

The year to the end of January 2021 was an exceptional year: the Covid-19 pandemic led to a deep global recession and the fastest fall and recovery in equity markets seen in decades. In such uncertain and challenging conditions, the Company managed to perform strongly, adding another year of outperformance to its track record. For the year ahead, we are optimistic about the outlook for equities, but cognisant of several key risks.

Year to the end of January 2021 in review

Unprecedented pandemic crisis, human resilience and mobilisation have been the highlights: the year to the end of January 2021 was exceptional in many ways

The pandemic crisis brought a deep global recession as a result of the forced lockdowns in most regions in the first half of the year. Stock markets responded with the fastest bear market since the second world war in the space of a few weeks in March. There were initial fears of a liquidity crisis (leading companies to reduce or cancel dividend payments and to secure credit lines) but this was averted by decisive and sizeable coordinated fiscal and monetary support. As a result, during a few weeks in April share prices rebounded with what was the fastest bull market since the second world war. Pledges of fiscal support by governments continued to increase, now equating to c.15% of GDP in aggregate across the world. This contributed to pushing equity markets higher throughout the summer.

On the geopolitical front, China-US tensions were de-emphasised during the pandemic crisis. The Biden victory in the US presidential election in the final quarter of the year led to more optimism in the market. Specifically, the belief is that the US approach to dealing with China will be more diplomatic and more constructive. Strongly positive vaccine results in November and December provided further optimism, pushing equity markets towards all-time highs on the hopes of a closer ending to the pandemic crisis at some point in 2021. This also triggered a much anticipated rotation away from 'Growth' into 'Value' areas of equity markets given the sizeable valuation spread that had opened prior to that and which we comment on further below.

At the company level, earnings downgrades were sizeable in the first half of 2020 as expectations were rebased to take account of the recession and reached a low point in the second quarter of 2020. Thereafter there was a shift in momentum with improved results in the third quarter. This provided further support for equity markets later in the year.

Corporates, in general, reacted well through the crisis, managing their cost bases but also taking more ethical actions. The crisis put more emphasis on sustainability for corporates and households along with responsible corporate citizenship, leading many companies to pursue more sustainable growth strategies going forward. Finally, this crisis has shown that online platforms can be powerful disruptors, but also invaluable tools for both corporates and consumers in ensuring continuity in activity and in providing access to goods and services.

Changes to the portfolio

As the pandemic crisis was unfolding in March, we reviewed all of our forecasts for all companies held, working on a scenario of a severe recession, a gradual recovery rather than a V-shaped one and with no return to previous activity levels projected until some point in 2022. We also stress-tested each company's balance sheet and assessed its liquidity risks. That assessment was extended to the key suppliers and customers of all of the companies in which we were invested. It was probably the busiest period in our careers. We also tested our convictions on all of the holdings held in the portfolio to ensure that we retained confidence in the business models, in what was a rapidly changing environment.

During the year, we added some new holdings that increased our exposure to robotics and automation, with the purchase of Ansys in the first half of the year, which we funded through selling out of Spirax Sarco after a period of strong share price performance. We also increased our exposure to the structural growth opportunity that we foresee in the genomics space, with the purchase of world leader Illumina. We continued to build a position following its purchase of Grail which gives it an additional strong positioning in the liquid biopsy segment. Additionally, we further strengthened our exposure in the healthcare segment with the purchase of Veeva Systems which is at the forefront of bringing tailored software to drug development and commercialisation. It operates in a segment with high barriers to entry, unfulfilled demand and where the potential for growth is strong over the long term.

Towards the end of the year, we purchased Kingspan after the share price weakened, in order to increase exposure to the mid-term opportunities related to infrastructure spending and to green building initiatives that we believe provide strong long-term structural growth potential. Finally, we also purchased Wuxi Biologics, a healthcare bioprocessing company that should benefit from the shift to increasingly complex drug development and production favouring providers of tools for life science.

2021/22 outlook for the Company

Macro outlook - certainty in recovery, uncertainty in magnitude of recovery

Given the severe recession that we experienced in 2020, the sizeable fiscal stimuli being pledged to kick-start economies and the more optimistic outlook post the vaccination news, it is highly likely that 2021 will be a year of strong rebound. The magnitude of this rebound is the key question.

2021 is also likely to be a peculiar year where we are faced with sluggish activity early on before economies start to fully re-open as vaccination programmes ramp up. This means that activity may remain muted in the first quarter of the year, followed by a sharp rebound beyond that, depending on the speed of the roll out of vaccinations. In our view, the key questions to focus on are how long will markets rely on the hope of an upcoming recovery if that recovery takes longer to come and what will the reaction be if it is not as strong as expected? Economic leading indicators are, for the time being, moving in the right direction and showing gradual improvements in manufacturing and stabilisation in services, which is encouraging.

Monetary and fiscal policies provide support - inflation is where the risk could lie

Fiscal support pledged throughout the world in 2020 to tackle the recession brought by the pandemic crisis has been sizeable. There will potentially be a further increase in fiscal support in 2021, and notably, in the United States, President Biden signed a huge £1.9 trillion stimulus package into law in March 2021 and has announced a sizeable investment in infrastructure over the next eight years. This support should help the recovery in economic activity in 2021 and beyond.

At the same time, monetary policy support should continue, with key central banks signalling that interest rates will remain on hold at historically low levels for extended periods of time. Central banks are apparently targeting higher levels of inflation, but it may be the case that inflationary pressures, which should temporarily increase this year helped by the low base effect and as a result of potential supply/demand friction as economies reopen fully, might not be sustained beyond this year. This is due to the many underlying deflationary pressures that we foresee, notably from technological advances. Limited wage inflation and the deterioration in labour markets arising from the pandemic crisis might also dampen price rises in some parts of the economy for the time being.

We are also cognisant of the trend for corporates to near-shore or on-shore more of their production and to shorten their supply chains as a result of the realisation that these are vulnerable to disruption. We believe that this might take time to implement and could lead to more investment in robotics and automation, which in itself could help to contain labour costs.

Economic growth in 2021 should result in strong earnings growth as recovery comes through

Given the macroeconomic picture, 2021 will see a strong rebound in corporate earnings. Consensus estimates point to a growth of +25% in year-on-year ('YoY') earnings in 2021 for the MSCI World index, with substantial variation by region.

As for economic forecasts, earnings growth expectations may be inaccurate. We believe that it might well be more useful to look at the two-year growth outlook as a way both to navigate a wide forecast range and to smooth out 2021, which will show explosive growth in large part driven by the effect of such a weak 2020. Our forecasts assume that 2022 will be the year in the course of which earnings will normalise, albeit not immediately back to previous trend levels for some geographical areas such as Europe.

Equity market valuations - less supportive versus history but still supportive versus bond yields

Equity markets have performed strongly since the lows of March 2020. Valuation levels on a stand-alone price to earnings ratio look demanding compared with historic levels but we believe that, given such an unusual period in terms of earnings collapse and rebound in 2020 and 2021 respectively, investors should take account of where we are in the economic cycle. On that basis, European and Global equity valuations remain supportive, while the US equity market is closer to its historic highs.

Equity valuations in general remain attractive in terms of the earnings yields that they offer compared to bond yields. This is likely to remain the main supportive argument for an ongoing high rating of equity markets, given that interest rates are likely to remain low for extended periods of time.

Market focus on sustainability trends will continue to increase and likely accelerate

The nature of the 2020 recession triggered by the pandemic crisis has put more emphasis on sustainability and responsible corporate citizenship with the opportunity to tackle some of the necessary structural reforms as economies are rebuilt. Investors have increased their focus on assessing Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG") criteria and we expect this to continue to gain momentum in 2021. Regulation is further driving the focus on ESG. Carbon intensity assessments and a drive to decarbonise economies by policy makers is adding to the momentum. President Biden has taken the US back into the Paris Agreement which will be material in aligning all major economies globally towards significantly reducing carbon emissions.

Given our long-established expertise in ESG and our proprietary innovative ESG risk assessment framework, we believe that the Company is very well positioned to benefit from the growing focus on sustainability. We manage a portfolio of companies with strong governance and a leading approach to managing environmental and social risks, with good overall sustainability potential.

Style rotation could remain a key debate in this supportive cyclical growth environment

With 2021 having the potential to be such a strong year of economic recovery and significant earnings rebound, market commentators are suggesting that the 'Value' style and smaller companies could lead the market higher.

This could be further amplified by the very wide difference between the market valuations of 'Value' compared with 'Growth' stocks.

As long-term investors we find the debate around style rotation to be too short-term a consideration and prone to uncertainty. Our focus remains on finding companies with superior growth and return profiles and therefore strong earnings power over the long term, with compounding cash flow characteristics underestimated by the market. If we prove accurate in finding these sustainable quality growth stocks, we believe that they should perform well over the long term, irrespective of short-term market environments.

Long-term opportunities across our three megatrends

Looking ahead, it will be critical to focus on investing in companies with sustainable business models that have strong pricing power. Pricing power is particularly important if we remain in a period of low inflation and will be critical to protecting margins should we move into a period of rising inflation.

Our approach is to invest in sustainable business models that:

• have strong leadership positions

• operate in industries with high barriers to entry

• have strong pricing power

• demonstrate low disruption risk

• offer attractive structural growth prospects

• generate high returns

• have compounding characteristics and solid balance sheets

• maintain strong corporate governance and sustainability profiles.

We continue to invest guided by the Company's Investment Policy and using our thematic megatrends framework, focusing on the three trends that we have identified and which are (i) Demographic Change (ii) Future of Technology and (iii) Resource Scarcity. We assess our portfolio exposures to the megatrends and to the themes within those megatrends.

There are many interesting themes within each of these megatrends, or indeed in the areas of overlap between the three which provide us with long-term structural growth opportunities. We believe that the post Covid-19 world will create some interesting opportunities within each of these fields.

Post-pandemic opportunities in green initiatives and infrastructure for long-term investors

Opportunities could materialise in the following areas:

• increased infrastructure spend to boost the economy, notably railway and 5G infrastructure

• increased spend to make the public healthcare sector more prepared for future pandemics and to increase investments in homecare and telemedicine

• increased incentives in sustainability, both in social sustainability and in greener solutions in transport, energy generation, infrastructure and construction in particular

• increased investment in cloud computing and cybersecurity with an acceleration in the pace of migration to digital economies

• increased investment in robotics and automation as corporates tackle the need to make their supply chains more robust

• improvements in food and general hygiene.

Risks for 2021 - a year of lower tail risks and more predictability, but with the potential risk of bubbles forming

In managing the portfolio we are keenly aware of the following key risks to our projections:

• Geopolitical risks will remain omnipresent , notably the China-US and China-rest of the world tensions. The unpredictability and therefore volatility risk related to this aspect has, however, significantly reduced in our view, with the US presidency shifting to an administration which will follow a more diplomatic approach in terms of interactions.

• Brexit risk remains relevant to watch - a deal was struck late last year, which is beneficial to both the UK and the EU, but there is more work to be done given that the deal only covers goods. Services will need to be tackled and the increased trade frictions that Brexit has brought could also cause issues.

• Forecast risk in economic and corporate earnings projections globally remains high , but with economies on a path towards a sharp rebound from the lows of 2020, earnings momentum should remain supportive and continue to improve.

• Pandemic relapse risk with the possibility of further waves of infection remaining high as we write. The more significant risk to highlight is the event of a mutating virus that leads to a less efficacious mass vaccination programme and a higher risk of prolonged pandemic crisis.

• Risk of bubbles in asset prices is potentially the most relevant risk to consider in 2021 and beyond. Current supportive monetary policies, with interest rates remaining low for extended periods of time, could lead to increased risk taking in the search for yield, which could lead to excess valuations.

• Increased indebtedness as a result of sizeable fiscal spending pledges across the globe has the potential to damage future growth. Higher indebtedness typically leads to subsequent periods of lower growth as debt is repaid and also increases the risk of higher taxation for both households and corporates.

• Risk of rising rates expectations The final risk worth highlighting is whether we are in a period of market euphoria based on the uncomfortable conflicting assumption that inflationary pressures will be picking up but interest rates will remain low for extended periods of time. We would expect, if inflationary pressures start building, that interest rates trend higher which could weigh on financial market sentiment.

Overall, and in conclusion, as we look at the year ahead, we believe that it will be a year based on a lower risk of unexpected events and more optimism. This will be a positive and much needed contrast to what was an exceptional and highly unpredictable year in 2020. We will be watching out for the pace of deployment of fiscal stimuli into the real economies and for any signs of meaningful inflationary trends picking up. As we write, we believe that the Company is well positioned for the mid and long-term opportunities that we highlight, as the portfolio contains some exciting businesses which are forecast to generate a strong mix of structural growth and attractive returns across a range of sectors. We will continue to ensure that we offer exposure to investment in which we have strong conviction and that we manage diversification efficiently across the various measures on which we focus.

Zehrid Osmani

20 April 2021

PORTFOLIOSUMMARY
Portfoliodistributionbyregion*
31January2021	31 January 2021MSCIAllCountry	31January2020	31 January 2020MSCIAll Country
Company%	Worldindex%	Company%	Worldindex%
NorthAmerica 39.8	59.8	40.8	59.3
DevelopedEurope 34.4	16.5	40.6	18.2
GlobalEmergingMarkets 16.3	13.7	8.0	11.8
DevelopedAsiaPacificexJapan 6.8	3.1	7.7	3.4
MiddleEast 2.7	0.2	2.9	0.2
Japan -	6.7	-	7.1
100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Bysector*
31January2021	31 January 2021MSCIAllCountry	31January2020	31 January 2020MSCIAll Country
Company%	Worldindex%	Company%	Worldindex%
Healthcare 28.2	12.0	26.3	11.7
Information Technology 28.1	22.0	26.7	17.8
ConsumerDiscretionary 18.0	13.2	16.9	10.8
Industrials 9.2	9.5	9.3	10.3
ConsumerStaples 5.3	7.1	7.6	8.1
CommunicationServices 4.1	9.3	2.9	8.8
Materials 3.6	4.9	3.7	4.6
Financials 3.5	13.3	6.6	16.4
Energy -	3.1	-	4.8
Utilities -	3.0	-	3.5
RealEstate -	2.6	-	3.2
100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Byassetclass
31January2021%	31January2020%
Equities 108.0	98.9
Cash 1.9	1.1
Lessborrowings (9.9)	-
100.0	100.0
Largest10holdings
31January2021	31January2021	31January2020	31January2020
Marketvalue	%of total	Market value	%oftotal
£000	portfolio	£000	portfolio
TaiwanSemiconductorManufacturing 17,239	5.3	7,280	2.9
Masimo 15,658	4.8	8,721	3.5
Microsoft 14,045	4.3	10,681	4.3
TencentHoldings 13,607	4.1	7,077	2.9
ResMed 13,274	4.0	9,974	4.0
AtlasCopco 12,652	3.9	6,259	2.5
WuXiBiologics 12,506	3.8	-	-
Illumina 12,481	3.8	-	-
Moncler 12,347	3.8	8,394	3.3
Hexagon 12,026	3.7	7,111	2.8

PORTFOLIOHOLDINGS
Asat31January2021
Sector	Country	Marketvalue £000	%oftotalportfolio
NorthAmerica		130,958	39.8
Masimo Healthcare	UnitedStates	15,658	4.8
Microsoft InformationTechnology	UnitedStates	14,045	4.3
ResMed Healthcare	UnitedStates	13,274	4.0
Illumina Healthcare	UnitedStates	12,481	3.8
Linde Materials	UnitedStates	11,764	3.6
Ansys InformationTechnology	UnitedStates	11,642	3.5
VISA InformationTechnology	UnitedStates	11,198	3.4
Adobe InformationTechnology	UnitedStates	10,358	3.2
Mettler-ToledoInternational Healthcare	UnitedStates	10,195	3.1
Veeva Systems Healthcare	UnitedStates	7,672	2.3
Accenture InformationTechnology	UnitedStates	6,573	2.0
Starbucks ConsumerDiscretionary	UnitedStates	6,098	1.8

DevelopedEurope			112,169	34.4
AtlasCopco	Industrials	Sweden	12,652	3.9
Moncler	ConsumerDiscretionary	Italy	12,347	3.8
Hexagon	InformationTechnology	Sweden	12,026	3.7
L'Oreal	ConsumerStaples	France	10,158	3.1
ColoplastB	Healthcare	Denmark	10,153	3.1
Ferrari	ConsumerDiscretionary	Italy	9,634	2.9
Kering	ConsumerDiscretionary	France	9,471	2.9
KingspanGroup	Industrials	Ireland	9,111	2.8
Adidas	ConsumerDiscretionary	Germany	8,769	2.7
AssaAbloy	Industrials	Sweden	8,039	2.5
KerryGroup	ConsumerStaples	Ireland	7,316	2.2
Dr.Martens *	ConsumerDiscretionary	UnitedKingdom	2,493	0.8
CandoverInvestments **	Financials	UnitedKingdom	-	-

*As at 31 January 2021, the holding in Dr. Martens represents conditional rights to shares resulting from an initial public offering. On 3 February 2021, the shares were admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market for listed securities.

**Company in members' voluntary liquidation.

PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

Sector Country

Market value

£000

% of total portfolio

Global Emerging Markets 53,451 16.3

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Information Technology Taiwan 17,239 5.3

TencentHoldings	CommunicationServices	China	13,607	4.1
WuXiBiologics	Healthcare	China	12,506	3.8
AlibabaGroup	ConsumerDiscretionary	China	10,099	3.1

DevelopedAsiaPacificexJapan			22,529	6.8
AIAGroup	Financials	HongKong	11,612	3.5
CSL	Healthcare	Australia	10,917	3.3

Middle East			8,881	2.7
CyberArkSoftware	InformationTechnology	Israel	8,881	2.7

Total portfolio holdings 327,988 100.0

Principal risks and uncertainties

Risk and mitigation

The Company's business model is longstanding and resilient to most of the short-term operational uncertainties that it faces. The Board believes that these are effectively mitigated by the internal controls established by the Board and by the AIFM and their combined oversight of the investmentmanager, as described in the table below. Its principal risks and uncertainties are therefore largely long-term and driven by the inherent uncertainties of investing in global equity markets.

Operational and management risks are regularly monitored by the AIFM and additionally by the Board at Board meetings and the Board's planned mitigation measures for the principal and emerging risks are described below. As part of its annual strategy meeting, the Board carries out a robust assessment of the principal and emerging risks facing the Company, including those that would threaten its business model, future performance , solvency or liquidity.

As part of its assessment, the Board recognised that gearing was a new risk to the Company. Further details are set out below.

Gearing risk

The Company entered into an unsecured term loan facility agreement during the year. Whilst the use of borrowings should enhance the NAV total return where the return on the Company's underlying assets is rising and exceeds the cost of borrowing, it will have the opposite effect where the underlying return is falling, further reducing the NAV total return. As a result, the use of borrowings by the Company may increase the volatility of the NAV. To mitigate against the gearing risk, the Board has set a limit on total borrowings and monitors the Company's gearing closely. While the risks associated with gearing are new to the Company, the Board believes that such risks are mitigated and that gearing can enhance returns to shareholders over the long term. The Board does not consider that the gearing represents a principal risk to the Company.

As a consequence of the Board's annual review of risks, the Board has identified the following principal risks to the Company:

Risk	Mitigation
Pandemic risk	In2020Covid-19deliveredanabrupt,exogenousshocktotheglobaleconomyofconsiderablemagnitude,theaftereffectsofwhichcontinue. TheCompanywasexposedtofallingequitymarketsandmarketvolatility,whiletheoperationalresilienceofserviceproviderstotheCompanycouldhavebeenreduced. TheBoardreceivesregularreportingontheabilityofMartinCurrieandotherkeyserviceproviderstooperateintheworkingenvironmentcreatedbyCovid-19.Businesscontinuityplanswereinvokedlastyearandcontinuetooperatesatisfactorily,withoperationalresiliencepreserved.Theinvestmentmanagercontinuestomonitortheportfolioandtheincomederivingfromitinlightofthepotentialrisksarisingfromthepandemic.
Sustained investment underperformance	The Board monitors the implementation and results of the investment process with the portfolio manager, who attends all Board meetings and reviews data that shows statistical measures of the Company's risk profile. Should investment underperformance be sustained despite the mitigation measures taken by the investment manager, the Board would assess the cause and take appropriate action to manage this risk.
Material decline in market capitalisation of the Company	The Board recognises that the 'zero discount' policy allows new shareholders to purchase shares and current shareholders to sell their shares in any volume at close to NAV, in normal market conditions. Although this improved liquidity encourages investment in the Company, it could also increase the risk of a material decline in the size of the Company. The Board monitors the performance and pace of buybacks and the Company's shareholder profile. The Board believes that good long-term performance will increase demand for the Company's shares and increase the market capitalisation of theCompany.
Loss of s1158-9 tax status	Loss of s1158-9 tax status would have serious consequences for the attractiveness of the Company's shares. The Board considers that, given the regular oversight of this risk by the audit committee and the investment manager, the likelihood of this risk occurring is minimal. The audit committee regularly reviews the eligibility conditions and the Company's compliance against each, including the minimum dividend requirements and shareholder composition for close company status.

Following the ongoing assessment of the principal and emerging risks facing the Company, and its current position, the Board is confident that the Company will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due. The Board believes that the processes of internal control that the Company has adopted and oversight by the investment manager continue to be effective.

Key Performance Indicators and Performance

The Board uses certain key performance indicators ('KPIs') to monitor and assess its performance in achieving the Company's objectives.

SummaryofKPIs	Target	2021	Achieved	2020	Achieved
1. Net asset value performance relativetobenchmark (over 3years)	Outperform	19.43%	Yes	8.46%	Yes
2. Performance against Company'speers (over 3years)	Top third performance	4th out of 15	No	7th out of 16	No
3.Ongoingcharges	Less than0.70%	0.58%	Yes	0.61%	Yes

1. Net asset value performance relative to benchmark

The Board assessed the net asset value total return compared to the benchmark. It is measured on a financial year basis and assessed over a rolling three year period. For the year ended 31 January 2021 the benchmark was the total return of the MSCI All Country World index. Prior to 1 February 2020 the benchmark was the total return of the FTSE All-World index.

The KPI was achieved for the period. The return of the Company was 52.17% and the benchmark 32.74% for the three years to 31 January 2021.

2. Performance against the Company's peers

The Board monitors the share price total return performance versus all competitor funds within the AIC Global sector over a rolling three year period.

The share price total return for the Company was 56.73% over the three years to 31 January 2021 which ranked 4th out of 15. The share price total return of the Company ranked 3rd out of 15 in the AIC Global sector for the financial year ended 31 January 2021.

3. Ongoing charges

The Board monitors ongoing charges on a regular basis to ensure that it meets its target by maintaining cost discipline and its focus on value adding activities. The ongoing charges figure excludes the performance fee. The KPI was met for the year at 0.58%.

Going concern status

The Company's business activities, together with the factors likely to affect its future development, performance and position are set out in the Chairman's statement, Manager's review, Strategic report and the Report of the directors. The financial position of the Company as at 31 January 2021 is shown in the statement of financial position.

In accordance with the 2019 AIC Code of Corporate Governance and the 2018 UK Corporate Governance Code, the Directors have undertaken a rigorous review of the Company's ability to continue as a going concern.

The Company's assets consist of a diverse portfolio of listed equity shares which, in most circumstances, are realisable within a very short timescale. The Directors are mindful of the principal and emerging risks and uncertainties, in particular those related to Covid-19.

They have reviewed revenue forecasts for the next two financial years, including liabilities arising from the loan facility, and believe that the Company has adequate financial resources to continue its operational existence for the period to 31 January 2023, which is at least 12 months from the date on which the financial statements are authorised for issue. Accordingly, the Directors continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing these financial statements.

Viability Statement

The Company's business model is designed to deliver long-term returns to its shareholders through investment in large and liquid stocks in global equity markets. Its plans are therefore based on having no fixed or limited life provided that global equity markets continue to operate normally. The Board has assessed the Company's viability over a three year period in accordance with provision 31 of the UK Corporate Governance Code as it believes that this is an appropriate period over which it does not expect there to be any significant change to the principal risks and adequacy of the mitigating controls in place. The Board considers that this reflects the minimum period which should be considered in the context of the Company's long-term objective but one which is limited by the inherent and increasing uncertainties involved in assessment over a longer period.

In making this assessment the Directors have considered the following factors:

• the principal and emerging risks and uncertainties and the mitigating actions, including the impact of Covid-19;

• the mitigation measures which key service providers including the manager have in place to maintain operational resilience particularly in light of Covid-19;

• the ongoing relevance of the Company's investment objective in the current environment as evidenced by feedback from major shareholders;

• the level of income forecast to be generated by the Company and the liquidity of the Company's portfolio;

• the low level of fixed costs relative to its liquid assets;

• the expectation that in normal markets more than 95.7% of the current portfolio could be liquidated within two trading days; and

• the ability of the Company to make payments of interest and repayments of principal on its debt on their due dates.

Based on the results of their analysis and the Company's processes for monitoring each of the factors set out above, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over at least the next three years.

Responsibility Statement

Each of the Directors confirms that to the best of their knowledge:

• the financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit of the Company; and

• the Report of the directors, Strategic report and Manager's review include a fair, balanced and understandable review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company, together with a description of the principal risks and the uncertainties that it faces; and

• the annual report and financial statements, taken as a whole, are fair, balanced and understandable and provide the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Company's performance, business model and strategy.

The Directors are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law the Directors have prepared the financial statements in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (and applicable law).

Under company law the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and of the profit or loss of the Company for that period.

In preparing these financial statements, the Directors are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

• make judgements and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

• state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements respectively; and

• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Company will continue in business.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Company's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements and the Directors' remuneration report comply with the Companies Act 2006.

They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The financial statements are published on the Company's website (www.martincurrieglobal.com) which is maintained by the investment manager. The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the Company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

This responsibility statement was approved by the Board of Directors on 20 April 2021 and is signed on its behalf by the Chairman, Gillian Watson.

STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

Yearto31January2021 Yearto31January2020
		Revenue	Capital	Total	Revenue	Capital	Total
	Note	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Netgainsoninvestments	8	-	51,440	51,440	-	50,989	50,989
Netcurrency(losses)/gains		(3)	(47)	(50)	7	(51)	(44)
Revenue	3	2,634	-	2,634	3,114	-	3,114
Investmentmanagementfee*		(216)	(864)	(1,080)	(257)	(712)	(969)
Performancefee	5	-	(2,819)	(2,819)	-	(2,135)	(2,135)
Otherexpenses	5	(486)	-	(486)	(478)	-	(478)
Net return onordinary activitiesbeforefinancecostsandtaxation		1,929	47,710	49,639	2,386	48,091	50,477
Financecosts	6	(30)	(121)	(151)	-	-	-
Netreturnonordinaryactivitiesbeforetaxation		1,899	47,589	49,488	2,386	48,091	50,477
Taxationonordinaryactivities	7	(264)	-	(264)	(288)	-	(288)
Netreturnattributabletoshareholders		1,635	47,589	49,224	2,098	48,091	50,189
NetreturnsperOrdinaryshare	2	1.97p	57.39p	59.36p	2.52p	57.76p	60.28p

The total columns of this statement are the profit and loss accounts of the Company.

The revenue and capital items are presented in accordance with the Association of Investment Companies ('AIC') Statement of Recommended Practice 2019.

All revenue and capital items in the above statement derive from continuing operations. No operations were acquired or discontinued in the year.

The notes below form part of these financial statements.

There is no other comprehensive income and therefore the return attributable to shareholders is also the total comprehensive income for the period.

*The details of the investment management fee are provided in the Report of the directors in the annual report and accounts.

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

As at 31 January 2021 As at 31 January 2020

	Note	£000	£000	£000	£000
Fixedassets
ListedontheLondonStockExchange *			2,493		13,512
Listedonexchangesabroad			325,495		238,202
Investmentsatfairvaluethroughprofitorloss	8		327,988		251,714
Currentassets Tradereceivables	9	1,076		186
Cashandcashequivalents	10	10,043		2,728
			11,119		2,914
Currentliabilities
Bankoverdrafts	10	(16)		-
Performancefeepayable	12	(2,819)		(2,541)
Tradepayables	11	(2,701)		(392)
			(5,536)		(2,933)
Totalassetslesscurrentliabilities			333,571		251,695
Amountsfallingdueaftermorethanoneyear Bankloan	13		(30,000)		-
Totalnetassets			303,571		251,695
Equity CalledupOrdinarysharecapital	14	4,934		4,934
Sharepremiumaccount		6,221		-
Capitalredemptionreserve		11,083		11,083
Specialdistributablereserve **		70,017		70,100
Capitalreserve	14	209,929		162,340
Revenuereserve **		1,387		3,238
Totalshareholders' funds			303,571		251,695
NetassetvalueperOrdinaryshare	2		358.2p		301.9p

*The £2,493,000 figure as at 31 January 2021 relates to Dr. Martens' conditional rights to shares resulting from an initial public offering. On 3 February 2021, the shares were admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market for listed securities.

**These reserves are distributable.

The notes below form part of these financial statements.

Martin Currie Global Portfolio Trust plc is registered in Scotland, company number SC192761.

The financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 20 April 2021 and signed on its behalf by

Gillian Watson

Chairman

20 April 2021

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

during the year

*These reserves are distributable.

**Transfer from the special distributable reserve to the new share premium account of the premium over the weighted average price of shares issued from Treasury in prior years. Refer to accounting policy Note 1(j).

The revenue reserve and the special distributable reserve represent the amount of the Company's distributable reserves. The notes below form part of these financial statements.

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOW

Year to 31 January 2021 Year to 31 January 2020

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year

10,027 2,728

*Receipts from the sale of, and payments to acquire, investment securities have been classified as components of cash flows from operating activities because they form part of the Company's dealing operations.

The notes below form part of these financial statements.

Analysis of debt As at

As at

Notes to the Financial Statements

Note 1: Accounting policies

(a) For the year ended 31 January 2021, the Company is applying FRS 102 Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102), which forms part of the Generally Accepted Accounting Practice ('UK GAAP') issued by the Financial Reporting Council ('FRC'). The Company's assets consist of a diverse portfolio of listed equity shares which, in most circumstances, are realisable within a very short timescale. The Directors are mindful of the principal and emerging risks and uncertainties, in particular those related to Covid-19. They have reviewed revenue forecasts for the next two financial years, including liabilities arising from the loan facility, and believe that the Company has adequate financial resources to continue its operational existence for the period to 31 January 2023, which is at least 12 months from the date the financial statements are authorised for issue. Accordingly, the Directors continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing these financial statements. These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority, FRS102 issued by the FRC in September 2015 and the revised Statement of Recommended Practice "Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies and Venture Capital Trusts" (SORP) issued by the AIC in October 2019. Functional currency - the Company is required to nominate a functional currency, being the currency in which the Company predominately operates. The Board has determined that sterling is the Company's functional currency, which is also the currency in which these financial statements are prepared. This is also the currency in which all expenses and dividends are paid.

(b) Income from investments (other than capital dividends), including taxes deducted at source, is included in revenue by reference to the date on which the investment is quoted ex-dividend, or where no ex- dividend date is quoted, when the Company's right to receive payment is established. UK investment income is stated net of the relevant tax credit. Overseas dividends include any taxes deducted at source. Special dividends are credited to capital or revenue, according to the circumstances. Stock dividends are treated as unfranked investment income; any excess in value of the shares received over the amount of the cash dividend is recognised as a capital item in the statement of comprehensive income.

(c) Interest receivable and payable, investment management fees, performance fee and other expenses are treated on an accruals basis.

(d) The investment management fee and finance costs in relation to debt are recognised four-fifths as a capital item and one-fifth as a revenue item (for the period to 31 July 2019 the investment management fee was recognised two-thirds as a capital item and one-third as a revenue item) in the statement of comprehensive income in accordance with the Board's expected long-term split of returns in the form of capital gains and revenue, respectively. The performance fee is recognised 100% as a capital item in the statement of comprehensive income as it relates to the capital performance of the Company. All other expenses are charged to revenue except where they directly relate to the acquisition or disposal of an investment, in which case, they are treated as described in (f) below.

(e) Investments - investments have been classified upon initial recognition as fair value through profit or loss. Investments are recognised and derecognised at trade date where a purchase or sale is under a contract whose terms require delivery within the time frame established by the market concerned, and are initially measured as fair value. Subsequent to initial recognition, investments are valued at fair value. For listed investments, this is deemed to be bid market prices. Gains and losses arising from changes in fair value are included in net profit or loss for the year as a capital item in the statement of comprehensive income and are ultimately recognised in the capital reserve.

(f) Transaction costs incurred on the purchase and disposal of investments are recognised as a capital item in the statement of comprehensive income.

(g) Monetary assets and liabilities expressed in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at rates of exchange ruling at the date of the statement of financial position. Non-monetary items expressed in foreign currencies held at fair value are translated into sterling at rates of exchange ruling at the date the fair value is measured. Transactions in foreign currency are converted to sterling at the rate ruling at the date of the transaction. Exchange gains and losses are taken to the income statement as a capital or revenue item depending on the nature of the underlying item.

(h) Cash and cash equivalents comprises cash and demand deposits which are readily convertible to a known amount of cash and are subject to insignificant risk of changes in value.

(i) Dividends payable - under FRS102 dividends should not be accrued in the financial statements unless they have been approved by shareholders before the statement of financial position date. Dividends to equity shareholders are recognised in the statement of changes in equity when they have been paid.

(j) Called up ordinary share capital - represents the nominal value of the issued share capital including shares held in Treasury.

The share premium account - when shares held in Treasury are reissued, the excess of the sales proceeds over the weighted average price of repurchase is allocated to the share premium account.

The capital redemption reserve - represents the nominal value of the shares bought back and cancelled.

The special distributable reserve - created through the cancellation and reclassification of the share premium account in 1999 and 2004, and thereafter the cost of share buy backs are deducted from this reserve. The costs of share buy backs include the amount of consideration paid, including directly attributable costs and are deducted from the special distributable reserve until the shares are cancelled. When shares held in Treasury are reissued, the proceeds equivalent to the original cost o f repurchase, calculated by applying the weighted average price, are allocated to the special distributable reserve. This reserve is also distributable by way of dividend.

The capital reserve - gains or losses on realisation of investments and changes in fair values of investments are transferred to the capital reserve. Any changes in fair values of investments that are not readily convertible to cash are treated as unrealised gains or losses within the capital reserve. The capital element of the investment management fee and relevant finance costs are charged to this reserve. Any associated tax relief is also credited to this reserve.

The revenue reserve - represents net revenue earned that has not been distributed to shareholders.

(k) Taxation - the charge for taxation is based upon the revenue for the year and is allocated according to the marginal basis between revenue and capital using the Company's effective rate of corporation tax for the accounting period.

(l) Deferred taxation - deferred taxation is recognised in respect of all timing differences that have originated but not reversed at the statement of financial position date where transactions or events that result in an obligation to pay more or a right to pay less tax in future have occurred at the statement of financial position date measured on an undiscounted basis and based on enacted tax rates. This is subject to deferred tax assets being recognised only if it is considered more likely than not that there will be suitable profits from which the future reversal of the underlying temporary differences can be deducted. Timing differences are differences arising between the Company's taxable profits and its results as stated in the accounts which are capable of reversal in one or more subsequent periods. Due to the Company's status as an investment trust company, and the intention to continue meeting the conditions required to obtain approval in the foreseeable future, the Company has not provided deferred tax on any capital gains and losses arising on the revaluation or disposal of investments.

(m) The Company can use derivative financial instruments to manage risk associated with foreign currency fluctuations arising on the investments in currencies other than sterling. This is achieved by the use of forward foreign currency contracts. Derivative financial instruments are recognised initially at fair value on the contract date and subsequently remeasured to the fair value at each reporting date. The resulting gain or loss is recognised as revenue or capital in the statement of comprehensive income depending on the nature and motive of each derivative transaction. The fair values of the derivative financial instruments are included within non-current assets or within current assets or current liabilities depending on the nature and motive of each derivative transaction. There were no derivative instruments held as at 31 January 2021 (2020: none).

(n) Stock lending income is received net of associated costs and recognised in revenue as earned.

(o) There have been no significant judgements, estimates or assumptions for the year.

(p) Bank loans are classified as financial liabilities at amortised cost. Interest payable on the bank loan is accounted for on an accruals basis in the statement of comprehensive income.

Note 2: Returns and net asset value Year ended 31 January 2021 Year ended 31 January 2020 The return and net asset value per Ordinary share are

calculated with reference to the following figures:

Revenue return

Revenue return attributable to Ordinary shareholders £1,635,000 £2,098,000

Weighted average number of shares in issue during the year

82,918,070 83,261,286

Return per Ordinary share 1.97p 2.52p

Capital return

Capital return attributable to Ordinary shareholders £47,589,000 £48,091,000

Weighted average number of shares in issue during the year

82,918,070 83,261,286

Return per Ordinary share 57.39p 57.76p

Total return

Total return per Ordinary share 59.36p 60.28p

There are no dilutive or potentially dilutive shares in issue.

As at 31 January 2021 As at 31 January 2020

Net asset value per share

Net assets attributable to shareholders £303,571,000 £251,695,000 Number of shares in issue at the year end 84,759,499 83,364,105 Net asset value per share 358.2p 301.9p

Note 3: Revenue from investments Year ended 31 January 2021

£000

Dividends from listed investments

Year ended 31 January

2020

£000

UK equities 166 242

International equities 2,427 2,851

Other revenue

Interest on deposits 28 2

Stock lending 13 19

2,634 3,114

There were no capital dividends received during the year ended 31 January 2021 (2020: £nil).

Note 4: Dividends

(2020: 0.90p)

Revenue return per share for the year ended 31 January 2021 is 1.97p (2020: 2.52p), refer to note 2 above for details of calculation.

Set out below are the total dividends paid/payable in respect of the financial year which forms the basis on which the requirements of s1158- 1159 of the Corporation Taxes Act 2010 are considered.

31 January 2021 (2020: 0.90p)

Fee to EY for the audit of the Company's annual financial statements

46 36

486 478

All expenses detailed above include VAT where applicable.

Performance fee

The performance fee earned in the year ended 31 January 2021 was £2,819,000 (2020: £2,135,000). This sum was payable at the year end in respect of performance in the year to 31 January 2021. (The performance fee earned in 2020 of £2,135,000 was added to the performance fee earned in 2019 of £406,000 such that a total of £2,541,000 was payable in respect of the period from 1 February 2018 to 31 January 2020. At that time performance was assessed over a two year period prior to being assessed annually with effect from 1 February 2020).

Note 6: Finance costs Year ended 31 January 2021 Year ended 31 January 2020

	Revenue	Capital	Total	Revenue	Capital	Total
	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Interestandfeesonbankloansandoverdrafts	30	121	151	-	-	-

Note 7: Taxation on ordinary activities Year ended 31 January 2021 Year ended 31 January 2020

Revenue	Capital	Total	Revenue	Capital	Total
£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
Overseastaxsuffered 264	-	264	288	-	288

The corporation tax rate was 19.00% (2020: 19.00%). The tax charge for the year differs from the charge resulting from applying the standard rate of corporation tax in the UK for an investment trust company. The differences are explained below.

	Yearended31January2021 £000	Yearended31January2020 £000
Netreturnbeforetaxation	49,488	50,477
Corporationtaxatrateof19.00%(2020:19.00%)	9,403	9,591
Effectsof:
UKdividendsnottaxable	(32)	(46)
Currencylossesnottaxable	9	10
Gainsoninvestmentsnottaxable	(9,773)	(9,688)
Overseasdividendsnottaxable	(464)	(544)
Overseastaxsuffered	264	288
Expensesnotdeductiblefortaxpurposes	-	405
Increaseinexcessmanagementandloanexpenses	857	272
Totaltaxchargefortheyear	264	288

As at 31 January 2021, the Company had unutilised management expenses of £40 million (2020: £35 million) carried forward. Due to the Company's status as an investment trust and the intention to continue to meet the conditions required to obtain approval for that status in the foreseeable future, the Company has not provided deferred tax on capital gains and losses arising on the revaluation or disposal of investments.

The unrecognised deferred tax asset is £8 million which is 19% of the excess management expenses carried forward (2020: £6 million, 17% of excess management expenses).

Note 8: Investments at fair value through profit or loss

Year ended 31 January 2021

£000

Year ended 31 January 2020

£000

Openingbookcost	191,768	166,414
Openinginvestmentholdinggains	59,946	37,404
Openingmarketvalue	251,714	203,818
Additionsatcost	88,505	80,284
Disposalsproceedsreceived	(63,671)	(83,377)
Gainsoninvestments	51,440	50,989
Marketvalueofinvestmentsheldat31January	327,988	251,714
Closingbookcost	225,072	191,768
Closing investmentholdinggains	102,916	59,946
Closingmarketvalue	327,988	251,714

The Company received £63,671,000 (2020: £83,377,000) from investments sold in the year. The book cost of these investments when they were purchased was £55,201,000 (2020: £54,930,000).

The transaction costs in acquiring investments during the year were £193,000 (2020: £97,000). For disposals, transaction costs were £32,000 (2020: £33,000).

Note9: Tradereceivables	Asat31January2021	Asat31January2020
	£000	£000
Dividendsreceivable	24	23
Taxationrecoverable	134	163
AmountreceivableforOrdinarysharesissued	918	-
	1,076	186

Note10:Cashandcashequivalents	Asat31January2021	Asat31January2020
	£000	£000
Sterlingbankaccount	10,043	2,705
Non-sterlingbankaccount	(16)	23
	10,027	2,728


Note11:Trade payables	Asat31January2021 £000	Asat31January2020 £000
Amountsfallingduewithinoneyear:
Investmentmanagementandsecretarialfees	323	268
Interestaccrued	67	-
Purchasesawaitingsettlement	2,220	-
Otherpayables	91	124
	2,701	392
Note12:Payables-performancefee	Asat31January2021 £000	Asat31January2020 £000
Performancefeepayable	2,819	2,541
	2,819	2,541

The details of the performance fee are provided in the Report of the directors in the annual report and accounts. The 2020 payable includes the performance fee earned in 2020 of £2,135,000 which is added to the performance fee earned in 2019 of £406,000 such that a total of £2,541,000 was payable in respect of the period from 1 February 2018 to 31 January 2020. At that time performance was assessed over a two year period prior to being assessed annually with effect from 1 February 2020.

Note 13: Payables - amounts fallingdueaftermorethanoneyear

Asat31January2021

£000

Asat31January2020

£000

Bankloan

30,000

On 23 November 2020, the Company entered into an unsecured three year £30 million sterling term loan facility agreement with The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited at a fixed interest rate of 1.181%. This facility was fully drawn down on 24 November 2020.

The facility agreement contains covenants that the adjusted investment portfolio value at each month end should not be less than £120 million, the gross borrowings should not exceed 30% of the Company's adjusted investment portfolio value and the portfolio must contain at least 22 eligible investments.

The facility is shown at amortised cost.

Finance costs are charged to capital (80%) and revenue (20%) in accordance with the Company's accounting policies.

Note14:Ordinarysharesof5pandcapitalreserves	Numberof shares	Asat31 January2021 £000	Numberof shares	Asat31 January2020 £000
Ordinarysharesof5p
Ordinarysharesinissueatthebeginningoftheyear	83,364,105	4,167	83,724,832	4,185
Ordinarysharesissuedfrom Treasuryduringtheyear	3,815,000	191	1,485,000	74
OrdinarysharesboughtbacktoTreasuryduringtheyear	(2,419,606)	(121)	(1,845,727)	(92)
Ordinarysharesinissueatendoftheyear	84,759,499	4,237	83,364,105	4,167

	As NumberofJanuary	at31 2021	Numberof	Asat31 January2020
	shares	£000	shares	£000
Treasuryshares(Ordinaryshares5p) Treasurysharesinissueatthebeginningoftheyear	15,311,802	767	14,951,075	749
Ordinarysharesissuedfrom Treasuryduringtheyear	(3,815,000)	(191)	(1,485,000)	(74)
OrdinarysharesboughtbacktoTreasuryduringtheyear	2,419,606	121	1,845,727	92
Treasurysharesinissueatendoftheyear	13,916,408	697	15,311,802	767
Total Ordinaryshares inissueand inTreasuryatthe endoftheyear	98,675,907	4,934	98,675,907	4,934

For the financial year to 31 January 2021, the proceeds received for shares issued from Treasury less payments made for shares bought back to Treasury was £6,138,000 (2020: payments made for shares bought back to Treasury less the proceeds received for shares issued from Treasury was £573,000).Between 1 February 2021 and 8 April 2021, 1,310,056 Ordinary shares of 5p were bought back to Treasury and 1,200,000 Ordinary shares of 5p were issued from Treasury.

The analysis of the capital reserve is as follows:

Unrealised

	Realised capital reserve	investment holdinggains	Total capital reserve
	£000	£000	£000
Asat31January2020	102,394	59,946	162,340
Gainsonrealisationofinvestmentsatfairvalue	8,470	-	8,470
Movementinfairvaluegainsofinvestments	-	42,970	42,970
Realisedcurrencylossesduringtheyear	(47)	-	(47)
Capitalexpenses	(3,804)	-	(3,804)
Asat31January2021	107,013	102,916	209,929

The above split in capital reserve is shown in accordance with provisions of the Statement of Recommended Practice 'Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies and Venture Capital Trusts'.

Note 15: Related party transactions

With the exception of the investment management and secretarial fees (as set out in the annual report and accounts), performance fee (as set out in the annual report and accounts), Directors' fees (set out in the annual report and accounts ), and Directors' shareholdings (as set out in the annual report and accounts ), there have been no related party transactions during the year, or in the prior year.

The amounts payable for Directors' fees as at 31 January 2021 are £12,000 (2020: £11,000).

Note 16: Financial instruments

The Company's financial instruments comprise securities and other investments, cash balances, receivables and payables that arise directly from its operations; for example in respect of sales and purchases awaiting settlement, and receivables for accrued income.

The Company also has the ability to enter into derivative transactions in the form of forward foreign currency contracts, futures and options, for the purpose of managing currency and market risks arising from the Company's activities.

The main risks the Company faces from its financial instruments are (a) market price risk (comprising of (i) interest rate risk, (ii) currency risk and (iii) other price risk), (b) liquidity risk and (c) credit risk.

The Board regularly reviews and agrees policies for managing each of these risks. The AIFM's policies for managing these risks are summarised below and have been applied throughout the year. The numerical disclosures exclude short-term receivables and payables, other than for currency disclosures.

(a) Market price risk

The fair value or future cash flows of a financial instrument held by the Company may fluctuate because of changes in market prices. This market risk comprises three elements - interest rate risk, currency risk and other price risk.

(i) Market risk arising from interest rate risk

Interest rate movements may affect the level of income receivable on cash deposits.

The possible effects on fair value and cash flows that could arise as a result of changes in interest rates are taken into account when making investment and borrowing decisions.

The Board imposes borrowing limits to ensure gearing levels are appropriate and reviews these on a regular basis. Borrowings may comprise fixed rate, revolving, and uncommitted facilities. Current guidelines state that the total borrowings will not exceed 20% of the net assets of the Company at time of drawdown. On 23 November 2020, the Company entered into a £30 million sterling term loan facility agreement. The facility was fully drawn down on 24 November 2020 and the term loan is shown at amortised cost.

Interest risk profile

The interest rate risk profile of the portfolio of financial assets (comprising cash balances only) at the statement of financial position date was as follows:

	Interest rate	Localcurrency	Foreign	Sterlingequivalent
At31January2021	%	'000	exchangerate	£000
AssetsSterling	0.00	10,043	1.000	10,043
				10,043
Liabilities Canadiandollar	0.00	29	1.754	16
				16
At31January2020
AssetsSterling	0.07	2,705	1.000	2,705
Euro	(0.75)	28	1.189	23
USdollar	0.12	-	1.318	-
				2,728

Interest rate sensitivity

The sensitivity analysis below has been determined based on the exposure to interest rates for non-derivative instruments at the statement of financial position date and the stipulated change taking place at the beginning of the financial year and held constant throughout the reporting period in the case of instruments that have floating rates.

If interest rates had been 75 (2020: 75) basis points higher or lower and all other variables were held constant, the Company's profit for the year ended 31 January 2021 would increase/decrease by £75,000 (2020: increase/decrease by £20,000). This is mainly attributable to the Company's exposure to interest rates on its floating rate cash balances.

As at 31 January 2021 an interest rate of 0.75% is used, given that the prevailing base rate is 0.50%. This level

is considered possible based on observations of market conditions and historic trends.

(ii) Market risk arising from foreign currency risk

A significant proportion of the Company's investment portfolio is invested in overseas securities and the statement of financial position can be significantly affected by movements in foreign exchange rates. It is not currently the Company's policy to hedge this risk.

The revenue account is subject to currency fluctuation arising o n overseas income.

Foreign currency risk profile

Foreign currency risk exposure by currency of denomination :

Yearended31January2021 Yearended31January2020
	Investment	Net monetary	Totalcurrency	Investment	Netmonetary	Totalcurrency
	exposure	exposure	exposure	exposure	exposure	exposure
	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000	£000
USdollar	167,177	24	167,201	118,186	-	118,186
Euro	66,806	12	66,818	50,840	74	50,914
HongKongdollar	37,725	-	37,725	16,224	-	16,224
Swedishkrona	32,717	-	32,717	20,264	-	20,264
Australiandollar	10,917	-	10,917	10,404	1	10,405
Danishkrone	10,153	45	10,198	8,127	28	8,155
Swissfranc	-	25	25	9,772	37	9,809
Canadiandollar	-	(16)	(16)	4,385	-	4,385
Total overseas investments	325,495	90	325,585	238,202	140	238,342
Sterling	2,493	(24,507)	(22,014)	13,512	(159)	13,353
Total	327,988	(24,417)	303,571	251,714	(19)	251,695

The asset allocation between specific markets can vary from time to time based on the portfolio manager's opinion of the attractiveness of the individual stocks.

Foreign currency sensitivity

At 31 January 2021, if sterling had strengthened by 5% in relation to all currencies, with all other variables held constant, total net assets and total return on ordinary activities would have decreased by the amounts shown below. A 5% weakening of sterling against all currencies, with all other variables held constant, would have had an equal but opposite effect on the financial statement amounts.

	2021	2020
	£000	£000
USdollar	8,360	5,909
Euro	3,341	2,546
HongKongdollar	1,886	811
Swedishkrona	1,636	1,013
Australiandollar	546	520
Danishkrone	510	408
Swissfranc	1	490
Canadiandollar	(1)	219

(iii) Market risk arising from other price risk

Other price risks (i.e. changes in market prices other than those arising from interest rate or currency risk) may affect the value of the quoted investments.

It is the Board's policy to hold an appropriate spread of investments in the portfolio in order to reduce the risk arising from factors specific to a particular country or sector. The allocation of assets to international markets as detailed above, and the stock selection process both act to reduce market risk. The investment manager actively monitors market prices throughout the year and reports to the Board, which meets regularly in order to review investment strategy. All investments held by the Company are listed on various stock exchanges worldwide.

Other price risk sensitivity

If market prices at the statement of financial position date had been 30% (2020: 15%) higher or lower while all other variables remained constant, the return attributable to Ordinary shareholders at the year ended 31 January 2021 would have increased/decreased by £98,400,000 (2020: increase/decrease of £37,760,000) and capital reserves would have increased/decreased by the same amount. This level of change is considered to be reasonably possible based on observation of market conditions and historic trends.

(b) Liquidity risk

This is the risk that the Company will encounter difficulty in meeting obligations associated with financial liabilities.

Liquidity risk is not considered to be significant as the Company's assets comprise mainly readily realisable securities, which can be sold to meet funding commitments if necessary.

This is the risk of failure of the counterparty to a transaction to discharge its obligations under that transaction that could result in the Company suffering a loss.

The risk is managed as follows:

• investment transactions are carried out with a large number of brokers, whose credit ratings are reviewed periodically by the portfolio manager, and limits are set on the amount that may be due from any one broker; and

• cash is held only with reputable banks with high quality external credit ratings.

The maximum credit risk exposure as at 31 January 2021 was £11,103,000 (2020: £2,914,000). This was due to trade receivables and cash as per notes 9 and 10.

Please refer to note 19 below and 'Stock lending disclosure' in the annual report and accounts for details of the Company's stock lending and related collateral.

Fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities

All financial assets and liabilities of the Company are included in the statement of financial position at fair value or a reasonable approximation of fair value with no material difference in the carrying amount.

Note 17: Capital management policies and procedures

The Company's capital management objectives are:

• to ensure that the Company will be able to continue as a going concern;

• to maximise the return to its equity shareholders through an appropriate balance of equity capital and debt; and

• to limit gearing to 20% of net assets at time of drawdown.

The Board monitors and reviews the broad structure of the Company's capital on an ongoing basis. This review includes the nature and planned level of gearing, which takes account of the portfolio manager's views on the market and the extent to which revenue in excess of that which is required to be distributed under the investment trust rules should be retained.

The analysis of shareholders' funds is as follows:

	Asat31January2021 £000	Asat31January2020 £000
CalledupOrdinarysharecapital	4,934	4,934
Sharepremiumaccount	6,221	-
Capitalredemptionreserve	11,083	11,083
Specialdistributablereserve	70,017	70,100
Capitalreserve	209,929	162,340
Revenuereserve	1,387	3,238
Totalshareholders' funds	303,571	251,695

Note 18: Fair value hierarchy

Under FRS 102, the Company is required to classify fair value measurements using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurements. The fair value hierarchy shall have the following levels:

• Level 1: quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities;

• Level 2: other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar investments, interest rates, prepayments, credit risk, etc);

• Level 3: significant unobservable input (including the Company's own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).

The financial assets measured at fair value through profit and loss are grouped into the fair value hierarchy as follows:

At31January2021	Level1 £000	Level2 £000	Level3 £000	Total £000
Financialassetsatfairvaluethroughprofitorloss
Quotedequities	327,988	-	-	327,988
Netfairvalue	327,988	-	-	327,988
At31January2020	Level1 £000	Level2 £000	Level3 £000	Total £000
Financialassetsatfairvaluethroughprofitorloss
Quotedequities	251,714	-	-	251,714
Netfairvalue	251,714	-	-	251,714

Note 19: Stock lending

The Company has a Securities Lending Authorisation Agreement with State Street Bank & Trust Company. As at

31 January 2021 £11,475,000 (2020: £11,890,000) of

investments were subject to stock lending agreements and £12,220,000 (2020: £12,911,000) was held in collateral. The collateral was held in the form of cash (in GBP, USD or EUR), government securities issued by any of the OECD countries or equity securities listed

and/or traded on an exchange in the following countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland and USA.

The value of collateral in respect of the securities on loan was not less than the value of the securities lent at the balance sheet date or during the period.

The maximum aggregate value of securities on loan at any time during the accounting period was £19,516,000.

The gross earnings and the fees paid for the year are £16,000 (2020: £24,000) and £3,000 (2020: £5,000).

Note 20: Post balance sheet events

At a General Meeting held on 13 March 2021, shareholders passed two special resolutions empowering the Directors to allot and/or sell Ordinary shares up to an aggregate nominal amount of £428,172.45 plus £214,086.20 as if statutory preemption rights did not apply to any such allotment and/or sale.

The authority granted will expire at the AGM and the Directors are seeking further authority at the AGM as set out in the annual report and accounts.

On 26 March 2021, the Board declared a fourth interim dividend of 1.5p per share.

As at 8 April 2021, the Company had bought back a further 1,310,056 ordinary shares at an average price of 352.5p per share and issued from Treasury 1,200,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 375.9p per share.

Website

The Company has its own dedicated website at www.martincurrieglobal.com . This offers shareholders, prospective investors and their advisors a wealth of information about the Company. Updated daily it includes the following: latest prices, performance data, latest factsheet, research, portfolio information, press releases and articles, the manager's

latest views and annual and half yearly reports.

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy Policy.

END

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Martin Currie Global Portfolio Trust (MNP)

Tuesday, 23rd July 2024

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