Interim Management Statement

City of London Investment Trust PLC 08 May 2008 THE CITY OF LONDON INVESTMENT TRUST PLC HENDERSON GLOBAL INVESTORS 8 MAY 2008 THE CITY OF LONDON INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Interim Management Statement Review of the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 March 2008 MATERIAL EVENTS OR TRANSACTIONS DURING THE PERIOD Portfolio: during the period there was net investment of £4.6m and the number of holdings in the portfolio increased from 97 to 100. The holdings in Fortum and Imperial Tobacco were sold, as well as Scottish & Newcastle, which was subject to a takeover. The portfolio includes six new stocks: AstraZeneca and Novartis in the pharmaceutical sector, Inchcape and Marks & Spencer in the General Retail sector, as well as Interserve and Misys. Gearing: during the quarter gearing increased from 7% (at 31 December 2007) to 10% (at 31 March 2008). Dividends: a third interim dividend of 2.96p per ordinary Share, in respect of the year ending 30 June 2008, will be paid on 30 May 2008 to holders registered on 25 April 2008. Discount: the share price discount to net asset value (with debt at par value) narrowed over the period from 14.4% to 6.0%. Share Capital: during the quarter the Company bought back 83,893 ordinary shares and 488,949 second preference stock at a cost of £692,532. The ordinary shares are being held in treasury. The second preference stock was cancelled. There are no other material events or transactions to report. PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS Total Return Performance at 31 March 2008 3 months 1 year 3 years 5 years Net Asset Value per ordinary share -10.4% -10.9% +32.4% +104.4% FTSE All-Share Index - 4% capped * + -9.5% -8.1% +36.0% +110.0% FTSE All-Share Index + -9.9% -7.7% +31.3% +98.7% Average UK Growth & Income Investment Trust Net Asset Value -12.4% -13.7% +24.2% +101.7% Sources: AIC Services Limited / * Datastream + since 1 July 2005 the benchmark is the total return of the FTSE All-Share Index - adjusted for a maximum 4% cap for any single stock. Prior to this, it was the total return of the FTSE All-Share Index. Financial Position at 31 March 2008 at 31 December 2007 Net assets £602m £686m Net asset value 290.4p 327.4p Ordinary share price 273.0p 280.3p Discount 6.0% 14.4% Gearing 10% 7% Yield 4.00% 3.79% Total Expense Ratio 0.44% 0.44% THE PORTFOLIO Top 10 Investments % of total assets % of total assets at 31 March 2008 at 31 December 2007 Vodafone 5.0 Vodafone 5.1 BP 4.6 BP 4.9 British American Tobacco 4.6 British American Tobacco 4.7 HSBC 4.5 Royal Dutch Shell 4.3 Royal Dutch Shell 4.1 HSBC 4.1 Diageo 3.8 Diageo 3.9 GlaxoSmithKline 3.6 GlaxoSmithKline 3.7 BT 2.9 BT 3.1 Lloyds TSB 2.7 National Grid 2.9 Barclays 2.7 Scottish & Southern Energy 2.8 Top 10 = 38.5 39.5 Sector Breakdown % at 31 March 2008 % at 31 December 2007 Financials 22.7 22.6 Consumer Goods 17.3 18.1 Oil & Gas 10.9 11.6 Consumer Services 10.7 10.5 Industrials 9.8 8.9 Telecommunications 7.8 8.8 Utilities 7.7 8.6 Basic Materials 7.7 6.7 Health Care 4.8 4.0 Technology 0.6 0.2 The objective of The City of London Investment Trust plc is to provide long-term growth in income and capital, principally by investment in UK equities. The Manager is Henderson Global Investors Limited. Further information on the Company, including a monthly factsheet and up to date NAV and share price information, can be found at www.cityinvestmenttrust.com For further information, please contact: Job Curtis James de Sausmarez Portfolio Manager Head of Investment Trusts The City of London Investment Trust plc Henderson Global Investors Telephone: 020 7818 4367 Telephone: 020 7818 3349 Sarah Gibbons-Cook Investor Relations and PR Manager Henderson Global Investors Telephone: 020 7818 3198 - ENDS - This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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