Annual Financial Report

RNS Number : 2021F

JPMorgan European Smaller Co.

12 June 2012

 



STOCK EXCHANGE ANNOUNCEMENT

JPMORGAN EUROPEAN SMALLER COMPANIES TRUST PLC

ANNOUNCEMENT OF FINAL RESULTS

The Directors of JPMorgan European Smaller Companies Trust plc announce the Company's results for the year ended 31st March 2012.

Chairman's Statement

Performance

The year to 31st March 2012 witnessed a return to market volatility and negative returns. The Company's total return on net assets (i.e. with net income reinvested) was -21.3%, which compares with a return of -19.6% on the same basis from the Company's benchmark, the HSBC Smaller European Companies (ex UK) Total Return Index in sterling terms. Whilst this is disappointing, the long-term performance record remains good; the Company has outperformed the benchmark significantly over ten years.

A review of the market and more details on performance are given in the Investment Managers' Report. Performance attribution analysis shows that our Investment Managers have steered us through difficult markets and used the available gearing effectively to produce a creditable return. The strengthening of sterling against the Euro over the year had a negative impact.

The discount of the Company's share price to net asset value widened very marginally over the year from 15.2% to 15.5% at year end, resulting in a total return to shareholders of -21.3%.

Revenue and Dividends

Historically, the Company has allocated expenses wholly to the revenue account, with the exception of expenses incidental to the purchases and sales of investments. The Board reviewed this policy during the year in the light of its long term expected split of returns. As a result we have decided, with effect from 1st April 2011, to capitalise 70% of management fees and finance costs. A consequence of this change is that earnings per share for the year have increased sharply. Net revenue return for the year amounted to £7.1 million (2011: £2.4 million), thus increasing the positive balance on the Company's Revenue Reserve.

The Board's policy is to pay out the vast majority of the revenue available each year. An interim dividend of 6.0p per share was paid on 16th January 2012. Subject to shareholder approval at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting, a dividend of 11.0 pence per share will be paid on 31st August 2012 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 3rd August 2012. I would remind shareholders that the Company's objective is to achieve capital growth rather than income and hence the level of dividends is likely to vary from year to year.

Share Buybacks

Europe has remained firmly out of favour with investors and consistent with most other investment trust companies in the European sector, the discount to net asset value at which the Company's shares trade has remained wide over the year, averaging 13.9%. The Board has continued to use its share buyback authority to attempt to manage the volatility and absolute level of the discount. A total of 1,269,000 shares were bought back during the year through ongoing buybacks. In addition, a total of 2,155,936 shares were cancelled as a result of the tender offer made in July 2011.

Reverse Tender Offer

The Board is concerned by the relatively wide level of discount of the Company's share price to NAV, which has persisted due to poor investor sentiment towards European stock markets, despite the excellent long term relative and absolute NAV performance. Whilst the large majority of shareholders continue to be supportive of the Company and the Board's pro-active efforts in utilising existing share buyback powers, the Board is aware that at least one large long-term holder continues to seek a partial exit for its holding at a price which is reasonably close to NAV.

The Board has considered the position of the Company carefully, including the importance of its size and the liquidity of its shares. Taking into account all relevant considerations, as announced on 9th May 2012, the Board has decided to implement a Reverse Tender Offer for up to 10% of the Company's shares, with the objective of providing liquidity to the market whilst also providing an NAV uplift to the ongoing shareholders.

Under the Tender Offer, shareholders and J.P. Morgan savings product participants will have a free choice to tender none, any or all of their shares at a single discount level or at different discount levels within the discount range, being from 3.0% to 15.0% inclusive. Each discount level will represent a discount to the Tender NAV per share on the calculation date at which tenders may be accepted. Discount levels must be within the discount range in increments of 2.0% only. After the closing date for shareholders, the Company will aggregate all of the shares tendered at the widest discount level with the total number of shares tendered within each decreasing discount level until the aggregate number of shares tendered in the discount levels up to and including that discount level equals or exceeds the Tender limit (being 10% of the shares in issue on the record date).

The Reverse Tender Offer will require approval by Shareholders and a resolution will therefore be put to shareholders at a General Meeting to be held immediately after the Annual General Meeting on 18th July 2012, which will also be the Record Date for the Reverse Tender Offer. Full details are set out in a circular which will accompany the annual report.

The Board

Elisabeth Airey stood down from the Board at the conclusion of the 2011 AGM and I succeeded her as Chairman. I would like to record my thanks for her considerable contribution to the Company. During the year the Board engaged the services of an independent search consultant to recruit a new Director and on 1st April 2012, Stephen White was appointed. Stephen brings considerable investment experience to the Board. He is currently Head of European and US equities at British Steel Pension Fund, responsible for the day to day management of the Fund's Europe ex-UK and US equity portfolios. He was formerly Head of European Equities at F&C Asset Management and Manger of Foreign & Colonial Eurotrust PLC and Deputy Manager of the Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust Plc.

Board Evaluation

The Nomination Committee carried out its annual evaluation of the Board, its Committees, the individual Directors and the Chairman earlier this year. The Board takes this review seriously and views it as an effective means of evaluating the continuing efficacy of the Board.

The Company's Articles of Association require that all Directors who held office at the time of the two preceding AGMs and did not retire by rotation at either of them must retire at the next AGM. However, following the introduction of the UK Corporate Governance Code, it is now considered best practice for all directors to stand for annual reappointment. The Board has decided to adopt best practice and therefore all Directors will seek reappointment on an annual basis from now on.

Manager Evaluation

During the year the Board carried out a formal review of the Manager, JPMorgan Asset Management (UK) Limited ('JPMAM'). This covered the investment management, company secretarial, administrative and marketing services provided to the Company by JPMAM and took into account their investment performance record, management processes, investment style, resources and risk control mechanisms. The Board is satisfied with the performance of the Manager and concluded that its continued appointment on the existing terms is very much in the interests of shareholders as a whole.

Annual General Meeting

The Company's AGM will be held at The Armourers' Hall, 81 Coleman Street, London EC2R 5BJ on Wednesday, 18th July 2012 at 12.00 noon. The Investment Managers will make a presentation reviewing the past year and commenting on the outlook for the current year. The meeting will be followed by a General Meeting to approve the Reverse Tender Offer.

Outlook

Investors continue to shun European equities and with the political and economic uncertainty set to continue within the Eurozone for the foreseeable future this is unlikely to change in the short term. However, there are some signs of recovery in other countries, most notably the USA, and well managed European exporters should benefit from this. Whilst volatile equity markets create uncertainty, they also create opportunities and your Board remains confident that our Investment Managers' experience and stock picking skills will enable them to add value for shareholders.

Paul Manduca

Chairman                                                                                                                     12th June 2012

Investment Managers' Report

Investment Process

The objective of the Company is to achieve capital growth from a portfolio of quoted smaller companies in Europe, excluding the United Kingdom. The investment universe is defined at the time of purchase by the countries and market capitalisation range of the constituents of the benchmark index, the HSBC Smaller European Companies (ex UK) Index. At the end of March 2012 the index consisted of 1,000 companies with a market value of between £46 million and £2.3 billion across 15 countries. This universe of potential investments is screened using a proprietary multi-factor model to the results of which we apply fundamental analysis. The investment process is focussed on identifying market leading growth companies which offer the potential to outperform over the long term.

The portfolio is constructed within a framework where risk is managed in terms of investment style factors relative to the benchmark index. Position sizing is determined by investment conviction and trading liquidity in a stock. Investments are sold when there is a fundamental negative change in business prospects, long term price momentum has broken down or the market capitalisation has outgrown significantly the benchmark index. The policy is not to hedge the currency exposure of the portfolio's assets. The Board has established a liquidity range of 20% cash to 20% gearing within which the Managers may operate.

Market Review

Renewed concerns over the resolution of the sovereign debt crises in the United States and Europe led to a sharp sell-off in equities during the first half of the Company's year to 30th September 2011. The US suffered the first ever downgrade by Standard & Poor's of its AAA credit rating whilst Europe continued to wrestle with a palatable outcome to Greece's looming debt default. However, better than expected economic growth in the United States and the impact of the European Central Bank Long Term Refinancing Operations (LTRO) provided the stimulus for a positive start to 2012 for European equities. In the twelve months to March 2012 the large company MSCI Europe (ex UK) Index declined by 10.5% in sterling. Diminished appetite for risk led to a year of underperformance by smaller companies and the HSBC Smaller European Companies (ex UK) Index fell by 19.6%.

Portfolio Performance

The net asset value of the Company declined by 21.3% over the year, trailing the negative return of both the benchmark smaller company HSBC Index and the large company MSCI Index. Following a positive performance at the interim stage, the portfolio's defensive positioning and a cash position of 7% led to underperformance of a sharply rebounding market in the first quarter of 2012. For the year as a whole, returns were impaired by premature investment in such recovery situations as financials Aareal Bank in Germany and Bankinter in Spain and jewellery producer Pandora in Denmark. On the other hand, the top contributors included Dutch postal operator Postnl, whose 30% holding in TNT Express was subject to a bid at a 50% premium, Irish bookmaker Paddy Power, which again enjoyed strong growth in its online business and fashion businesses Salvatore Ferragamo in Italy and Hugo Boss in Germany, which each benefitted from sustained momentum in luxury goods sales.

Current Themes

There are currently three core themes underlying the portfolio's holdings, reflecting the success of Europe's businesses in spite of the well documented malaise which frequently surrounds them. In the category of dynamic growth are internet and consumer goods stocks such as Irish bookmaker Paddy Power, which derives the majority of its earnings from online betting, and German women's clothing producer Gerry Weber, which has combined a rapid growth in sales with steady improvement in margins. Defensive growth includes holdings in such food, healthcare and telecoms companies as Danish food ingredients producer Christian Hansen, Spanish sausage casings producer Viscofan, Swedish radiation therapy equipment manufacturer Elekta, Danish hearing aid producer GN Store Nord, each of which is amongst the world leaders in its industry and German telecom service provider Freenet and Spanish broadband operator Jazztel. The cyclical growth category includes industrial and oil & gas positions such as Swedish sealants supplier Trelleborg, Norwegian seismic services supplier TGS Nopec and German industrial lubricants producer Fuchs Petrolub.

Portfolio Positioning

With sizeable holdings in seismic service suppliers CGG Veritas in France and TGS Nopec, oil services represented the portfolio's largest active sector position relative to the benchmark index at the end of March 2012. This is followed by software and services with holdings in IT services supplier Atos and research and development consultancy Altran Technologies, both in France. The overweight position in support services comprises such companies as French call centre operator Teleperformance and German event ticketing supplier CTS Eventim. Real estate and financial services are the portfolio's two most underweight sectors relative to the benchmark.

Investment Cycle

Over time there is a strong correlation between the trend in consensus earnings revisions for European smaller companies and the performance of the benchmark HSBC Index. Revisions to earnings forecasts are typically negative as analysts start the year overly optimistic then have to downgrade as the year unfolds. Nevertheless, for the index to make progress, it is normally sufficient that the rate of downgrade should be less than around 8%. Following a sharp decline in earnings revisions over the last twelve months, to the extent that the position in March 2012 was actually worse than in March 2009, there has been a significant deceleration in the pace of downgrades. This follows a positive first quarter corporate reporting season.

Europe Smaller Cap Valuations

In terms of valuation, smaller companies in Europe now trade on a comparable price/book multiple to large companies. This is towards the top end of the range in which they have traded over the last twenty years. Nevertheless, smaller companies are cheap on an absolute basis, currently being valued towards the bottom end of the historic range of 1.5 - 2.5x book value.

Outlook

With a rapidly diminishing appetite for the fiscal austerity regarded as necessary to balance Europe's books, the immediate outlook for European equities remains highly uncertain. Economic growth in the Eurozone is stagnating, unemployment is rising and there is a clear shift to the political left as manifested in the recent French presidential and German regional elections. Concern remains that regular bouts of liquidity injections from the ECB have merely delayed the demise of the Eurozone in its current form. The most imminent fracture may be a critical default by Greece leading to its exit from monetary union and the re-introduction of a sharply devalued drachma with a view to kick-starting the economy. The further write-down in the value of sovereign debt in not only Greece but other fiscally stretched European economies could be expected to lead to another sell-off in financial stocks and the broader market amid concern for the need for further re-financing.

Of course, life after default in Europe is not without precedent in recent years. Since being bailed out by the International Monetary Fund at the end of 2008, Iceland has generated some of the best returns for equity investors with a 70% rise in the OMX Iceland All-Share Index in the three years to the end of March 2012. The alternative model of resolving a large fiscal deficit - namely, wide ranging reductions in tax rates, most recently adopted extremely successfully by Sweden from 2006 - is sadly absent from political discussion in the Eurozone.

More encouragingly, economic growth in the United States is improving and, for the moment, is being sustained in Asia. Following a positive first quarter reporting season, as shown earlier, the pace of downgrades to forecasts of European corporate earnings has now slowed dramatically. Equity valuations remain inexpensive globally and especially in Europe. To outperform in such an environment the focus of the portfolio is on investing in high quality companies which can thrive in spite of difficult and erratic circumstances.

Jim Campbell

Francesco Conte

Investment Managers                                                                                                  12th June 2012

Principal Risks

With the assistance of the Manager the Board has drawn up a risk matrix, which identifies the key risks to the Company. These key risks fall broadly under the following categories:

• Investment and Strategy: An inappropriate investment strategy, for example asset allocation or the level of gearing, may lead to underperformance against the Company's benchmark index and peer companies, resulting in the Company's shares trading on a wider discount. The Board manages these risks by diversification of investments through its investment restrictions and guidelines, which are monitored and reported on by the Manager. JPMAM provides the Directors with timely and accurate management information, including performance data and attribution analyses, revenue estimates, liquidity reports and shareholder analyses. The Board monitors the implementation and results of the investment process with the investment managers, who attend all Board meetings, and review data which show statistical measures of the Company's risk profile. The investment managers employ the Company's gearing tactically, within a strategic range set by the Board. The Board holds a separate meeting devoted to strategy each year.

• Market: Market risk arises from uncertainty about the future prices of the Company's investments. It represents the potential loss that the Company might suffer through holding investments in the face of negative market movements. The Board considers asset allocation, stock selection and levels of gearing on a regular basis and has set investment restrictions and guidelines, which are monitored and reported on by JPMAM. The Board monitors the implementation and results of the investment process with the Manager.

• Accounting, Legal and Regulatory: In order to qualify as an investment trust, the Company must comply with Section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 ('Section 1158'). Were the Company to breach Section 1158, it might lose investment trust status and, as a consequence, gains within the Company's portfolio would be subject to Capital Gains Tax. The Section 1158 qualification criteria are continually monitored by JPMAM and the results reported to the Board each month. The Company must also comply with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 and, as its shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange, the UKLA Listing Rules and Disclosure & Transparency Rules ('DTRs'). A breach of the Companies Act could result in the Company and/or the Directors being fined or the subject of criminal proceedings. Breach of the UKLA Listing Rules or the DTRs could result in the Company's shares being suspended from listing which in turn would breach Section 1158. The Board relies on the services of its Company Secretary, JPMAM to ensure compliance with the Companies Act and the UKLA Listing Rules and DTRs.

• Corporate Governance and Shareholder Relations: Details of the Company's compliance with Corporate Governance best practice, including information on relations with shareholders, are set out in the Corporate Governance section of the annual report.

• Operational: Loss of key staff by JPMAM, such as the Investment Managers, could affect the performance of the Company. Disruption to, or failure of, JPMAM's accounting, dealing or payments systems or the custodian's records could prevent accurate reporting and monitoring of the Company's financial position. Details of how the Board monitors the services provided by JPMAM and its associates and the key elements designed to provide effective internal control are included within the Risk management and Internal Control section of the Corporate Governance report.

• Financial: The financial risks faced by the Company include market price risk, interest rate risk, liability risk and credit risk. Further details are disclosed in note 20 of the Company's Report & Accounts.

Related Parties Transactions

During the financial year, no transactions with related parties have taken place which have materially affected the financial position or the performance of the Company during the year.

Directors' Responsibilities

The Directors each confirm to the best of their knowledge that:

a)         the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable UK accounting standards, and give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company; and

b)         the Annual Report, to be published shortly, includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company, together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face.

For and on behalf of the Board

Paul Manduca

Chairman

12th June 2012

Income Statement

for the year ended 31st March

		2012			2011
		Revenue	Capital	Total	Revenue	Capital	Total
		£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
(Losses)/gains on investments held at
fair value through profit or loss		-	(104,011)	(104,011)	-	78,917	78,917
Net foreign currency gains/(losses)		-	1,382	1,382	-	(1,540)	(1,540)
Income from investments		10,040	-	10,040	8,963	-	8,963
Other interest receivable and similar income		175	-	175	278	-	278
Gross return/(loss)		10,215	(102,629)	(92,414)	9,241	77,377	86,618
Management fee		(1,301)	(3,035)	(4,336)	(4,298)	-	(4,298)
Other administrative expenses		(620)	-	(620)	(664)	-	(664)
Net return/(loss) on ordinary activities
before  finance costs and taxation		8,294	(105,664)	(97,370)	4,279	77,377	81,656
Finance costs		(360)	(841)	(1,201)	(1,304)	-	(1,304)
Net return/(loss) on ordinary activities before  taxation		7,934	(106,505)	(98,571)	2,975	77,377	80,352
Taxation		(879)	-	(879)	(606)	-	(606)
Net return/(loss) on ordinary activities
after taxation		7,055	(106,505)	(99,450)	2,369	77,377	79,746
Return/(loss) per share (Note 3)		17.12p	(258.41)p	(241.29)p	5.33p	174.02p	179.35p

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

The 'Total' column of this statement is the profit and loss account of the Company and the 'Revenue' and 'Capital' columns represent supplementary information prepared under guidance issued by the Association of Investment Companies. The Total column represents all the information that is required to be disclosed in a Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses ('STRGL'). For this reason a STRGL has not been presented.

Reconciliation of Movements in Shareholders' Funds

	Called up		Capital
	share	Share	redemption	Capital	Revenue
	capital	premium	reserve	reserves	reserve	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
At 31st March 2010	11,771	1,312	3,865	397,184	1,750	415,882
Repurchase and cancellation of the
Company's own shares	(407)	-	407	(12,242)	-	(12,242)
Purchase of shares into Treasury	-	-	-	(4,591)	-	(4,591)
Cancellation of shares held in Treasury	(487)	-	487	-	-	-
Net return on ordinary activities	-	-	-	77,377	2,369	79,746
Dividend appropriated in the year	-	-	-	-	(1,367)	(1,367)
At 31st March 2011	10,877	1,312	4,759	457,728	2,752	477,428
Repurchase and cancellation of the
Company's own shares	(856)	-	856	(31,523)	-	(31,523)
Net (loss)/return on ordinary activities	-	-	-	(106,505)	7,055	(99,450)
Dividends appropriated in the year	-	-	-	-	(4,156)	(4,156)
At 31st March 2012	10,021	1,312	5,615	319,700	5,651	342,299

Balance Sheet

at 31st March

		2012	2011
		£'000	£'000
Fixed assets
Investments held at fair value through profit or loss		359,138	557,047
Investment in liquidity fund held at fair value through profit or loss		15,003	2,010
Total investments		374,141	559,057
Current assets
Debtors		15,077	5,164
Cash and short term deposits		568	87
Derivative financial instruments: forward currency contracts held
at fair value through profit or loss		-	5
		15,645	5,256
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year		(47,487)	(86,885)
Net current liabilities		(31,842)	(81,629)
Total assets less current liabilities		342,299	477,428
Net assets		342,299	477,428
Capital and reserves
Called up share capital		10,021	10,877
Share premium		1,312	1,312
Capital redemption reserve		5,615	4,759
Capital reserves		319,700	457,728
Revenue reserve		5,651	2,752
Total equity shareholders' funds		342,299	477,428
Net asset value per share (Note 4)		854.0p	1097.3p

Cash Flow Statement

for the year ended 31st March

		2012	2011
		£'000	£'000
Net cash inflow from operating activities		3,807	2,063
Returns on investments and servicing of finance
Interest paid		(1,411)	(1,049)
Net cash outflow from returns on investments and servicing of finance		(1,411)	(1,049)
Taxation
Overseas tax recovered		203	513
Capital expenditure and financial investment
Purchases of investments		(2,001,039)	(1,542,735)
Sales of investments		2,062,677	1,504,214
Other capital charges		(253)	(253)
Net cash inflow/(outflow) from capital expenditure and financial investment		61,385	(38,774)
Dividends paid		(4,156)	(1,367)
Net cash inflow/(outflow) before financing		59,828	(38,614)
Financing
Net (repayment)/drawdown of loans		(26,696)	56,100
Repurchase and cancellation of the Company's own shares		(31,162)	(12,242)
Purchase of shares into Treasury		-	(5,631)
Net cash (outflow)/inflow from financing		(57,858)	38,227
Increase/(decrease) in cash for the year		1,970	(387)

Notes to the Accounts

for the year ended 31st March 2012

1.             Accounting policies

(a)           Basis of accounting

                                The accounts are prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006, United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice ('UK GAAP') and with the Statement of Recommended Practice 'Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies and Venture Capital Trusts' (the 'SORP') issued by the AIC in January 2009. All of the Company's operations are of a continuing nature.

                The accounts have been prepared on a going concern basis under the historical cost convention, as modified by the revaluation of investments and derivative financial instruments at fair value through profit or loss.

                The policies applied in these accounts are consistent with those applied in the preceding year.

2.             Dividends

(a)           Dividends paid and declared

	2012	2011
	£'000	£'000
Dividend paid
2011 final dividend of 4.0p (2010: 3.0p) per share	1,724	1,367
Interim dividend of 6.0p (2011: nil) per share	2,432	-
Total dividends paid in the year	4,156	1,367
Dividend declared
Dividend declared of 11.0p (2011: 4.0p) per share	4,409	1,740

                The dividend declared in respect of the year ended 31st March 2012 is subject to shareholder approval at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting. In accordance with the accounting policy of the Company, this dividend will be reflected in the accounts for the year ending 31st March 2013.

                The dividend declared in respect of the year ended 31st March 2011 amounted to £1,740,000. However, the amount actually paid was £1,724,000 due to shares repurchased and cancelled after the balance sheet date but prior to the share register dividend record date.

3.             Return/(loss) per share

                The revenue return per share is based on the revenue attributable to the ordinary shares of £7,055,000 (2011: £2,369,000) and on the weighted average number of shares in issue during the year of 41,215,645 (2011: 44,464,022 excluding shares held in Treasury).

                The capital loss per share is based on the capital loss attributable to the ordinary shares of £106,505,000 (2011: £77,377,000 return) and on the weighted average number of shares in issue during the year of 41,215,645 (2011: 44,464,022 excluding shares held in Treasury).

                The total loss per share is based on the total loss attributable to the ordinary shares of £99,450,000 (2011: £79,746,000 return) and on the weighted average number of shares in issue during the year of 41,215,645 (2011: 44,464,022 excluding shares held in Treasury).

4.             Net asset value per share

                The net asset value per share is based on the net assets attributable to the ordinary shareholders of £342,299,000 (2011: £477,428,000) and on the 40,083,803 (2011: 43,508,739) shares in issue at the year end.

5.             Status of announcement

2011 Financial Information

The figures and financial information for 2011 are extracted from the published Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31st March 2011 and do not constitute the statutory accounts for that year.  The Annual Report and Accounts has been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and included the Report of the Independent Auditors which was unqualified and did not contain a statement under either section 498(2) or section 498(3) of the Companies Act 2006.

2012 Financial Information

The figures and financial information for 2012 are extracted from the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31st March 2012 and do not constitute the statutory accounts for the year. The Annual Report and Accounts includes the Report of the Independent Auditors which is unqualified and does not contain a statement under either section 498(2) or section 498(3) of the Companies Act 2006. The Annual Report and Accounts will be delivered to the Registrar of Companies in due course.

Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement

JPMORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT (UK) LIMITED

ENDS

A copy of the annual report will shortly be submitted to the National Storage Mechanism and will be available for inspection at www.morningstar.co.uk/uk/NSM

The annual report is also available on the Company's website at www.jpmeuropeansmallercompanies.co.uk where up to date information on the Company, including daily NAV and share prices, factsheets and portfolio information can also be found.

JPMORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT (UK) LIMITED

 

END

 

 

FR UUSURUNANAAR