Discount arbitrage on Japanese trusts

By James Thorneley INVESCO Tokyo's discount is almost twice that of GT Japan even though both are run in similar style by the same manager. Merrill Lynch is recommending a switching opportunity for shareholders in GT Japan to sell and buy shares in INVESCO Tokyo. As at close of business last Tuesday GT Japan was trading at a discount to NAV of 12.5% while INVESCO Japan's discount was 22.5%. The two portfolios are run using a bottom-up approach with a bias towards 'new Japan' tech, media and telecom stocks. The holdings are virtually identical with the major difference being GT Japan's ...