*Effective immediately after market closing on July 29, 2016, the Matthews Japan Fund will be closed to most new investors. The Fund will continue to accept investments from existing shareholders. However, once a shareholder closes an account, additional investments in the Fund will not be accepted from that shareholder. Please see Who Can Invest in the Closed Fund? in the statutory prospectus for more details.
Matthews Japan Fund*
SUMMARY PROSPECTUSINVESTOR CLASS |
April 29, 2016 | |||
as amended July 11, 2016 | ||||
TICKER: MJFOX
Before you invest, you may want to review the Funds Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Funds Prospectus and other information about the Fund online at matthewsasia.com/prospectus. You may also obtain this information at no additional cost by calling 800.789.ASIA (2742) or by sending an e-mail request to prospectus@matthewsasia.com. The Funds Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, both dated April 29, 2016, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.
Investment Objective
Long-term capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of this Fund.
SHAREHOLDER FEES
(fees paid directly from your investment)
Maximum Account Fee on Redemptions (for wire redemptions only) | $9 |
ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSES
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fees | 0.66% | |||||||
Distribution (12b-1) Fees1 | 0.00% | |||||||
Other Expenses | 0.33% | |||||||
Administration and Shareholder Servicing Fees |
0.14% | |||||||
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
0.99% |
1 | The Trusts 12b-1 Plan (the Plan) is inactive. Although the Plan currently is not active, it is reviewed by the Board annually in case the Board decides to re-activate the Plan. The Plan would not be re-activated without prior notice to shareholders. If the Plan were reactivated, the fee would be up to 0.25% for each of the Investor Class and Institutional Class, respectively. |
EXAMPLE OF FUND EXPENSES
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Funds operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
One year: $101 | Three years: $315 | Five years: $547 | Ten years: $1,213 |
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or turns over its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example of fund expenses, affect the Funds performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Funds portfolio turnover rate was 24% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategy
Under normal market conditions, the Matthews Japan Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its net assets, which include borrowings for investment purposes, in the common and preferred stocks of companies located in Japan. A company or other issuer is considered to be located in a country or a region,
PS-MJFOX-0716
2 MATTHEWS JAPAN FUND
Past Performance
The bar chart below shows the Funds performance for the past 10 years and how it has varied from year to year, reflective of the Funds volatility and some indication of risk. Also shown are the best and worst quarters for this time period. The table below shows the Funds performance over certain periods of time, along with performance of its benchmark index. The information presented below is past performance, before and after taxes, and is not a prediction of future results. Both the bar chart and performance table assume reinvestment of all dividends and distributions. For the Funds most recent month-end performance, please visit matthewsasia.com or call 800.789.ASIA (2742).
ANNUAL RETURNS FOR YEARS ENDED 12/31
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2015
1 year | 5 years | 10 years | Since Inception (12/31/98) |
|||||||||||||
Matthews Japan Fund |
||||||||||||||||
Return before taxes |
20.83% | 9.53% | 2.16% | 5.88% | ||||||||||||
Return after taxes on distributions1 |
20.83% | 9.35% | 1.82% | 5.33% | ||||||||||||
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares1 |
11.79% | 7.53% | 1.66% | 4.66% | ||||||||||||
MSCI Japan Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
9.90% | 4.61% | 1.08% | 2.93% |
1 | After-tax returns are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investors tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. |
Investment Advisor
Matthews International Capital Management, LLC (Matthews)
Portfolio Managers
Lead Manager: Kenichi Amaki has been a Portfolio Manager of the Japan Fund since 2010.
Co-Manager: Taizo Ishida has been a Portfolio Manager of the Japan Fund since 2006.
3
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
You may purchase and sell Fund shares directly through the Funds transfer agent by calling 800.789.ASIA (2742) or online at matthewsasia.com. Fund shares may also be purchased and sold through various securities brokers and benefit plan administrators or their sub-agents. You may purchase and redeem Fund shares by electronic bank transfer, check, or wire. The minimum initial and subsequent investment amounts for various types of accounts offered by the Funds are shown below.
Type of Account | Minimum Initial Investment | Subsequent Investments | ||
Non-retirement | $2,500 | $100 | ||
Retirement and Coverdell | $500 | $50 |
The minimum investment requirements do not apply to Trustees, officers and employees of the Funds and Matthews, and their immediate family members.
Tax Information
The Funds distributions are taxable, and will be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account. Tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal from those accounts.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase Fund shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), Matthews may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. Shareholders who purchase or hold Fund shares through an intermediary may inquire about such payments from that intermediary. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediarys website for more information.
4 MATTHEWS JAPAN FUND