The Korea Fund, Inc.

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM N-Q

 

 

QUARTERLY SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS OF REGISTERED

MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANY

Investment Company Act file number: 811-04058

 

 

The Korea Fund, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)

 

 

 

1633 Broadway, New York, NY                         10019
(Address of principal executive offices)                                     (Zip code)

 

 

Lawrence G. Altadonna

1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019

(Name and address of agent for service)

 

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: 212-739-3371

Date of fiscal year end: June 30, 2014

Date of reporting period: March 31, 2014

 

 

 


Item 1. Schedule of Investments

The Korea Fund, Inc. Schedule of Investments

March 31, 2014 (unaudited)

 

Shares

        Value*  

COMMON STOCK—97.6%

  

Aerospace & Defense—1.1%

  

120,450

       Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd.    $ 3,848,757   
     

 

 

 

Auto Components—6.5%

  

209,540

       Hankook Tire Co., Ltd.      11,923,334   

39,422

       Hyundai Mobis      11,696,454   
     

 

 

 
        23,619,788   
     

 

 

 

Automobiles—13.1%

  

149,028

       Hyundai Motor Co.      35,237,852   

222,271

       Kia Motors Corp.      12,420,948   
     

 

 

 
        47,658,800   
     

 

 

 

Banks—8.2%

  

215,600

       Hana Financial Group, Inc.      7,903,414   

277,770

       KB Financial Group, Inc.      9,746,131   

272,352

       Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd.      12,050,549   
     

 

 

 
        29,700,094   
     

 

 

 

Chemicals—4.2%

  

92,120

       OCI Co., Ltd. (c)(d)      15,411,052   
     

 

 

 

Construction & Engineering—2.7%

  

347,650

       Hyundai Development Co.      9,832,458   
     

 

 

 

Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure—7.8%

  

170,290

       Grand Korea Leisure Co., Ltd. (c)      7,019,666   

137,690

       Hotel Shilla Co., Ltd.      11,151,465   

332,889

       Paradise Co., Ltd.      10,176,216   
     

 

 

 
        28,347,347   
     

 

 

 

Household Durables—2.2%

  

114,431

       Coway Co., Ltd.      8,019,971   
     

 

 

 

Insurance—2.3%

  

21,155

       Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co., Ltd.      4,765,162   

38,250

       Samsung Life Insurance Co., Ltd.      3,615,291   
     

 

 

 
        8,380,453   
     

 

 

 

Internet & Catalog Retail—5.8%

  

27,160

       CJ O Shopping Co., Ltd.      9,313,320   

26,736

       Hyundai Home Shopping Network Corp.      3,930,511   

670,064

       Interpark Corp. (c)      7,697,572   
     

 

 

 
        20,941,403   
     

 

 

 

Internet Software & Services—4.6%

  

22,586

       NAVER Corp.      16,502,928   
     

 

 

 

IT Services—2.6%

  

145,741

       KCP Co., Ltd. (c)      1,882,857   

54,752

       SK C&C Co., Ltd.      7,708,625   
     

 

 

 
        9,591,482   
     

 

 

 

Machinery—2.7%

  

329,800

       Samsung Heavy Industries Co., Ltd.      9,914,430   
     

 

 

 

Media—2.0%

  

322,390

       Cheil Worldwide, Inc. (d)      7,272,822   
     

 

 

 

Metals & Mining—3.5%

  

40,590

       Korea Zinc Co., Ltd.      12,690,879   
     

 

 

 

Multi-line Retail—1.0%

  

26,169

       Hyundai Department Store Co., Ltd.      3,496,494   
     

 

 

 

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment—23.8%

  

53,681

       Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.      67,862,043   

544,191

       SK Hynix, Inc. (d)      18,464,877   
     

 

 

 
        86,326,920   
     

 

 

 


Shares

        Value*  

Trading Companies & Distributors—2.2%

  

221,600

       Daewoo International Corp.      8,080,806   
     

 

 

 

Wireless Telecommunication Services—1.3%

  

22,340

       SK Telecom Co., Ltd.      4,533,645   
     

 

 

 
       Total Common Stock (cost—$231,795,574)      354,170,529   
     

 

 

 

SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS—4.9%

  

Collateral Invested for Securities on Loan (b)—4.9%

  

17,657,389

       BNY Mellon Overnight Government Fund (cost—$17,657,389)      17,657,389   
     

 

 

 
  

    Total Investments (cost—$249,452,963) (a)(e)—102.5%

     371,827,918   
     

 

 

 
       Liabilities in excess of other assets—(2.5)%      (9,011,367
     

 

 

 
       Net Assets—100.0%    $ 362,816,551   
     

 

 

 

 


 

Notes to Schedule of Investments:

 

* Portfolio securities and other financial instruments for which market quotations are readily available are stated at market value. Market value is generally determined on the basis of last reported sales prices, or if no sales are reported, on the basis of quotes obtained from a quotation reporting system, established market makers, or independent pricing services.

Portfolio securities and other financial instruments for which market quotations are not readily available, or for which a development/event occurs that may significantly impact the value of a security, are fair-valued, in good faith, pursuant to procedures established by the Board of Directors (the “Board”), or persons acting at their discretion pursuant to procedures established by the Board. The Fund’s investments are valued daily and the net asset value (“NAV”) is calculated as of the close of regular trading (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) on each day NYSE is open for business using prices supplied by the dealer quotations, or by using the last sale price on the exchange that is the primary market for such securities, or the last quoted mean price for those securities for which the over-the-counter market is the primary market or for listed securities in which there were no sales. For foreign equity securities (with certain exceptions, if any), the Fund fair values its securities daily using modeling tools provided by statistical research service. This service utilizes statistics and programs based on historical performance of markets and other economic data (which may include changes in the value of U.S. securities or security indices).

Short-term securities maturing in 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost, if their original term to maturity was 60 days or less, or by amortizing their value on the 61st day prior to maturity, if the original term to maturity exceeded 60 days. Investments initially valued in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted to the U.S. dollar using exchange rates obtained from pricing services. As a result, the NAV of the Fund’s shares may be affected by changes in the value of currencies in relation to the U.S. dollar. The value of securities traded in markets outside the United States or denominated in currencies other than U.S. dollar may be affected significantly on a day that the NYSE is closed. The prices used by the Fund to value securities may differ from the value that would be realized if the securities were sold and these differences could be material.

 

(a) Securities with an aggregate value of $354,170,529, representing 97.6% of net assets, were valued utilizing modeling tools provided by a third-party vendor.

 

(b) Purchased with cash collateral received from securities on loan.

 

(c) A portion of securities on loan with an aggregate value of $16,808,005; cash collateral of $17,657,389 was received with which the Fund invested in the BNY Mellon Overnight Government Fund.

 

(d) Non-income producing.

 

(e) At March 31, 2014, the cost basis of portfolio securities for federal income tax purposes was $249,456,754. Gross unrealized appreciation was $125,800,831; gross unrealized depreciation was $3,429,667; and net unrealized appreciation was $122,371,164. The difference between book and tax cost was attributable to wash sale loss deferrals.


Fair Value Measurements

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (i.e. the “exit price”) in an orderly transaction between market participants. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

 

   

Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical investments that the Fund has the ability to access

 

   

Level 2 – valuations based on other significant observable inputs, which may include, but are not limited to, quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities, interest rates, yield curves, volatilities, prepayment speeds, loss severities, credit risks and default rates or other market corroborated inputs

 

   

Level 3 – valuations based on significant unobservable inputs (including the investment manager’s (Allianz Global Investors U.S. LLC) and Valuation Committee’s own assumptions and securities whose price was determined by using a single broker’s quote)

The valuation techniques used by the Fund to measure fair value during the nine months ended March 31, 2014 were intended to maximize the use of observable inputs and to minimize the use of unobservable inputs.

The Fund’s policy is to recognize transfers between levels at the end of the reporting period. An investment asset’s or liability’s level within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level input, individually or in aggregate, that is significant to the fair value measurement. The objective of fair value measurement remains the same even when there is a significant decrease in the volume and level of activity for an asset or liability and regardless of the valuation techniques used. Investments categorized as Level 1 or 2 as of period end may have been transferred between Levels 1 and 2 since the prior period due to changes in the valuation method utilized in valuing the investments.

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not necessarily an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. The following are certain inputs and techniques that the Fund generally uses to evaluate how to classify each major category of assets and liabilities for Level 2 and Level 3, in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.

Equity Securities (Common and Preferred Stock)—Equity securities traded in inactive markets and certain foreign equity securities are valued using inputs which include broker-dealer quotes, recently executed transactions adjusted for changes in the benchmark index, or evaluated price quotes received from independent pricing services that take into account the integrity of the market sector and issuer, the individual characteristics of the security, and information received from broker-dealers and other market sources pertaining to the issuer or security. To the extent that these inputs are observable, the values of equity securities are categorized as Level 2. To the extent that these inputs are unobservable, the values are categorized as Level 3.

A summary of the inputs used at March 31, 2014 in valuing the Fund’s assets and liabilities is listed below (refer to the Schedule of Investments for more detailed information on Investments in Securities):

 

     Level 1 -
Quoted Prices
     Level 2 -
Other Significant
Observable
Inputs
     Level 3 -
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
     Value at
3/31/14
 

Investments in Securities—Assets

  

Common Stock

   $ —         $ 354,170,529       $ —         $ 354,170,529   

Short-Term Investments

     —           17,657,389         —           17,657,389   
  

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

 

Totals

   $ —         $ 371,827,918       $ —         $ 371,827,918   
  

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

 

At March 31, 2014, there were no transfers between Levels 1 and 2.


Item 2. Controls and Procedures

(a) The registrant’s President & Chief Executive Officer and Treasurer, Principal Financial & Accounting Officer have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Act (17 CFR 270.30a-3(c))), are effective based on their evaluation of these controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days of the filing date of this document.

(b) There were no significant changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Act (17 CFR 270.30a-3(d))) that occurred during the registrant’s last fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Item 3. Exhibits

(a) Exhibit 99.302 Cert.—Certification pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

Registrant: The Korea Fund, Inc.
By:   /s/ Joseph Quirk
  Joseph Quirk
  President & Chief Executive Officer

Date: May 21, 2014

 

By:  

/s/ Lawrence G. Altadonna

  Lawrence G. Altadonna
  Treasurer, Principal Financial & Accounting Officer

Date: May 21, 2014

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

By:   /s/ Joseph Quirk
  Joseph Quirk
  President & Chief Executive Officer

Date: May 21, 2014

 

By:   /s/ Lawrence G. Altadonna
  Lawrence G. Altadonna
  Treasurer, Principal Financial & Accounting Officer

Date: May 21, 2014