Joshua Crabb is Lead Portfolio Manager and Head of Asia Pacific Equities. Before joining Robeco in 2018, Joshua was Head of Asian Equities at Old Mutual and Portfolio Manager at BlackRock and Prudential in Hong Kong. He started his career in the investment industry as Sector Analyst at BT Financial Group in 1996. Joshua holds a Bachelor's with Honors in Finance from the University of Western Australia and he is a CFA® charterholder. Harfun Ven is Portfolio Manager in the Asia Pacific team with a focus on cyclical sectors. Prior to joining Robeco in 2008, he was Portfolio Manager Japanese Equities at Alliance Trust. Harfun also managed Premier Alliance Trust Japan Equity, a top quartile ranked fund. Before that, he spent six years with Bowen Capital Management, managing both Japan-only and Asia-Pacific funds. He started his career in the investment industry in 1998. Having grown up in Japan, he fluently speaks Japanese, Cantonese and English. Harfun holds an MBA from Boston University and a Bachelor's from the University of Massachusetts.

The fund is established in Luxembourg and is subject to the Luxembourg tax laws and regulations. The fund is not liable to pay any corporation, income, dividend or capital gains tax in Luxembourg. The fund is subject to an annual subscription tax ('tax d'abonnement') in Luxembourg, which amounts to 0.05% of the net asset value of the fund. This tax is included in the net asset value of the fund. The fund can in principle use the Luxembourg treaty network to partially recover any withholding tax on its income.

The fiscal consequences of investing in this fund depend on the investor's personal situation. For private investors in the Netherlands real interest and dividend income or capital gains received on their investments are not relevant for tax purposes. Each year investors pay income tax on the value of their net assets as at 1 January if and inasmuch as such net assets exceed the investor’s tax-free allowance. Any amount invested in the fund forms part of the investor's net assets. Private investors who are resident outside the Netherlands will not be taxed in the Netherlands on their investments in the fund. However, such investors may be taxed in their country of residence on any income from an investment in this fund based on the applicable national fiscal laws. Other fiscal rules apply to legal entities or professional investors. We advise investors to consult their financial or tax adviser about the tax consequences of an investment in this fund in their specific circumstances before deciding to invest in the fund.

The fund incorporates sustainability in the investment process through exclusions, ESG integration, engagement and voting. The fund does not invest in issuers that are in breach of international norms or where activities have been deemed detrimental to society following Robeco's exclusion policy. Financially material ESG factors are integrated in the bottom-up investment analysis to assess existing and potential ESG risks and opportunities. In the stock selection the fund limits exposure to elevated sustainability risks. In addition, where a stock issuer is flagged for breaching international standards in the ongoing monitoring, the issuer will become subject to engagement. Lastly, the fund makes use of shareholder rights and applies proxy voting in accordance with Robeco's proxy voting policy.For more information please visit the sustainability-related disclosures.The index used for all sustainability visuals is based on MSCI AC Asia Pacific Index (Net Return, USD).

In February, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell by 0.3%, influenced by a strong rally in China, rising geopolitical risks, and significant outperformance of international markets compared to the US – the highest since December 2022. Offshore Chinese equities surged due to the DeepSeek-inspired AI rally, Alibaba's commitment to AI investments, leadership meetings with private sector entrepreneurs, and the upcoming NPC. IT and the discretionary sectors were the top performers in China, pushing the market up by 11.7%. Conversely, Taiwan's AI supply chain companies were hit harder than their US counterparts, leading to a 4.8% decline in the MSCI Taiwan Index. South Korea remained flat, with a notable divergence between the strong earnings in the defense sector and the struggles of HBM DRAM makers in IT, along with concerns over tariffs affecting the auto sector. India led the decliners, dropping 8.0% due to persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) and domestic selling, subdued earnings, uncertainties around tariffs under Trump 2.0, and domestic growth concerns. Japan declined by 1.2% due to worries about US tariffs, rising interest rate expectations, cost-push inflation, and yen appreciation.

Based on transaction prices, the fund's return was 3.46%. In February, our portfolio saw outperformance, largely driven by our substantial position in Alibaba. The market recognized Alibaba as the primary beneficiary of low-cost AI developments and availability in China, which led to a strong performance. China, along with India, Australia, and Taiwan, contributed positively due to our underweight positions in these markets. Additionally, the Philippines and Thailand provided a boost with their rebounds. On the downside, Indonesia was the largest detractor, as concerns arose over a shift from infrastructure spending to subsidized school funding under the new administration. South Korea also faced challenges due to ongoing political instability, while a stronger Hong Kong, where we are underweight, further hurt performance. Sector-wise, consumer discretionary, IT, energy, real estate, industrials, healthcare, materials and utilities contributed, while financials, communications services and consumer staples detracted.

Last month again highlighted the diverse alpha opportunities in Asia. In 2024, Japan's restructuring and reform efforts were significant alpha sources. In 2025, we've seen gains from affordable AI exposure in China through Alibaba, and by steering clear of overvalued markets such as India. While undervalued growth plays in ASEAN, particularly Indonesia, are yet to be fully realized, new opportunities are emerging from the sell-off in India and 'Value Up' stock ideas in South Korea. Geopolitical events will continue to dominate headlines and create noise, making it crucial to stay focused on fundamentals at the country, sector, and stock levels, and compare these to valuations to achieve alpha. Despite strong belief in US exceptionalism at the end of last year, Europe and Asia have proven to be the places to be in 2025. Our portfolio still shows good value, with metrics such as 12.8x earnings, 6.5x cash flow, 1.19x book value, 12.4% ROE, and a 3.0% dividend yield.