Investment trusts can be fantastic building blocks for a Stocks and Shares ISA. Through these, it’s possible to get broad global exposure, often at low cost.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at two dividend-paying investment trusts targeting different geographic regions. Each I believe is worth exploring further as candidates for inclusion inside an ISA.
Asia
Let’s start with Asia, the world’s fastest growing area. Despite being projected to contribute around 43% of the world’s GDP growth, China and India together account for just 6% of the MSCI All Country World Index.
By contrast, the US makes up around 65%. Yet this gap’s set to narrow over the next decade as investors seek out cheaper valuations and portfolio diversification amid unpredictable US policy.
One trust I like the look of is Schroder Oriental Income Fund (LSE:SOI). Despite rising 33% over the past year, the FTSE 250 trust still sports a decent 3.4% dividend yield.
It has a solid track record of dividend growth and is on track to become one of the Association of Investment Companies’ Dividend Heroes. Those are trusts that have hiked their annual dividend for at least 20 straight years. Schroder Oriental Income Fund has now done 19.
One risk here is high concentration, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) making up 13% of assets. If the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution runs out of stream, then this large holding in the world’s largest chip manufacturer could hold back performance.
Seen from a different angle however, it allows investors to benefit from the AI infrastructure boom while still collecting a dividend. TSMC’s foundries are absolutely humming.
Elsewhere, the portfolio offers exposure to Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Australia. Plus, the shares are trading at a 5.2% discount to net asset value (NAV).
Latin America
Next, we have BlackRock Latin American Investment Trust (LSE:BRLA). This holds a number of stocks from Latin America, which is home to around 650m people.
Again, despite rising 41% in the past year, the dividend yield here is still decent at 4.6%. Top holdings include mining giants Vale and Southern Copper, as well as Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste and Wal-Mart de Mexico.
There’s also a bit of high-growth zip in there with Nu Holdings (Nubank), the world’s largest digital bank outside China.
Concentration risk is also an issue here, with Brazil accounting for around 62% of the portfolio. While it’s the largest economy in Latin America, inflation there is also still quite high.
Then again, Brazil’s experiencing the strongest tourism surge in its history, and has a rising tech sector. So the economy’s on an upwards trajectory.
The explosion of digital payments in Brazil has created an innovative financial ecosystem that works for ordinary people. This progress is the result of a combination of an overhaul in the payments regulatory framework, intensive use of technology, entrepreneurship and a focus on creating products that address the needs of Brazilian customers.
World Economic Forum.
Meanwhile, Mexico’s set to benefit as US companies bring manufacturing closer to home and away from China (so-called friendshoring). Mexico has the second-largest country allocation, at around 23%.
Finally, the shares are trading at a 6.5% discount to NAV, offering what I deem to be an attractive entry point to consider for international income investors.
