We believe the Matthews Asia China Small Companies has many elements that make it a promising long-term option for investors. The investment approach is sensible in what is a challenging space, rife with plenty of opportunities and threats. The manager aims to address the risks of investing in China's smaller companies using Matthews' in-depth research capability and strong due diligence processes.

This fund, and indeed the overall strategy, is currently fairly small but we would expect it to grow over time as investor interest increases in what is arguably a very exciting growth segment of the market. There are a couple of milestones we would like to see the fund achieve in coming periods in order for our conviction to increase in its long-term viability, however we do believe it has plenty of attractive features in its current state. For this reason, we have decided to award the fund with a Positive Prospect rating.