BALTIMORE, April 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- T. Rowe Price Associates
today announced that it has added two research analysts to further strengthen
its coverage of emerging market bonds.
Michael Oh joins the firm from the U.S. Department of Treasury where he
had worked as an International Economist in the Office of International Debt
Policy. At the Department of Treasury, he worked on a number of issues,
including Iraqi debt reduction, Paris Club negotiations and debt relief
initiatives for poor countries.
T. Rowe Price also promoted Julie Salsbery to an analyst role. Ms.
Salsbery has been with the firm for about eight years. Prior to her current
role, she had worked for five years as an associate economist and before that
as a trader in the municipal bond department. Before joining the firm in
1997, Ms. Salsbery was a municipal bond underwriter for a New England firm and
also spent two years in the capital markets group at Ernst & Young.
"We see emerging markets as a long term opportunity for any fixed income
investor, so we are beefing up our commitment to this area," said Mike
Conelius, manager of the T. Rowe Price Emerging Markets Bond portfolios. Mr.
Conelius said that the strategy, unlike most other similar strategies, invests
a significant portion of its money in smaller, emerging economies, enhancing
diversification benefits to investors. It also invests in mostly dollar
denominated sovereign debt. The T. Rowe Price Emerging Markets Bond Fund is
one of the largest open-ended, emerging market bond funds for retail
investors.
The firm's emerging market debt assets under management have grown from
about $250 million in 2003 to about $700 million currently. The emerging
markets team is part of the firm's larger international bond management group,
which is overseen by Ian Kelson. The group overall manages about $3.4 billion
in international fixed income assets.
Mr. Conelius, who joined T. Rowe Price 17 years ago as an analyst, has
been managing the fund since its inception in 1994.
"In fixed income, emerging market has been the best performing asset class
for the past five and 10 years, so that could be a cause of concern for
investors," Mr. Conelius said. "But we are very optimistic on this asset
class. The fundamentals are in a much better shape than they were a decade
ago. So the fundamentals are better able to withstand volatility and still
offer good returns to investors."
Investors should note that if interest rates rise significantly from
current levels, the share price of the Emerging Markets Bond Fund will
decline. This fund involves a high-risk approach to income from foreign bonds
and its share price could fluctuate significantly. This fund is subject to
the risks unique to international investing, including currency risk.
Founded in 1937, Baltimore-based T. Rowe Price (Nasdaq: TROW) is a global
investment management firm with $235.2 billion in assets under management as
of December 31, 2004. The firm provides a broad array of mutual funds, sub-
advisory services, and separate account management for individual and
institutional investors, retirement plans, and financial intermediaries. The
company also offers a variety of sophisticated investment planning and
guidance tools. T. Rowe Price's disciplined, risk-aware investment approach
focuses on diversification, style consistency, and fundamental research. More
information is available at http://www.troweprice.com.
For more information about any T. Rowe Price mutual fund, call
1-800-638-5660 to request a prospectus, which includes investment objectives,
risks, fees, expenses, and other information that you should read and consider
carefully before investing.
T. Rowe Price Investment Services, Inc., distributor.
SOURCE T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.
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CONTACT:
Rajiv Vyas, +1-410-345-6559, Brian Lewbart,
+1-410-345-2242, or Steven Norwitz, +1-410-345-2124, all of T.
Rowe Price
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