Second Quarter 2022 Overview

After a very difficult first quarter of 2022 for the equity and credit markets (click here for first quarter commentary) as well as for many closed-end funds (CEFs), the second quarter of 2022 was also a challenging one. Concerns about the potential for a recession in 2022, elevated inflation data as well as rising short- and long-term interest rates contributed to a tough quarter for many asset classes in the second quarter. The total return for the average CEF was -11.2% for the quarter and -17.4% for the year, as of 6/30/22. Every single CEF category tracked by Morningstar posted negative total returns for the quarter and only the master limited partnership (MLP) category was positive year-to-date (YTD), as of 6/30/22, with a return of 11.9%. For the second quarter, equity CEFs returned -14.0%, fixed-income CEFs returned -9.4%, municipal CEFs returned -7.2%, and taxable fixed-income CEFs returned -11.1%. 

Source for CEF performance: Morningstar. All performance is based on share price total return.

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