​Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) today announced the launch of the Morgan Stanley Investment Funds (MS INVF) Global Premier Credit Fund.  The fund seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns by investing in “Premier Credit,” the corporate debt issued by businesses characterized by dominant franchises or leading industry positions, low capital intensity and strong balance sheets.  It is designed to help manage risk for investors against excessive business cycle shifts.

Commenting on the launch, Christian Roth, Global Head of Credit for MSIM, said, “The lack of clarity on the outlook for the global economy continues to generate volatility in the financial markets.  With global sovereign debt now under intense scrutiny from investors, we believe there is scope for a product with the potential to provide investors with modest relative returns over the business cycle while protecting them from market pressures and extreme downside moves.”

To build the portfolio and identify Premier Credit, the portfolio managers leverage fundamental research from MSIM’s Global Fixed Income team.  Additionally, the new fund employs proprietary quantitative tools to screen the credit universe and continually monitor high quality issuers, resulting in a strong platform from which to assess credit quality.

Richard Ford, European Head of Credit for MSIM, continued, “The Global Premier Credit Fund aims to be an effective strategy to help investors wanting to diversify from government debt, by seeking higher yields through capturing the credit premium of the highest quality credits with limited volatility and default risk.  For investors looking for a customised approach to corporate credit, this fund can be the principal allocation of a global credit portfolio, with a more opportunistic credit allocation to take advantage of market dislocations.”

Paul Price, Head of International Distribution for MSIM, added, “The Global Premier Credit Fund complements MSIM’s Global Fixed Income product range and demonstrates a breadth of talent from a fixed income team that can respond to financial market conditions with products of significant interest to institutional and intermediary investors.”

Arthur Lev, Head of the Long-Only Business for MSIM, concluded, “MSIM's Long-Only franchise consistently looks to leverage the tremendous depth of our investment teams to introduce new products serving our clients’ needs and demands.  The Global Premier Credit Fund displays the capabilities of our experienced investment professionals and builds on the strong momentum in our Global Fixed Income business.”

About Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a leading global financial services firm providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, investment management and wealth management services.  The Firm's employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals from more than 1,200 offices in 43 countries.  For further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.

About MSIM
Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM), together with its investment advisory affiliates, has over 560 investment professionals around the world and $331 billion in assets under management or supervision as of September 30, 2012.  MSIM strives to provide outstanding long-term investment performance, service and a comprehensive suite of investment management solutions to a diverse client base, which includes governments, institutions, corporations and individuals worldwide.

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