More Bargains in Closed-End Equity Funds

Equity funds weren't the only sector tracked by Lipper in which discounts are widening. Discounts on high current yield funds widened by 93 basis points, and discounts on world income funds widened by 42 basis points.

Those funds "were best performers as a group," Roseen says. "That's part of the reason they're widening. People are just a little bit hesitant of being overseas." But while the international focus is slightly less popular for investors, "I don't see any larger trend there at all."

The median discount on all closed-end funds narrowed by 3.39 percentage points in the 12-month period ending May 31, 2007.