Muni Funds Dominate August Upgrades List

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Municipal closed-end funds received the largest number of upgrades from TheStreet.com Ratings during the month of August, while the once-stellar sector of international funds received the largest number of downgrades in the same time frame.

Seven of the top 10 upgrades were assigned to municipals funds, either national or single state. Municipals' tax-free status and relative safety in relation to the market's recent chaos are obvious lures for investors seeking a safe haven in this volatile time.

In line with the bull run in the Treasury market, which was sparked by a flight to safety, municipals look set to continue to attract investment dollars even if prices are driven up to levels at which yields on these securities compress markedly.

TheStreet.com Ratings Top Mutual Fund Upgrades in August
Name	Ticker	New Grade	Old Grade	Category	One-Month Return
Seligman Select Municipal Fund	SEL	A+	B-	Municipal - National	-1.09
Engex	EGX	C	E+	Sector - Health/Biotechnology	0.67
Eaton Vance Sh Dur Diversified Inc	EVG	A	B-	Global Income	0.52
Van Kampen Trust for Inv NJ Muni	VTJ	A-	C+	Municipal Single State	2.38
Morgan Stanley Ins CA Muni Sec	ICS	A+	B	Municipal Single State	3.40
Claymore/Guggenheim Strat Opp Fund	GOF	C	D-	Growth & Income	5.37
BlackRock CA Municipal Income Trust	BFZ	A	B	Municipal Single State	0.49
Morgan Stanley Insured Muni Inc Trust	IIM	A	B	Municipal - National	0.68
Neuberger Berman Intermediate Muni	NBH	A	B	Municipal - National	1.05
Neuberger Berman NY Int Muni	NBO	A	B	Municipal Single State	1.80
Source: TheStreet.com Ratings

On the other side of the spectrum are the international closed-end funds, which dominate the downgrades list. Seven out of the ten 10 downgrades for August were dished out to funds exposed to Israel, Europe, Australia, Korea, Eastern Europe and Asia Pacific.

TheStreet.com Ratings Top Mutual Fund Downgrades in August
Name	Ticker	New Grade	Old Grade	Category	One-Month Return
Eaton Vance Tax Advantage Div Inc	EVT	C	B+	Equity Income	-3.10
First Israel Fund	ISL	C	B+	Non-US Equity	-4.53
The European Equity Fund	EEA	C-	B	Non-US Equity	-3.46
Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Fund	FAX	C+	A-	Global Income	-3.22
Aberdeen Australia Equity Fund	IAF	C+	A-	Non-US Equity	-6.61
Korea Equity Fund	KEF	D	C+	Non-US Equity	-10.15
Templeton Russia&East European Fund	TRF	D	C+	Non-US Equity	-12.65
Clough Global Allocation Fund	GLV	D-	C	Growth & Income	-5.71
Eaton Vance Tax Adv Glob Div Inc	ETG	C-	B+	Global Equity	-4.87
Cornerstone Total Return Fund	CRF	E+	C	Equity Income	-4.47
Source: TheStreet.com Ratings

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