Exhibit 99.2G(1)
MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT
AGREEMENT made this 1st day of September, 2006, by and between KOREA
EQUITY FUND, INC., a Maryland corporation (hereinafter referred to as the
"Fund"), and NOMURA ASSET MANAGEMENT U.S.A. INC., a New York corporation
(hereinafter referred to as the "Manager").
W I T N E S S E T H:
WHEREAS, the Fund is engaged in business as a non-diversified,
closed-end, management investment company registered under the Investment
Company Act of 1940, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the "Investment
Company Act"); and
WHEREAS, the Manager is willing to provide management and investment
advisory services to the Fund on the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth;
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements
of the parties hereto as herein set forth, the parties covenant and agree as
follows:
ARTICLE I
Duties of the Manager
The Fund hereby retains the Manager to act as the manager of the Fund
and to furnish the Fund with the management and investment advisory services
described below, subject to the policies of, review by and overall control of
the Board of Directors of the Fund, for the period and on the terms and
conditions set forth in this Agreement. The Manager hereby accepts such
employment and agrees during such period, at its own expense, to render, or
arrange for the rendering of, such services and to assume the obligations herein
set forth for the compensation provided for herein.
(a) Management and Administrative Services. The Manager shall perform,
or supervise the performance of, the management and administrative services
necessary for the operation of the Fund including administering shareholder
accounts and handling shareholder relations. The Manager shall provide the Fund
with office space, equipment and facilities and such other services as the
Manager, subject to review by the Board of Directors of the Fund, shall from
time to time determine to be necessary or useful to perform its obligations
under this Agreement. The Manager shall also, on behalf of the Fund, conduct
relations with custodians, depositories, transfer agents, dividend disbursing
agents, other shareholder servicing agents, accountants, attorneys,
underwriters, brokers and dealers, corporate fiduciaries, insurers, banks and
such other persons in any such other capacity deemed to be necessary or
desirable. The Manager shall generally monitor the Fund's compliance with
investment policies and restrictions as set forth in filings made by the Fund
under Federal securities laws. The Manager shall make reports to the Board of
Directors of the Fund of the performance of its obligations hereunder and
furnish advice and recommendations with respect to such other aspects of the
business and affairs of the Fund as it shall determine to be desirable. The
Manager and each of its affiliates shall for all purposes herein be deemed to be
an independent contractor and shall, unless otherwise expressly
provided or authorized, have no authority to act for or represent the Fund in
any way or otherwise be deemed an agent of the Fund.
(b) Investment Advisory Services. The Manager shall provide the Fund
with such investment research, advice and supervision as the latter may from
time to time consider necessary for the proper supervision of the assets of the
Fund. The Manager shall act as investment adviser to the Fund and as such shall
furnish continuously an investment program for the Fund and shall determine from
time to time which securities shall be purchased, sold or exchanged and what
portion of the assets of the Fund shall be held in the various securities in
which the Fund invests, options, futures, options on futures or in cash, subject
always to the restrictions of the Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws of the
Fund, as amended from time to time, the provisions of the Investment Company Act
and the statements relating to the Fund's investment objective, investment
policies and investment restrictions as the same are set forth in filings made
by the Fund under Federal securities laws. The Manager shall make decisions for
the Fund as to foreign currency matters and make determinations as to foreign
exchange contracts. The Manager shall make recommendations as to the manner in
which voting rights, rights to consent to corporate action and any other rights
pertaining to the Fund's portfolio securities shall be exercised. Should the
Board of Directors of the Fund at any time, however, make any definite
determination as to investment policy and notify the Manager thereof in writing,
the Manager shall be bound by such determination for the period, if any,
specified in such notice or until similarly notified that such determination has
been revoked. The Manager shall take, on behalf of the Fund, all actions which
it deems necessary to implement the investment policies determined as provided
above, and in particular to place all orders for the purchase or sale of
portfolio securities for the Fund's account with brokers or dealers selected by
it, and to that end, the Manager is authorized as the agent of the Fund to give
instructions to the Custodian of the Fund as to deliveries of securities and
payments of cash for the account of the Fund. In connection with the selection
of such brokers and dealers and the placing of such orders, the Manager is
directed at all times to seek to obtain execution and price within the policy
guidelines determined by the Board of Directors of the Fund and set forth in the
filings made by the Fund under Federal securities laws. Subject to this
requirement and the provisions of the Investment Company Act, the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and other applicable provisions of law, the
Manager may select brokers or dealers with which it, or the Fund, is affiliated.
ARTICLE II
Allocation of Charges and Expenses
(a) The Manager. The Manager assumes and shall pay for maintaining the
staff and personnel necessary to perform its obligations under this Agreement
and shall, at its own expense, provide the office space, equipment and
facilities which it is obligated to provide under Article I hereof, and shall
pay all compensation of officers of the Fund and all directors of the Fund who
are "affiliated persons" (as defined in the Investment Company Act) of the
Manager.
(b) The Fund. The Fund assumes and shall pay or cause to be paid all
other expenses of the Fund, including, without limitation: organization costs,
taxes, expenses for legal and auditing services, costs of printing proxies,
stock certificates, shareholder reports, prospectuses,
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charges of the Custodian, any Sub-Custodian and Transfer and Dividend Disbursing
Agent, expenses of portfolio transactions, Securities and Exchange Commission
and stock exchange fees, expenses of registering the Fund's shares under
Federal, state and foreign laws, expenses of administering any dividend
reinvestment plan (except to the extent set forth in such plan), fees and actual
out-of-pocket expenses of directors who are not affiliated persons of the
Manager, accounting and pricing costs (including the daily calculation of the
net asset value), insurance, interest, brokerage costs, litigation and other
extraordinary or non-recurring expenses, and other like expenses properly
payable by the Fund.
ARTICLE III
Compensation of the Manager
For the services rendered, the equipment and facilities furnished and
expenses assumed by the Manager, the Fund shall pay to the Manager at the end of
each calendar month a fee based upon the average daily value of the net assets
of the Fund, at the annual rate of 0.85% of the Fund's average weekly net assets
(i.e., the average weekly value of the total assets of the Fund, minus the sum
of liabilities of the Fund), commencing on the day following effectiveness
hereof. For purposes of this calculation, average weekly net assets is
determined at the end of each month on the basis of the average net assets of
the Fund for each week during the month. The assets for each weekly period are
determined by averaging the net assets at the last business day of the prior
week. If this Agreement becomes effective subsequent to the first day of a month
or shall terminate before the last day of a month, compensation for that part of
the month this Agreement is in effect shall be prorated in a manner consistent
with the calculation of the fee as set forth above. During any period when the
determination of net asset value is suspended by the Board of Directors of the
Fund, the average net asset value of a share for the last week prior to such
suspension shall for this purpose be deemed to be the net asset value at the
close of each succeeding week until it is again determined.
ARTICLE IV
Retention of Investment Advisers
This Agreement is entered into with the understanding that the Manager
will enter into a separate Investment Advisory Agreement with Nomura Asset
Management Co., Ltd. in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A, in which the
Manager will contract for advisory services and pay the Investment Adviser
compensation for its services out of the compensation received hereunder
pursuant to Article III at the rates set forth therein. Such Investment Advisory
Agreement will be coterminous with this Management Agreement. The Fund
acknowledges that the Manager, with the prior authorization of the Fund's Board
of Directors, may delegate its investment discretion set forth in Article I(b)
hereof to the Investment Adviser.
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ARTICLE V
Limitation of Liability of the Manager
The Manager shall not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of
law or for any loss arising out of any investment or for any act or omission in
the execution and management of the Fund, except for willful misfeasance, bad
faith or gross negligence in the performance of its duties, or by reason of
reckless disregard of its obligations and duties hereunder. As used in this
Article V, the term "Manager" shall include any affiliates of the Manager
performing services for the Fund contemplated hereby and directors, officers and
employees of the Manager as well as that corporation itself.
ARTICLE VI
Activities of the Manager
The services of the Manager to the Fund are not to be deemed to be
exclusive, the Manager and any person controlled by or under common control with
the Manager (for purposes of this Article VI referred to as "affiliates") being
free to render services to others. It is understood that directors, officers,
employees and shareholders of the Fund are or may become interested in the
Manager and its affiliates, as directors, officers, employees, partners, and
shareholders or otherwise and that directors, officers, employees, partners, and
shareholders of the Manager and its affiliates are or may become similarly
interested in the Fund, and that the Manager is or may become interested in the
Fund as shareholder or otherwise.
ARTICLE VII
Duration and Termination of this Agreement
This Agreement shall become effective as of the date first above
written and shall remain in force until August 31, 2007 and thereafter, but only
so long as such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by (i)
the Board of Directors of the Fund, or by the vote of a majority of the
outstanding voting securities of the Fund, and (ii) a majority of those
directors who are not parties to this Agreement or interested persons of any
such party cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such
approval.
This Agreement may be terminated at any time, without the payment of
any penalty, by the Board of Directors of the Fund or by vote of a majority of
the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, or by the Manager, on sixty days'
written notice to the other party. This Agreement shall automatically terminate
in the event of its assignment.
ARTICLE VIII
Amendments of the Agreement
This Agreement may be amended by the parties only if such amendment is
specifically approved in accordance with applicable requirements under the
Investment Company Act.
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ARTICLE IX
Definitions of Certain Terms
The terms "vote of a majority of outstanding voting securities,"
"assignment," "affiliated person" and "interested person," when used in this
Agreement, shall have the respective meanings specified in the Investment
Company Act and the rules and regulations thereunder, subject, however, to such
exemptions as may be granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission under
said Act.
ARTICLE X
Governing Law
This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the
State of New York and the applicable provisions of the Investment Company Act.
To the extent that the applicable laws of the State of New York, or any of the
provisions herein, conflict with the applicable provisions of the Investment
Company Act, the latter shall control.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed and delivered this
Agreement as of the date first above written.
KOREA EQUITY FUND, INC.
By_________________________
NOMURA ASSET MANAGEMENT U.S.A. INC.
By__________________________
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