Launched by the Irish subsidiary of the Boston mutual fund group, the new fund will invest primarily in high-yielding US and non-US fixed-income securities.
This includes types of bank loans, convertible debt, preferred stock and secured and unsecured bonds.
The American fund house has a long history investing in high yield in the US and for the last decade has been making a push into the non-US high yield space.
The global high yield bond fund, a registered Ucits, will be available to investors in the UK, Ireland, Spain, Netherlands, Sweden and Finland. Registrations for German and Swiss investors are forthcoming, according to the firm.
It will aim to generate current income and total return, provide “reasonable preservation of capital” and growth of income and capital.
Lead manager of the portfolio, Jeffrey Mueller, said: “Our strategy exploits the investment potential offered by global high-yield bonds.
“We believe that our extremely talented global team of experts, our rich asset management heritage within the high yield asset class and our strong record of downside protection makes us very well-positioned to do so.”
The fund’s investment strategy, which avoids regional biases and employs “intensive credit research” to identify value opportunities and capitalise on arbitrage opportunities, is particularly important in the current political and economic climate, said Eaton Vance.
Against that backdrop, investors are increasingly after products that offer better risk-adjusted returns than traditional bond and equity markets can provide and that have a high diversification potential.
