The Sit Minnesota Tax-Free Income Fund and Sit Tax-Free Income Fund paid a small percentage of income (less than 1%) for 2011 that was taxable. The Funds' portfolios include bonds that were purchased at both discounts and premiums. The ratio of income received was slightly higher for "discount" bonds than for the "premium" bonds so a small portion of the income was deemed taxable. For more information about taxable distributions from tax-free funds, see full article.

Sit Mutual Funds' April 2012 performance returns are available. To view the results go to the Performance page.

First Quarter 2012
Markets in Review

U.S. Treasury yields rose and the yield curve steepened during the first quarter of 2012. Treasury prices declined commensurately with declining expectations for a third round of Federal Reserve-backed asset price inflation initiatives. Longer tax-exempt yields decreased during the quarter, while intermediate tax-exempt yields increased. Shorter tax-exempt yields were relatively unchanged. Tax-exempt municipals posted solid returns for the quarter. Year-to-date issuance remains low, with year-to-date issuance the second lowest in the most recent 6-year period. The tax-exempt yield curve remains historically steep.

U.S. Equity markets experienced very strong performance in the first quarter of 2012, with the S&P 500 Index gaining +12.6%. Globally, the U.S. Ranked 19th out of 33 countries for the first quarter of 2012.

May 17, 2012

The Sit Mutual Funds are managed by Sit Investment Associates, Inc., which has been operating under the highest ethical and professional standards since it was founded in 1981 by Eugene C. Sit. We maintain an uncompromising commitment and adherence to our investment philosophy and style, while continually seeking ways to enhance our investment process.