This article is from the A Guide to Closed-End Funds (CEFs).
Perhaps the hardest part of investing is deciding when to sell. This is especially true in trading when selling must be done during periods of high optimism, especially if you have built large positions in relatively illiquid CEFs.
The basic rule is to sell when the valuations become unfavorable, for example, the discount has moved to some threshold above the normal discount, or some loss-limit has been reached. It usually makes sense to apply a loss-limit, because when some of the markets in which closed-end funds invest in go down, they can go way way down. Some examples:
%Decline from peak to bottom Hong Kong (1970-74) -92% Taiwan (1986-90) -80% Mexico (1978-82) -86% Mexico (in $) (1994-95) -71%
The reverse of the two rules quoted for buying apply here:
 
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