Seeking opportunities in a changing fixed income market

MARKET INSIGHTS MAY 2017 Seeking opportunities in a changing fixed income market BlackRock believes that the global economy is facing a confluence of inflection points: BlackRock believes that these inflection points create a need to rethink fixed income allocations, and also creates market opportunities for active management within fixed income. Growth Reflation Policy Global growth appears to be picking up after an extended slide, with cyclical improvements coming in the industrial and manufacturing sectors. The U.S. appears to be leading a global inflation rebound as stronger wage gains are feeding in to solid consumer spending, supporting profits in the face of rising labor costs. A potential boost to U.S. growth could come from fiscal stimulus in the form of tax reforms, while on the monetary side, global central banks are pursuing divergent paths. BlackRock believes that a reflating U.S. economy means U.S. interest rates will likely migrate higher, and credit and low duration assets will remain in demand. In this environment, we believe sector and security selection through active management is paramount. Additionally, we believe portfolio flexibility is key to navigate through these changing markets. Sectors that we believe exhibit these characteristics and may be attractive in this environment are: Global fixed income Select emerging market debt, with and without currency exposure, as well as global credit Securitized assets Commercial and private mortgages, collateralized loan obligations and asset backed securities Credit Investment grade corporate bonds, high yield bonds and bank loans blackrock.com

The focus on income With fixed income yields at or near historically low levels, identifying attractive income-generating opportunities may be increasingly difficult. With global economic and policy influences that are inflecting and diverging, we believe investors are faced with more volatile interest rates and elevated duration risk in more traditional fixed income investments. The chart below highlights in orange where BlackRock believes building a portfolio of assets across global markets with lower duration, higher yields, and potentially less liquidity can be a very powerful income tool for investors today. A diversified portfolio of these assets potentially provides not only attractive income, but also a broader set of total return opportunities as well. 6% High Yield (US) CLO BBB Non-Agency Mortgages EM Local Currency 4 High Yield (Euro) US MBS CMBS EM USD US Corp IG Yield (%) 2 ABS US Agency US Treasuries Global Agg Euro Corporates 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Duration (years) Source: Bloomberg, Barclays, BlackRock. Data as of April 30, 2017. The orange circles represent those asset classes that BlackRock believes may be more attractive due to their higher yields and shorter durations. For illustrative purposes only. Not indicative of any individual fund s yield or duration. A fund s portfolio, at any given point in time, may be comprised of some, all or none of the assets classes shown. Past performance does not guarantee or indicate future results. An investment in a fund is different from a direct investment in any of the asset classes shown above. Fees and expenses will be deducted from any investment in a fund. In comparison to maturity (which is the date on which the issuer of a debt instrument is obligated to repay the principal amount), duration is a measure of the price volatility of a debt instrument as a result in changes in market rates of interest, based on the weighted average timing of the instrument s expected principal and interest payments. The categories are represented by the following Bloomberg/Barclays Indexes: US Treasuries: U.S. Treasury Intermediate, ABS: Asset-Backed Securities, US MBS: CMBS, ERISA Eligible, US Corp HY: U.S. Corporate High Yield, EM USD: EM USD Aggregate, Asian Pacific Agg: Asian Pacific Aggregate, Global Agg: Global Aggregate, Euro Corporates: Pan-European Aggregate, Euro HY: Pan- European High Yield, Global Inflation Linked Gov: Global Inflation Linked Gov., US Corp IG: U.S. Corporate Investment Grade, US Agency: U.S. Agency, EM Local Currency: EM Local Currency Government. Mortgages (Non-Agency) and CLO figures are sourced from BlackRock and not represented by an index. Investors cannot invest directly in an index. Index returns do not reflect fees or expenses. Potential benefits of the closed-end fund structure BlackRock believes that investors may benefit from certain strategies that closed-end funds can employ to potentially enhance returns and income in the current market environment: Drop down in liquidity to identify bonds that offer higher income and return potential Utilize leverage to potentially enhance income and capital appreciation CEFs do not need to manage daily inflows and outflows like open ended funds, allowing the portfolio managers to stay fully invested during adverse market conditions

Regain your balance Understand the role of bonds In the current environment, no one fixed income investment can do it all. BlackRock offers three potential ways to implement these ideas into your portfolios. Closed-end fund solutions BlackRock Debt Strategies Fund (DSU) BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust (BIT) BlackRock 2022 Global Income Opportunity Trust (BGIO) Hybrid credit fund that dynamically allocates to bank loans and high yield bonds Flexible multi-sector bond fund with a focus on credit and securitized assets Flexible multi-sector bond fund with a global focus that will liquidate at NAV in 2022 Distribution rate: 7.02% Duration: 2.89 years Premium/Discount: -7.73% Distribution rate: 7.78% Duration: 3.43 years Premium/Discount: -6.26% Distribution rate: 5.98% Duration: 4.04 years Premium/Discount: 1.61% Source: BlackRock, Morningstar as of 4/30/2017. Distribution rate is calculated by annualizing the latest monthly distribution and dividing by the funds market price on the stated date. About BlackRock BlackRock is a global leader in investment management, risk management and advisory services for institutional and retail clients. At March 31, 2017, BlackRock s AUM was $5.4 trillion. BlackRock helps clients around the world meet their goals and overcome challenges with a range of products that include separate accounts, mutual funds, ishares (exchange-traded funds), and other pooled investment vehicles. BlackRock also offers risk management, advisory and enterprise investment system services to a broad base of institutional investors through BlackRock Solutions. As of March 31, 2017, the firm had approximately 13,000 employees in more than 30 countries and a major presence in global markets, including North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East and Africa. For additional information, please visit the Company s website at www.blackrock.com Twitter: @blackrock_news Blog: www.blackrockblog.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/blackrock

Availability of Fund Updates BlackRock will update performance and certain other data for the Funds on a monthly basis on its website in the Closed-end Funds section of www.blackrock.com as well as certain other material information as necessary from time to time. Investors and others are advised to check the website for updated performance information and the release of other material information about the Funds. This reference to BlackRock s website is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Funds and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate BlackRock s website in this document. Disclosure Investment return, price, yields and NAV will fluctuate with changes in market conditions. At the time of sale, your shares may have a market price that is above or below net asset value, and may be worth more or less than your original investment. There is no assurance that a fund will meet its investment objective. Closed-end fund shares are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed by, any bank and are not insured by the FDIC or any other agency. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal amount invested. This is not a prospectus intended for use in the purchase or sale of any fund s shares. Investors should consider a fund s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses, and review a fund s prospectus and other publicly available information, including shareholder reports, carefully before investing. Shares may only be purchased or sold through registered broker/dealers. For more information regarding any of BlackRock s closed-end funds, please call BlackRock at 800-882-0052. No assurance can be given that a fund will achieve its investment objective. Some BlackRock closed-end funds may utilize leverage to seek to enhance the yield and net asset value of their common stock, through bank borrowings, issuance of short-term debt securities or shares of preferred stock, or a combination thereof. However, these objectives cannot be achieved in all interest rate environments. While leverage may result in a higher yield for the fund, the use of leverage involves risk, including the potential for higher volatility of the NAV, fluctuations of dividends and other distributions paid by the fund and the market price of the fund s common stock, among others. There is no assurance that a fund s leveraging strategy will be successful. While a common investment practice by many closed-end fund managers, leverage cannot assure a higher yield or return to the holders of the common shares. Some BlackRock closed-end funds make distributions of ordinary income and capital gains only at calendar year end, or make additional distributions of ordinary income and capital gains at calendar year end in order to maintain their qualification for pass through tax treatment as a regulated investment company under the Internal Revenue Code. Those distributions temporarily cause extraordinarily high yields. There is no assurance that a fund will repeat that yield in the future. To the extent a BlackRock closed-end fund makes subsequent regular monthly distributions of ordinary income and/or capital gains, such distributions will likely be lower than such calendar year end distributions. Fund details, holdings and characteristics are as of the date noted and subject to change. The opinions expressed are those of BlackRock as of April 30, 2017, and are subject to change at any time due to changes in market or economic conditions. BlackRock makes no undertaking to change this document in response to such changes. These comments should not be construed as a recommendation of any individual holdings or market sectors. This material is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation in any jurisdiction in which such solicitation is unlawful or to any person to whom it is unlawful. Moreover, it neither constitutes an offer to enter into an investment agreement with the recipient of this document nor an invitation to respond to it by making an offer to enter into an investment agreement. This material is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. The information and opinions contained in this material are derived from proprietary and nonproprietary sources deemed by BlackRock to be reliable, are not necessarily allinclusive and are not guaranteed as to accuracy. There is no guarantee that any forecasts made will come to pass. Any investments named within this material may not necessarily be held in any accounts managed by BlackRock. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the reader. General Market and Credit Risks: Debt instruments are subject to credit and interest rate risks. Credit risk refers to the likelihood that an obligor will default in the payment of principal or interest on an instrument. Financial strength and solvency of an obligor are the primary factors influencing credit risk. In addition, lack or inadequacy of collateral or credit enhancement for a debt instrument may affect its credit risk. Credit risk may change over the life of an instrument and debt instruments that are rated by rating agencies are often reviewed and may be subject to downgrade. Interest rate risk refers to the risks associated with market changes in interest rates. Interest rate changes may affect the value of a debt instrument indirectly (especially in the case of fixed rate obligations) or directly (especially in the case of instrument whose rates are adjustable). In general, rising interest rates will negatively impact the price of a fixed rate debt instrument and falling interest rates will have a positive effect on price. Adjustable rate instruments also react to interest rate changes in a similar manner although generally to a lesser degree (depending, however, on the characteristics of the reset terms, including the index chosen, frequency of reset and reset caps or floors, among other factors). The risks associated with rising interest rates are heightened due to the current period of historically low interest rates and the Federal Reserve has indicated that it may continue to raise the federal funds rate in the near future. Duration and Maturity Risks: In comparison to maturity (which is the date on which the issuer of a debt instrument is obligated to repay the principal amount), duration is a measure of the price volatility of a debt instrument as a result in changes in market rates of interest, based on the weighted average timing of the instrument s expected principal and interest payments. Specifically, duration measures the anticipated percentage change in NAV that is expected for every percentage point change in interest rates. The two have an inverse relationship. Duration can be a useful tool to estimate anticipated price changes to a fixed pool of income securities associated with changes in interest rates. For example, a duration of five years means that a 1% decrease in interest rates will increase the net asset value of the portfolio by approximately 5%; if interest rates increase by 1%, the net asset value will decrease by 5%. However, in a managed portfolio of fixed income securities having differing interest or dividend rates or payment schedules, maturities, redemption provisions, call or prepayment provisions and credit qualities, actual price changes in response to changes in interest rates may differ significantly from a duration-based estimate at any given time. Actual price movements experienced by a portfolio of fixed income securities will be affected by how interest rates move (i.e., changes in the relationship of long term interest rates to short term interest rates), the magnitude of any move in interest rates, actual and anticipated prepayments of principal through call or redemption features, the extension of maturities through restructuring, the sale of securities for portfolio management purposes, the reinvestment of proceeds from prepayments on and from sales of securities, and credit quality-related considerations whether associated with financing costs to lower credit quality borrowers or otherwise, as well as other factors. Accordingly, while duration maybe a useful tool to estimate potential price movements in relation to changes in interest rates, investors are cautioned that duration alone will not predict actual changes in the net asset or market value of a fund s shares and that actual price movements in a fund s portfolio may differ significantly from duration-based estimates. Duration differs from maturity in that it takes into account a security s yield, coupon payments and its principal payments in addition to the amount of time until the security finally matures. As the value of a security changes over time, so will its duration. Prices of securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than securities with shorter durations. In general, a portfolio of securities with a longer duration can be expected to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than a portfolio with a shorter duration. Any decisions as to the targeted duration or maturity of any particular category of investments or of a fund s portfolio generally will be made based on all pertinent market factors at any given time. A fund may incur costs in seeking to adjust the portfolio s average duration or maturity. There can be no assurances that BlackRock s assessment of current and projected market conditions will be correct or that any strategy to adjust a portfolio s duration or maturity will be successful at any given time. Non-Investment Grade Securities Risks: Securities that are rated below investment grade quality (rated Ba/BB or below, or judged to be of comparable quality by BlackRock), which are commonly referred to as high yield or junk bonds, are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. The value of high yield, lower quality bonds is affected by the creditworthiness of the issuers of the securities and by general economic and specific industry conditions. Issuers of high yield bonds are not perceived to be as strong financially as those with higher credit ratings. These issuers are more vulnerable to financial setbacks and recession than more creditworthy issuers, which may impair their ability to make interest and principal payments. Lower grade securities may be particularly susceptible to economic downturns. It is likely that an economic recession could severely disrupt the market for such securities and may have an adverse impact on the value of such securities. In addition, it is likely that any such economic downturn could adversely affect the ability of the issuers of such securities to repay principal and pay interest thereon and increase the incidence of default for such securities. The secondary market for lower grade securities may be less liquid than that for higher rated securities. Adverse conditions could make it difficult at times for a fund to sell certain securities or could result in lower prices than those used in calculating a fund s NAV. Investment in Non-U.S. Securities Risk: Certain funds may invest assets in securities of issuers domiciled outside the United States, including issuers from emerging markets. Foreign investing involves special risks, including foreign currency risk and the possibility of substantial volatility due to adverse political, economic or other developments. Additionally, securities markets in foreign countries often are not as developed, efficient or liquid as securities markets in the United States, and therefore, the prices of foreign securities can be more volatile. Certain foreign countries may also impose restrictions on the ability of issuers of foreign securities to make payments of principal and interest to

investors located outside the country. Currencies of certain countries may be volatile and therefore may affect the value of securities denominated in such currencies, which means that a fund s NAV could decline as a result of changes in the exchange rates between foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar. In addition, certain countries, particularly emerging market countries, may impose foreign currency exchange controls or other restrictions on the transferability, repatriation or convertibility of currency. These risks are heightened in emerging markets. Mortgage Related Securities Risk: Investing in MBS entails various risks. MBS represent an interest in a pool of mortgages. The risks associated with MBS include: credit risk associated with the performance of the underlying mortgage properties and of the borrowers owning these properties; risks associated with their structure and execution (including the collateral, the process by which principal and interest payments are allocated and distributed to investors and how credit losses affect the issuing vehicle and the return to investors in such MBS); whether the collateral represents a fixed set of specific assets or accounts, whether the underlying collateral assets are revolving or closed-end, under what terms (including maturity of the MBS) any remaining balance in the accounts may revert to the issuing entity and the extent to which the entity that is the actual source of the collateral assets is obligated to provide support to the issuing vehicle or to the investors in such MBS; risks associated with the servicer of the underlying mortgages; adverse changes in economic conditions and circumstances, which are more likely to have an adverse impact on MBS secured by loans on certain types of commercial properties than on those secured by loans on residential properties; prepayment risk, which can lead to significant fluctuations in the value of the MBS; loss of all or part of the premium, if any, paid; and decline in the market value of the security, whether resulting from changes in interest rates, prepayments on the underlying mortgage collateral or perceptions of the credit risk associated with the underlying mortgage collateral. Asset Backed Securities Risk: ABS involve certain risks in addition to those presented by MBS. There is the possibility that recoveries on the underlying collateral may not, in some cases, be available to support payments on these securities. Relative to MBS, ABS may provide a fund with a less effective security interest in the underlying collateral and are more dependent on the borrower s ability to pay. If many borrowers on the underlying loans default, losses could exceed the credit enhancement level and result in losses to investors in an ABS transaction. Finally, ABS have structure risk due to a unique characteristic known as early amortization, or early payout, risk. Built into the structure of most ABS are triggers for early payout, designed to protect investors from losses. These triggers are unique to each transaction and can include a significant rise in defaults on the underlying loans, a sharp drop in the credit enhancement level or the bankruptcy of the originator. Once early amortization begins, all incoming loan payments (after expenses are paid) are used to pay investors as quickly as possible based upon a predetermined priority of payment. CLO Risks: In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities, CLOs carry additional risks, including: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the CLO securities are subordinate to other classes; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results. Senior Loan Risks: Certain funds may invest in senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt. Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity (the Borrower ), are typically secured with specific collateral and typically have a claim on the assets and/or stock of the Borrower that is senior to that held by subordinated debt holders and stockholders of the Borrower. Investments in Senior Loans are typically below investment grade and are considered speculative because of the credit risk of their issuer. The risks associated with Senior Loans are similar to the risks of below investment grade fixed income securities, although Senior Loans are typically senior and secured in contrast to other below investment grade fixed income securities, which are often subordinated and unsecured. Disclosure Regarding Indices: The performance of the indices and sectors shown is not meant to forecast, imply or guarantee the future performance of any BlackRock Fund. An investor cannot invest directly in an index. The indices and sectors shown reflect varying industry sectors that may have materially different characteristics from one another and from a BlackRock fund, including, but not limited to, differences in risk profile, correlation to broader market measures, liquidity, fluctuations of principal, fluctuations of return, and tax attributes. No BlackRock closed-end fund has an investment objective to track any index, their investment portfolios will not correspond to any index or sector shown and they are not intended to replicate the returns of any index or market sector. Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Treasury Index: Public obligations of the U.S. Treasury with a remaining maturity of one year or more, Bloomberg Barclays Asset-Backed Securities Index: Tracks the performance of investment grade asset backed securities, Bloomberg Barclays US MBS Index: Tracks agency mortgage backed pass-through securities (both fixed-rate and hybrid ARM) guaranteed by GNMA, FNMA, and Freddie Mac, Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index: Measures the USD-denominated, high yield, fixed-rate, corporate bond market, Bloomberg Barclays CMBS ERISA Eligible Index: Measures the market of US agency and US non-agency conduit and fusion CMBS deals with a minimum current deal size of $300mn, Bloomberg Barclays EM USD Aggregate Index: emerging market debt benchmark that includes fixed and floating rate USD denominated debt, Bloomberg Barclays Asian Pacific Aggregate Index: contains fixedrate, investment grade securities denominated in local currency, Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate Index: Measure of global investment grade debt from twenty four local currency markets, Bloomberg Barclays Pan-European Aggregate Index: Measures investment grade, euro denominated, fixed rate bond market, Bloomberg Barclays Pan- European High Yield Index: Measures the market of non-investment grade, fixed-rate corporate bonds denominated in the following currencies: Euro, Pound Sterling, Danish Krone, Norwegian Krone, Swedish Krona, and Swiss Franc, Bloomberg Barclays: Global Inflation Linked Index: Measures the performance of the global inflation protected securities market, Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate Investment Grade Index: measures the investment grade, fixed-rate, taxable corporate bond market. 2017 BlackRock, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BLACKROCK, BLACKROCK SOLUTIONS and ishares are registered and unregistered trademarks of BlackRock, Inc., or its subsidiaries in the United States and elsewhere. All other trademarks are those of their respective owners. Prepared by BlackRock Investments, LLC, member FINRA. Not FDIC Insured May Lose Value No Bank Guarantee CEF-170901T-0517