Final Results

8 October 2003


                       EDINBURGH DRAGON TRUST PLC
           PRELIMINARY RESULTS FOR THE YEAR TO 31 AUGUST 2003

Edinburgh Dragon Trust's objective is long-term capital growth through investment in the Far 
East (excluding Japan and Australasia).


·     The Trust outperformed its benchmark by 9.2% (the MSCI All Country Asia Free ex-Japan
      index rose 12.8% over the same period)

·     The net asset value rose 22.0% in sterling terms to 85.4p

·     The share price rose 25.1% as the discount narrowed from 17.4% to 15.3%

·     Successful country selection and good stock selection have been key factors in the 
      performance of the Trust. Taking overweight positions in China and Thailand has been
      particularly beneficial



For further information please contact:-

Jeremy Whitley, Investment Manager
Edinburgh Fund Managers plc           0131 313 1000



Chairman's Statement

Over the past year Edinburgh Dragon Trust's net asset value has risen by 22.0% to 85.35p. 
In comparison, the Trust's benchmark, the MSCI All Country Asia Free (ex Japan) index, 
rose 12.8% in sterling terms. The share price rose 25.1%, as the discount at which the
shares trade to the adjusted net asset value narrowed from 17.4% to 15.3%. The board 
remains positive on the outlook for Asia.

The Trust posted a headline annual return of more than 20%, while at the same time Asian
markets outperformed most other global markets. However, the past twelve months have not 
been without their fair share of uncertainties across the region. Major among these were 
the threats posed firstly by the North Korean missile crisis, secondly by the outbreak of 
SARS and thirdly by the sporadic terrorist bombing campaigns in Indonesia and India. 
Whilst initially these events were seen as negative and confirmation of Asia's risky 
nature, the resulting market environment has also provided investors with timely 
opportunities to add to stockmarket investments.

The Trust's very satisfactory 9% outperformance of the MSCI Index was as a result of both 
the manner in which capital was allocated to individual countries and the choice of stocks 
within those countries. In particular, the Trust benefitted from taking overweight positions
in China and Thailand, both of which performed extremely well over the year.


Revenue account
Gross revenue reduced from £6.0 million to £5.6 million, due principally to a lower proportion
of the portfolio being held in cash and Treasury Bills over the year, and lower yields being
received. There was a minor reduction in expenses reflecting lower management fees (which are
calculated on the value of net assets).  In addition, depreciation of the US dollar against 
sterling led to a fall in interest charged on the long term borrowings. The net result is that 
the revenue deficit per share has increased from 0.49p to 0.52p.

The principal objective of the trust is capital appreciation and therefore it is again proposed
that no dividend will be paid.


Marketing initiatives
The company is a member of the Association of Investment Trust Companies (AITC) and contributes
towards the campaign to raise awareness among potential investors of the attractions of 
investment trusts.  In the year under review the company contributed £15,000 to the campaign.

The company continues to participate with other investment trusts managed by Edinburgh Fund
Managers in the manager's Investment Trust Initiative, which provides a range of savings 
products, including ISA and Pension Schemes, in a cost effective manner.

Shareholders can receive up to date information on recent performance and the trust's strategy
on the manager's website, www.edfd.com.


Directors
In July 2003, the board announced that David Gairns had been appointed to the board as a
non-executive director.  Mr Gairns, a chartered accountant, has spent his professional career 
with KPMG in the UK and in Hong Kong, retiring in 1991 as senior partner of the Hong Kong firm.
He is a former non-executive director of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited 
and Mass Transit Railway Corporation Limited. Shareholders will be asked to confirm his 
appointment at the annual general meeting.


Annual general meeting
The annual general meeting will be held at Donaldson House, Edinburgh on 8 December 2003. 
At the meeting shareholders will be given the opportunity to vote on the continuation of the
company.

Edinburgh Dragon Trust is the largest investment trust specialising in the Pacific Basin. The
Dragon board believes that the Trust offers investors a broad and marketable exposure to Asian
equity markets, many of which continue to provide attractive long-term investment opportunities
in the region.

Your board therefore recommends that shareholders vote in favour of the resolution.

If the continuation proposal is approved by shareholders, your board intends to give shareholders
a further opportunity to consider a similar resolution at the annual general meeting to be held
in 2006.

Manager
Shareholders will be aware that the holding company of the company's manager, Edinburgh Fund
Managers Group plc, has recently announced the terms of an agreed takeover by Aberdeen Asset
Management PLC.

The board will ensure satisfactory arrangements are in place for the continued effective 
management and successful performance of the Trust.


Future prospects
Going forward, Asian stockmarkets continue to look encouraging.  Despite the region's close trade
links with the Western world which render Asia susceptible to Western business cycles, Asian 
central banks continue to pursue monetary policies designed to encourage domestic production and
consumption.  Since the Asian crisis, five years of current account surpluses have resulted in
rebuilding foreign exchange reserves across Asia.  These reserves have acted as a safety net and
given central bankers the confidence to drive interest rates lower without the threat of currency
devaluation. In turn, lower interest rates and the development of a credit culture based on
prudent lending practices can encourage greater consumer activity. This pattern of credit cycle
creation is bearing fruit, but at a different pace in different countries. At present, Thailand
and India appear the two countries most likely to succeed in this strategy; Korea and Singapore
the least likely.

As China continues to open itself up to international trade, it poses both a threat and an
opportunity. Its low cost labour force, combined with lucrative land and tax packages, has
enabled China to offer itself as an attractive location for the manufacturing of low and medium 
value-added goods. Many companies have taken advantage of this trend to outsource production to
China and have been rewarded with a lowering of their cost structure. However, this has been to 
the detriment of factories and jobs located elsewhere across Asia, and indeed across the world.  
Further, China's ability to drive down the cost of manufactured goods has prolonged the Western 
consumer boom.  However, if China starts to suffer from a gradual increase in inflationary 
pressures, the effective export of Chinese deflation could recede. This would have significant
implications for global consumers who have grown used to higher disposable income brought about
by cheap goods exported from China. In this environment, the Trust's investments associated with
China are thus exposed to a rigorous stock selection process.

Underlying these long term Asian structural themes is the fact that the region's markets are 
trading at valuations which are not only inexpensive in comparison to their recent history but
which are also cheap when compared to developed markets around the world. Should the large 
US-centric investors who fled Asia at the time of the 1997 crisis return to re-evaluate Asian
markets with fresh eyes, they will find a wealth of investment opportunities able to provide 
them with secure cashflow at attractive valuations.  The Trust is well positioned to
capitalise on such developments.



Tony Cassidy
Chairman
7 October 2003


STATEMENT OF TOTAL RETURN
for the year ended 31 August 2003 (audited)           Revenue    Capital     Total
                                                         £000       £000      £000
Realised net losses on investments                          -   (18,715)  (18,715)
Unrealised gains on investments                             -     55,059    55,059
Currency gains                                              -      (288)     (288)
Investment income                                       5,070          -     5,070
Interest receivable                                       524          -       524
Other income                                               37          -        37
Investment management fee                             (1,585)          -   (1,585)
Administrative expenses                                 (561)          -     (561)
                                                      _______    _______   _______                               
Net return before finance costs and taxation            3,485     36,056    39,541
Interest payable and similar charges                  (4,318)          -   (4,318)
                                                      _______    _______   _______                       
Return on ordinary activities before taxation           (833)     36,056    35,223
Taxation                                                (340)          -     (340)
                                                      _______    _______   _______                  
Return attributable to equity shareholders                              
after taxation                                        (1,173)     36,056    34,883
                                                      _______    _______   _______
                                                                
Return per ordinary share                             (0.52p)     15.91p    15.39p
                                                      _______    _______   _______

___________________________________________________________________________________
             

STATEMENT OF TOTAL RETURN
for the year ended 31 August 2002 (audited)           Revenue     Capital     Total
                                                         £000        £000      £000
Realised net losses on investments                          -    (18,167)  (18,167)
Unrealised gains on investments                             -      11,076    11,076
Currency gains                                              -       1,712     1,712
Investment income                                       4,791           -     4,791
Interest receivable                                     1,149           -     1,149
Other income                                               22           -        22
Investment management fee                             (1,741)           -   (1,741)
Administrative expenses                                 (507)           -     (507)
                                                      _______     _______   _______                   
Net return before finance costs and taxation            3,714     (5,379)   (1,665)
Interest payable and similar charges                  (4,659)           -   (4,659)
                                                      _______     _______   _______                   
Return on ordinary activities before taxation           (945)     (5,379)   (6,324)
Taxation                                                (165)           -     (165)
                                                      _______     _______   _______                 
Return attributable to equity shareholders            (1,110)     (5,379)   (6,489)
after taxation       
                                                      _______     _______   _______                                     
                                                             
Return per ordinary share                             (0.49p)     (2.37p)   (2.86p)
                                                                        
___________________________________________________________________________________


BALANCE SHEET (audited)
                                            At 31 August 2003     At 31 August 2002   
                                            £000        £000       £000        £000
Fixed assets                                                     
Investments                                             217,669               178,729
                                                                         
                                                                         
Current assets                                                           
Debtors                                       1,731                  2,586         
US Treasury Bills                            33,449                 19,326         
Cash and short term deposits                  2,078                 21,106         
                                             ______                 ______                            
                                             37,258                 43,018         
Creditors: amounts falling due within                                    
one year.                                     1,431                  1,812
                                             ______                 ______                            
Net current assets                                       35,827                41,206
                                                        _______               _______                
Total assets less current liabilities                   253,496               219,935
Creditors: amounts falling due after                                     
more than one year                                       59,906                61,228
                                                        _______               _______                 
                                                        193,590               158,707
                                                        _______               _______                 
                                                                         
Capital and reserves                                                     
Called up share capital                                  45,325                45,325
Share premium                                                26                    26
Capital redemption reserve                                8,752                 8,752
Special reserve                                          85,520                85,520
Warrant reserve                                           1,047                 1,047
Capital reserve - unrealised                             45,052              (12,242)
Capital reserve - realised                               14,485                35,723
Revenue reserve                                         (6,617)               (5,444)
                                                        _______               _______                 
Total equity shareholders'funds                         193,590               158,707
                                                        _______               _______                 
                                                                         
Adjusted net asset value per share                       85.35p                69.95p
                                                        _______               _______                
                                                                         
Adjusted diluted net asset value per share               84.22p                69.50p
                                                        _______               _______
                                                                         


CASHFLOW STATEMENT (audited)    
                                        For the year ended       For the year ended
                                          31 August 2003           31 August 2002
                                       £000           £000      £000           £000
                                                                 
Net cash inflow from operating                           3,215                   3,628
activities
Servicing of finance                                                     
Interest paid                           (4,281)                   (4,688)
                                        _______                   _______                                 
Net cash outflow from servicing of                                                    
finance                                                (4,281)                 (4,688)
Taxation                                                                 
UK Income tax received less paid              -                       168
Overseas tax paid                         (280)                     (165)         
                                        _______                   _______             
Net tax recovered                                        (280)                       3
                                                                         
Financial Investment                                                     
Purchase of investments                (92,960)                 (135,734)         
Sale of investments                      91,042                   124,041         
                                      _________                 _________                                  
Net cash outflow from financial                                                    
investment                                             (1,918)                (11,693)
                                                     _________               _________     
Net cash outflow before financing                      (3,264)                (12,750)
                                                                         
Management of liquid resources                        (15,034)                  10,675
                                                     _________               _________                    
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents                 (18,298)                 (2,075)
                                                     _________               _________
                                                                         
                                                                         
Reconciliation of net cashflow to                                           
movement in net debt
Decrease in cash                       (18,298)                   (2,075)         
Net change in liquid resources           15,034                  (10,675)         
                                      _________                 _________                  
Change in net debt resulting from                      (3,264)                (12,750)
cashflows                                                          
Amortised Loan Note expenses                              (31)                    (31)
Foreign exchange differences                             (288)                   1,712
                                                     _________               _________   
Movement in net debt in year                           (3,583)                (11,069)                                  
                                      )
Opening net debt                                      (20,796)                 (9,727)
                                                     _________               _________                     
Closing net debt                                      (24,379)                (20,796)
                                                     _________               _________                                  
                                       



NOTES:
1. The accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice 
   'Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies'. The accounts are prepared under
   the same accounting policies used for the year to 31 August 2002.
2. The directors propose that no final dividend be paid in respect of the year ended 31 
   August 2003.
3. The statement of total return, balance sheet and cashflow statement set out above do not
   represent full statutory accounts in accordance with Section 240 of the Companies Act 1985.
   The financial information for the year ended 31 August 2002 has been extracted from the 
   Annual Report and Accounts of the company which have been filed with the Registrar of 
   Companies. The auditors' report on those accounts was unqualified. The statutory accounts
   for 2003 contain an unqualified auditors' report and will be delivered to the Registrar of
   Companies following the company's Annual General Meeting which will be held at Donaldson 
   House, 97 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh on 8 December 2003 at 11.00am.
4. The Annual Report will be posted to shareholders on 20 October 2003 and copies will be 
   available from the registered office.


Please note that past performance is not necessarily a guide to the future and that the 
value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise and may be affected
by exchange rate movements. Investors may not get back the amount they originally invested. 
Where investment is made in emerging markets, their potential volatility may increase the 
risk to the value of the investment.

For Edinburgh Dragon Trust plc
Edinburgh Fund Managers plc, Secretary