6. Under the heading
entitled, “
What are the Fund's Investment Strategies?
,” immediately prior to the sub-paragraph entitled “
Temporary Investments
,” please delete the non-fundamental investment policy which reads
“Because the Fund refers to equity
investments in its name, it will notify shareholders at least 60 days in advance of any changes in its investment policies that would enable the Fund to normally invest less than 80% of its assets (plus any borrowings
for investment purposes) in equity investments.” and replace it with the following:
“Because the Fund refers to emerging market
equity securities in its name, it will notify shareholders at least 60 days in advance of any changes in its investment policies that would enable the Fund to normally invest less than 80% of its assets (plus any
borrowings for investment purposes) in emerging market equity securities.”
7. Under the heading
entitled, “
What are the Fund's Principal Investments?
,” please add the following under the disclosure for Fixed Income Securities:
“Foreign Government
Securities (A Type of Foreign Fixed-Income Security)
Foreign government
securities generally consist of fixed-income securities supported by national, state or provincial governments or similar political subdivisions. Foreign government securities also include debt obligations of
supranational entities, such as international organizations designed or supported by governmental entities to promote economic reconstruction or development, international banking institutions and related government
agencies. Examples of these include, but are not limited to, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the “World Bank”), the Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank and the
Inter-American Development Bank.
Foreign
government securities also include fixed-income securities of quasi-governmental agencies that are either issued by entities owned by a national, state or equivalent government or are obligations of a political unit
that are not backed by the national government's full faith and credit. Further, foreign government securities include mortgage-related securities issued or guaranteed by national, state or provincial governmental
instrumentalities, including quasi-governmental agencies.
Foreign Corporate Debt Securities
(A Type of Foreign Fixed-Income Security)
The Fund will also invest
in high-yield and investment-grade debt securities of foreign corporations. Notes, bonds, debentures and commercial paper are the most prevalent types of corporate debt securities. The Fund may also purchase interests
in bank loans to companies.
The
credit risks of corporate debt securities vary widely among issuers. The credit risk of an issuer's debt security may also vary based on its priority for repayment. For example, higher ranking (“senior”)
debt securities have a higher priority than lower ranking (“subordinated”) securities. This means that the issuer might not make payments on subordinated securities while continuing to make payments on
senior securities. In addition, in the event of bankruptcy, holders of senior securities may receive amounts otherwise payable to the holders of subordinated securities.”
8. Under the heading
entitled, “
What are the Specific Risks of Investing in the Fund?
,” please add the following
“Issuer Credit Risk
It is possible that
interest or principal on securities will not be paid when due. Noninvestment-grade securities generally have a higher default risk than investment-grade securities. Such non-payment or default may reduce the value of
the Fund's portfolio holdings, its share price and its performance.
Many
fixed-income securities receive credit ratings from nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (NRSROs) such as Fitch Rating Service, Moody's Investor Services, Inc. and Standard & Poor's that assign
ratings to securities by assessing the likelihood of an issuer and/or guarantor default. Higher credit ratings correspond to lower perceived credit risk and lower credit ratings correspond to higher perceived credit
risk. Credit ratings may be upgraded or downgraded from time to time as an NRSRO's assessment of the financial condition of a party obligated to make payments with respect to such securities and credit risk changes.
The impact of any credit rating downgrade can be uncertain. Credit rating downgrades may lead to increased interest rates and volatility in financial markets, which in turn could negatively affect the value of the
Fund's portfolio holdings, its share price and its investment performance. Credit ratings are not a guarantee of quality. Credit ratings may lag behind the current financial conditions of the issuer and/or guarantor
and do not provide assurance against default or other loss of money. Credit ratings do not protect against a decline in the value of a security. If a security has not received a rating, the Fund must rely entirely
upon the Adviser's credit assessment.
Fixed-income securities generally compensate for greater credit risk by paying interest at a higher rate. The difference between the yield of a security and the yield of a U.S. Treasury security or other appropriate
benchmark with a comparable maturity (the “spread”) measures the additional interest paid for risk. Spreads may increase generally in response to adverse economic or market conditions. A security's spread
may also increase if the security's rating is lowered, or the security is perceived to have an increased credit risk. An increase in the spread will cause the price of the security to decline if interest rates remain
unchanged.