Under normal market conditions, the fund will invest at least 80% of its assets in equity securities. The fund invests primarily in common stocks of companies with significant exposure to developing countries. The securities markets of these countries may be referred to as emerging markets or frontier markets. For purposes of this investment strategy, the fund may invest in equity securities of any company, regardless of where it is domiciled (including developed countries), if the fund’s investment adviser determines that a significant portion of the company’s assets or revenues (generally 20% or more) is attributable to developing countries.

In determining whether a country is a developed country or a developing country, the fund’s investment adviser considers such factors as the country’s per capita gross domestic product, the percentage of the country’s economy that is industrialized, market capital as a percentage of gross domestic product, the overall regulatory environment, the presence of government regulation limiting or banning foreign ownership, and restrictions on repatriation of initial capital, dividends, interest and/or capital gains. When assessed along these criteria, a developed country will generally resemble the United States and European Union countries more closely relative to developing countries. In some cases, a country with a less developed economy may nevertheless be deemed a developed country by the fund’s investment adviser when assessed using the factors described above. South Korea and Taiwan, for example, are deemed developed countries for purposes of the fund’s investment strategy.

In addition, under normal market conditions, the fund invests at least 30% of its assets in equity securities of issuers domiciled in qualified developing countries. For purposes of this investment strategy, a qualified developing country will generally resemble the United States and European Union countries more closely relative to nonqualified developing countries. The fund’s investment adviser maintains a list of qualified developing countries and securities in which the fund may invest. As of May 1, 2024, the qualified developing countries for purposes of the fund’s investment strategy currently include Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Gabon, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Macau, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Namibia, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam and Zambia. It is possible that the fund may not have investments in one or more of these countries at any given time.

The fund is nondiversified, which means it may invest a greater portion of its assets in fewer issuers than would otherwise be the case.

The investment adviser uses a system of multiple portfolio managers in managing assets. Under this approach, a portfolio is divided into segments managed by individual managers. For more information regarding the investment process of the fund, see the “Management and organization” section of this prospectus.

The fund relies on the professional judgment of its investment adviser to make decisions about the fund’s portfolio investments. The basic investment philosophy of the investment adviser is to seek to invest in attractively valued companies that, in its opinion, represent good, long-term investment opportunities. Securities may be sold when the investment adviser believes that they no longer represent relatively attractive investment opportunities.