The Emerging Markets Portfolio invests substantially all of its assets in the Emerging Markets Series. To achieve the Portfolio’s and the Series’ investment objectives, the Advisor implements an integrated investment approach that combines research, portfolio design, portfolio management, and trading functions. As further described below, the Series’ design emphasizes long-term drivers of expected returns identified by the Advisor’s research, while balancing risk through broad diversification across companies and sectors. The Advisor’s portfolio management and trading processes further balance those long-term drivers of expected returns with shorter-term drivers of expected returns and trading costs.

The Emerging Markets Series is designed to purchase a broad market coverage of larger companies associated with emerging markets, which may include frontier markets (emerging market countries in an earlier stage of development) authorized for investment by the Advisor’s Investment Committee (“Approved Markets”). The Advisor’s definition of large varies across countries and is based primarily on market capitalization. A company’s market capitalization is the number of its shares outstanding times its price per share. In each country authorized for investment, the Advisor first ranks eligible companies listed on selected exchanges based on the companies’ market capitalizations. The Advisor then defines the minimum market capitalization for a large company in that country. For example, based on market capitalization data as of December 31, 2023, Mexico had a size threshold of $5,795 million or above, and the Czech Republic had a size threshold of $1,918 million or above. These thresholds will change due to market conditions. In addition, the Advisor may consider a company’s size, relative price, and/or profitability relative to other eligible companies when making investment decisions for the Emerging Markets Series. An equity issuer is considered to have a low relative price (i.e., a value stock) primarily because it has a low price in relation to its book value. In assessing relative price, the Advisor may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. An equity issuer is considered to have high profitability because it has high earnings or profits from operations in relation to its book value or assets. The criteria the Advisor uses for assessing relative price and profitability are subject to change from time to time.

As a non-fundamental policy, under normal circumstances, the Emerging Markets Series will invest at least 80% of its net assets in emerging markets investments that are defined in the prospectus as Approved Market securities.

The Advisor may also increase or reduce the Emerging Markets Series’ exposure to an eligible company, or exclude a company, based on shorter-term considerations, such as a company’s price momentum and short-run reversals. In addition, the Advisor seeks to reduce trading costs using a flexible trading approach that looks for opportunities to participate in the available market liquidity, while managing turnover and explicit transaction costs.

The Emerging Markets Series may gain exposure to companies associated with Approved Markets by purchasing equity securities in the form of depositary receipts, which may be listed or traded outside the issuer’s domicile country. The Emerging Markets Series may also invest in China A-shares (equity securities of companies listed in China) and variable interest entities (special structures that utilize contractual arrangements to provide exposure to certain Chinese companies). The Emerging Markets Series and the Emerging Markets Portfolio each may purchase or sell futures contracts and options on futures contracts for Approved Market or other equity market securities and indices, including those of the United States, to increase or decrease equity market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows to or outflows from the Series or Portfolio. Because many of the Emerging Markets Series’ investments may be denominated in foreign currencies, the Series and the Portfolio may enter into foreign currency exchange transactions, including foreign currency forward contracts, in connection with the settlement of foreign securities or to transfer cash balances from one currency to another currency.

The Emerging Markets Series may lend its portfolio securities to generate additional income.