TEMPLETON DEVELOPING MARKETS TRUST - ADVISOR CLASS
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
MAY 1, 1998
100 FOUNTAIN PARKWAY, P.O. BOX 33030
ST. PETERSBURG, FL 33733-8030 1-800/DIAL BEN
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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How Does the Fund Invest Its Assets?......................... 2
What Are the Risks of Investing in the Fund?................. 6
Investment Restrictions...................................... 9
Officers and Trustees........................................ 10
Investment Management
and Other Services.......................................... 16
How Does the Fund Buy
Securities for Its Portfolio?............................... 17
How Do I Buy, Sell and Exchange Shares?...................... 18
How Are Fund Shares Valued?.................................. 20
Additional Information on
Distributions and Taxes..................................... 21
The Fund's Underwriter....................................... 26
How Does the Fund Measure Performance?....................... 26
Miscellaneous Information.................................... 29
Financial Statements......................................... 30
Useful Terms and Definitions................................. 30
Appendix..................................................... 31
Description of Ratings..................................... 31
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When reading this SAI, you will see certain terms beginning with capital
letters. This means the term is explained under "Useful Terms and
Definitions."
The fund is a diversified, open-end management investment company. The
Prospectus, dated May 1, 1998, which we may amend from time to time, contains
the basic information you should know before investing in the fund. For a free
copy, call 1-800/DIAL BEN.
This SAI describes the fund's Advisor Class shares. The fund currently offers
other share classes with different sales charge and expense structure, which
affect performance. To receive more information about the fund's other shares
classes, contact your investment representative or call 1-800/DIAL BEN.
THIS SAI IS NOT A PROSPECTUS. IT CONTAINS INFORMATION IN ADDITION TO AND IN MORE
DETAIL THAN SET FORTH IN THE PROSPECTUS. THIS SAI IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE YOU
WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING THE ACTIVITIES AND OPERATIONS OF THE FUND,
AND SHOULD BE READ IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE PROSPECTUS.
MUTUAL FUNDS, ANNUITIES, AND OTHER INVESTMENT PRODUCTS:
ARE NOT FEDERALLY INSURED BY THE FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION, THE
FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, OR ANY OTHER AGENCY OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT;
ARE NOT DEPOSITS OR OBLIGATIONS OF, OR GUARANTEED OR ENDORSED BY, ANY BANK;
ARE SUBJECT TO INVESTMENT RISKS, INCLUDING THE POSSIBLE LOSS OF PRINCIPAL.
HOW DOES THE FUND INVEST ITS ASSETS?
WHAT IS THE FUND'S GOAL?
The investment goal of the fund is long-term capital appreciation. This goal is
fundamental, which means that it may not be changed without shareholder
approval.
The following gives more detailed information about the fund's investment
policies and the types of securities that it may buy. Please read this
information together with the section "How Does the Fund Invest Its Assets?" in
the Prospectus.
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE KINDS OF SECURITIES THE FUND BUYS
EQUITY SECURITIES. The purchaser of an equity security typically receives an
ownership interest in the company as well as certain voting rights. The owner of
an equity security may participate in a company's success through the receipt of
dividends which are distributions of earnings by the company to its owners.
Equity security owners may also participate in a company's success or lack of
success through increases or decreases in the value of the company's shares as
traded in the public trading market for such shares. Equity securities generally
take the form of common stock or preferred stock. Preferred stockholders
typically receive greater dividends but may receive less appreciation than
common stockholders and may have greater voting rights as well. Equity
securities may also include convertible securities, warrants or rights.
Convertible securities typically are debt securities or preferred stocks which
are convertible into common stock after certain time periods or under certain
circumstances. Warrants or rights give the holder the right to purchase a common
stock at a given time for a specified price.
DEBT SECURITIES. A debt security typically has a fixed payment schedule which
obligates the issuer to pay interest to the lender and to return the lender's
money over a certain time period. A company typically meets its payment
obligations associated with its outstanding debt securities before it declares
and pays any dividend to holders of its equity securities. Bonds, notes,
debentures and commercial paper differ in the length of the issuer's payment
schedule, with bonds carrying the longest repayment schedule and commercial
paper the shortest.
The market value of debt securities generally varies in response to changes in
interest rates and the financial condition of each issuer. During periods of
declining interest rates, the value of debt securities generally increases.
Conversely, during periods of rising interest rates, the value of such
securities generally declines. These changes in market value will be reflected
in the fund's Net Asset Value.
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS. Repurchase agreements are contracts under which the buyer
of a security simultaneously commits to resell the security to the seller at an
agreed-upon price and date. Under a repurchase agreement, the seller is required
to maintain the value of the securities subject to the repurchase agreement at
not less than their repurchase price. Asset Management Hong Kong will monitor
the value of such securities daily to determine that the value equals or exceeds
the repurchase price. Repurchase agreements may involve risks in the event of
default or insolvency of the seller, including possible delays or restrictions
upon the fund's ability to dispose of the underlying securities. The fund will
enter into repurchase agreements only with parties who meet creditworthiness
standards approved by the Board, i.e., banks or broker-dealers which have been
determined by Asset Management Hong Kong to present no serious risk of becoming
involved in bankruptcy proceedings within the time frame contemplated by the
repurchase transaction.
LOANS OF PORTFOLIO SECURITIES. The fund may lend to qualified securities dealers
or other institutional investors, portfolio securities with an aggregate market
value of up to one-third of its total assets. Such loans must be secured by
collateral (consisting of any combination of cash, U.S. government securities or
irrevocable letters of credit) in an amount at least equal (on a daily
marked-to-market basis) to the current market value of the securities loaned.
The fund retains all or a portion of the interest received on investment of the
cash collateral or receives a fee from the borrower. The fund may terminate the
loans at any time and obtain the return of the securities loaned within five
business days. The fund will continue to receive any interest or dividends paid
on the loaned securities and will continue to have voting rights with respect to
the securities. However, as with other extensions of credit, there are risks of
delay in recovery or even loss of rights in collateral should the borrower fail.
BORROWING. The fund may borrow up to one-third of the value of its total assets
from banks to increase its holdings of portfolio securities. Under the 1940 Act,
the fund is required to maintain continuous asset coverage of 300% with respect
to such borrowings and to sell (within three days) sufficient portfolio holdings
to restore such coverage if it should decline to less than 300% due to market
fluctuations or otherwise, even if such liquidations of the fund's holdings may
be disadvantageous from an investment standpoint. Leveraging by means of
borrowing may exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of
portfolio securities on the fund's Net Asset Value, and money borrowed will be
subject to interest and other costs (which may include commitment fees and/or
the cost of maintaining minimum average balances), which may or may not exceed
the income or gains received from the securities purchased with borrowed funds.
CLOSED-END INVESTMENT COMPANIES. Shares of certain closed-end investment
companies may at times be acquired only at market prices representing premiums
to their Net Asset Values. If the fund acquires shares of closed-end investment
companies, shareholders would bear both their proportionate share of expenses of
the fund (including management and advisory fees) and, indirectly, the expenses
of such closed-end investment companies.
STRUCTURED INVESTMENTS. Included among the issuers of debt securities in which
the fund may invest are entities organized and operated solely for the purpose
of restructuring the investment characteristics of various securities. These
entities are typically organized by investment banking firms which receive fees
in connection with establishing each entity and arranging for the placement of
its securities. This type of restructuring involves the deposit with or purchase
by an entity, such as a corporation or trust, of specified instruments and the
issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities ("structured
investments") backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying
instruments. The cash flows on the underlying instruments may be apportioned
among the newly issued structured investments to create securities with
different investment characteristics such as varying maturities, payment
priorities or interest rate provisions; the extent of the payments made with
respect to structured investments is dependent on the extent of the cash flows
on the underlying instruments. Because structured investments of the type in
which the fund anticipates investing typically involve no credit enhancement,
their credit risk will generally be equivalent to that of the underlying
instruments.
The fund is permitted to invest in a class of structured investments that is
either subordinated or unsubordinated to the right of payment of another class.
Subordinated structured investments typically have higher yields and present
greater risks than unsubordinated structured investments. Although the fund's
purchase of subordinated structured investments would have a similar economic
effect to that of borrowing against the underlying securities, the purchase will
not be deemed to be leveraged for purposes of the limitations placed on the
extent of the fund's assets that may be used for borrowing activities.
Certain issuers of structured investments may be deemed to be "investment
companies" as defined in the 1940 Act. As a result, a fund's investment in these
structured investments may be limited by the restrictions contained in the 1940
Act. Structured investments are typically sold in private placement
transactions, and there currently is no active trading market for structured
investments. To the extent such investments are illiquid, they will be subject
to the fund's restrictions on investments in illiquid securities.
FUTURES CONTRACTS. The fund may purchase and sell financial futures contracts.
Although some financial futures contracts call for making or taking delivery of
the underlying securities, in most cases these obligations are closed out before
the settlement date. The closing of a contractual obligation is accomplished by
purchasing or selling an identical offsetting futures contract. Other financial
futures contracts by their terms call for cash settlements.
The fund may also buy and sell index futures contracts with respect to any stock
index traded on a recognized stock exchange or board of trade. An index futures
contract is a contract to buy or sell units of an index at a specified future
date at a price agreed upon when the contract is made. The stock index futures
contract specifies that no delivery of the actual stocks making up the index
will take place. Instead, settlement in cash must occur upon the termination of
the contract, with the settlement being the difference between the contract
price and the actual level of the stock index at the expiration of the contract.
At the time the fund purchases a futures contract, an amount of cash, U.S.
government securities, or other highly liquid debt securities equal to the
market value of the futures contract will be deposited in a segregated account
with the fund's custodian. When writing a futures contract, the fund will
maintain with its custodian liquid assets that, when added to the amounts
deposited with a futures commission merchant or broker as margin, are equal to
the market value of the instruments underlying the contract. Alternatively, the
fund may "cover" its position by owning the instruments underlying the contract
(or, in the case of an index futures contract, a portfolio with a volatility
substantially similar to that of the index on which the futures contract is
based), or holding a call option permitting the fund to purchase the same
futures contract at a price no higher than the price of the contract written by
the fund (or at a higher price if the difference is maintained in liquid assets
with the fund's custodian).
OPTIONS ON SECURITIES OR INDICES. The fund may write covered call and put
options and purchase call and put options on securities or stock indices that
are traded on U.S. and foreign exchanges and in the over-the-counter markets.
An option on a security is a contract that gives the purchaser of the option, in
return for the premium paid, the right to buy a specified security (in the case
of a call option) or to sell a specified security (in the case of a put option)
from or to the writer of the option at a designated price during the term of the
option. An option on a securities index gives the purchaser of the option, in
return for the premium paid, the right to receive from the seller cash equal to
the difference between the closing price of the index and the exercise price of
the option.
The fund may write a call or put option only if the option is "covered." A call
option on a security written by the fund is "covered" if the fund owns the
underlying security covered by the call or has an absolute and immediate right
to acquire that security without additional cash consideration (or for
additional cash consideration held in a segregated account by its custodian)
upon conversion or exchange of other securities held in its portfolio. A call
option on a security is also "covered" if the fund holds a call on the same
security and in the same principal amount as the call written where the exercise
price of the call held (1) is equal to or less than the exercise price of the
call written or (2) is greater than the exercise price of the call written if
the difference is maintained by the fund in cash or high grade U.S. government
securities in a segregated account with its custodian. A put option on a
security written by the fund is "covered" if the fund maintains cash or fixed
income securities with a value equal to the exercise price in a segregated
account with its custodian, or else holds a put on the same security and in the
same principal amount as the put written where the exercise price of the put
held is equal to or greater than the exercise price of the put written.
The fund will cover call options on stock indices that it writes by owning
securities whose price changes, in the opinion of Asset Management Hong Kong,
are expected to be similar to those of the index, or in such other manner as may
be in accordance with the rules of the exchange on which the option is traded
and applicable laws and regulations. Nevertheless, where the fund covers a call
option on a stock index through ownership of securities, such securities may not
match the composition of the index. In that event, the fund will not be fully
covered and could be subject to risk of loss in the event of adverse changes in
the value of the index. The fund will cover put options on stock indices that it
writes by segregating assets equal to the option's exercise price, or in such
other manner as may be in accordance with the rules of the exchange on which the
option is traded and applicable laws and regulations.
The fund will receive a premium from writing a put or call option, which
increases the fund's gross income in the event the option expires unexercised or
is closed out at a profit. If the value of a security or an index on which the
fund has written a call option falls or remains the same, the fund will realize
a profit in the form of the premium received (less transaction costs) that could
offset all or a portion of any decline in the value of the portfolio securities
being hedged. If the value of the underlying security or index rises, however,
the fund will realize a loss in its call option position, which will reduce the
benefit of any unrealized appreciation in the fund's investments. By writing a
put option, the fund assumes the risk of a decline in the underlying security or
index. To the extent that the price changes of the portfolio securities being
hedged correlate with changes in the value of the underlying security or index,
writing covered put options on indices or securities will increase the fund's
losses in the event of a market decline, although such losses will be offset in
part by the premium received for writing the option.
The fund may also purchase put options to hedge its investments against a
decline in value. By purchasing a put option, the fund will seek to offset a
decline in the value of the portfolio securities being hedged through
appreciation of the put option. If the value of the fund's investments does not
decline as anticipated, or if the value of the option does not increase, the
fund's loss will be limited to the premium paid for the option plus related
transaction costs. The success of this strategy will depend, in part, on the
correlation between the changes in value of the underlying security or index and
the changes in value of the fund's security holdings being hedged.
The fund may purchase call options on individual securities to hedge against an
increase in the price of securities that the fund anticipates purchasing in the
future. Similarly, the fund may purchase call options on a securities index to
attempt to reduce the risk of missing a broad market advance, or an advance in
an industry or market segment, at a time when the fund holds uninvested cash or
short-term debt securities awaiting investment. When purchasing call options,
the fund will bear the risk of losing all or a portion of the premium paid if
the value of the underlying security or index does not rise.
There can be no assurance that a liquid market will exist when the fund seeks to
close out an option position. Trading could be interrupted, for example, because
of supply and demand imbalances arising from a lack of either buyers or sellers,
or the options exchange could suspend trading after the price has risen or
fallen more than the maximum specified by the exchange. Although the fund may be
able to offset to some extent any adverse effects of being unable to liquidate
an option position, the fund may experience losses in some cases as a result of
such inability.
FOREIGN CURRENCY HEDGING TRANSACTIONS. In order to hedge against foreign
currency exchange rate risks, the fund may enter into forward foreign currency
exchange contracts and foreign currency futures contracts, as well as purchase
put or call options on foreign currencies, as described below. The fund may also
conduct its foreign currency exchange transactions on a spot (I.E., cash) basis
at the spot rate prevailing in the foreign currency exchange market.
The fund may enter into forward foreign currency exchange contracts ("forward
contracts") to attempt to minimize the risk to the fund from adverse changes in
the relationship between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies. A forward
contract is an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency for an agreed
price at a future date which is individually negotiated and privately traded by
currency traders and their customers. The fund may enter into a forward
contract, for example, when it enters into a contract for the purchase or sale
of a security denominated in a foreign currency in order to "lock in" the U.S.
dollar price of the security. In addition, for example, when the fund believes
that a foreign currency may suffer or enjoy a substantial movement against
another currency, it may enter into a forward contract to sell an amount of the
former foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of the fund's
portfolio securities denominated in such foreign currency. This second
investment practice is generally referred to as "cross-hedging." Because in
connection with the fund's forward foreign currency transactions an amount of
the fund's assets equal to the amount of the purchase will be held aside or
segregated to be used to pay for the commitment, the fund will always have cash,
cash equivalents or high quality debt securities available sufficient to cover
any commitments under these contracts or to limit any potential risk. In
addition, when the fund sells a forward contract, it will cover its obligation
under the contract by segregating cash, cash equivalents or high quality debt
securities, or by owning securities denominated in the corresponding currency
and with a market value equal to or greater than the fund's obligation. Assets
used as cover for forward contracts will be marked to market on a daily basis.
While these contracts are not presently regulated by the Commodity Futures
Trading Commission, it may in the future assert authority to regulate forward
contracts. In such event, the fund's ability to utilize forward contracts in the
manner set forth above may be restricted. Forward contracts may limit potential
gain from a positive change in the relationship between the U.S. dollar and
foreign currencies. Unanticipated changes in currency prices may result in
poorer overall performance for the fund than if it had not engaged in such
contracts.
The fund may purchase and write put and call options on foreign currencies for
the purpose of protecting against declines in the dollar value of foreign
portfolio securities and against increases in the dollar cost of foreign
securities to be acquired. As is the case with other kinds of options, however,
the writing of an option on foreign currency will constitute only a partial
hedge, up to the amount of the premium received, and the fund could be required
to purchase or sell foreign currencies at disadvantageous exchange rates,
thereby incurring losses. The purchase of an option on foreign currency may
constitute an effective hedge against fluctuation in exchange rates, although,
in the event of rate movements adverse to the fund's position, the fund may
forfeit the entire amount of the premium plus related transaction costs. Options
on foreign currencies to be written or purchased by the fund will be traded on
U.S. and foreign exchanges or over-the-counter.
The fund may enter into exchange-traded contracts for the purchase or sale for
future delivery of foreign currencies ("foreign currency futures"). This
investment technique will be used only to hedge against anticipated future
changes in exchange rates which otherwise might adversely affect the value of
the fund's portfolio securities or adversely affect the prices of securities
that the fund intends to purchase at a later date. The successful use of foreign
currency futures will usually depend on Asset Management Hong Kong's ability to
forecast currency exchange rate movements correctly. Should exchange rates move
in an unexpected manner, the fund may not achieve the anticipated benefits of
foreign currency futures or may realize losses.
WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND?
FOREIGN SECURITIES. You should consider carefully the substantial risks involved
in securities of companies and governments of foreign nations, which are in
addition to the usual risks inherent in domestic investments. There may be less
publicly available information about foreign companies comparable to the reports
and ratings published about companies in the U.S. Foreign companies are not
generally subject to uniform accounting or financial reporting standards, and
auditing practices and requirements may not be comparable to those applicable to
U.S. companies. The fund, therefore, may encounter difficulty in obtaining
market quotations for purposes of valuing its portfolio and calculating its Net
Asset Value. Foreign markets have substantially less volume than the NYSE and
securities of some foreign companies are less liquid and more volatile than
securities of comparable U.S. companies. Commission rates in foreign countries,
which are generally fixed rather than subject to negotiation as in the U.S., are
likely to be higher. In many foreign countries there is less government
supervision and regulation of stock exchanges, brokers and listed companies than
in the U.S.
Investments in companies domiciled in developing countries may be subject to
potentially higher risks than investments in developed countries. These risks
include (i) less social, political and economic stability; (ii) the small
current size of the markets for such securities and the currently low or
nonexistent volume of trading, which result in a lack of liquidity and in
greater price volatility; (iii) certain national policies which may restrict the
fund's investment opportunities, including restrictions on investment in issuers
or industries deemed sensitive to national interests; (iv) foreign taxation; (v)
the absence of developed legal structures governing private or foreign
investment or allowing for judicial redress for injury to private property; (vi)
the absence, until recently in certain Eastern European countries, of a capital
market structure or market-oriented economy; and (vii) the possibility that
recent favorable economic developments in Eastern Europe may be slowed or
reversed by unanticipated political or social events in such countries.
In addition, many countries in which the fund may invest have experienced
substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation for many
years. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had and may
continue to have negative effects on the economies and securities markets of
certain countries. Moreover, the economies of some developing countries may
differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as growth
of gross domestic product, rate of inflation, currency depreciation, capital
reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency and balance of payments position.
Investments in Eastern European countries may involve risks of nationalization,
expropriation and confiscatory taxation. The Communist governments of a number
of Eastern European countries expropriated large amounts of private property in
the past, in many cases without adequate compensation, and there can be no
assurance that such expropriation will not occur in the future. In the event of
such expropriation, the fund could lose a substantial portion of any investments
it has made in the affected countries.
Certain Eastern European countries, which do not have market economies, are
characterized by an absence of developed legal structures governing private and
foreign investments and private property. Certain countries require governmental
approval prior to investments by foreign persons, or limit the amount of
investment by foreign persons in a particular company, or limit the investment
of foreign persons to only a specific class of securities of a company that may
have less advantageous terms than securities of the company available for
purchase by nationals. Although in most Eastern European countries the local
currencies have been allowed to fluctuate according to their market value,
various foreign exchange restrictions remain in effect, limiting the ability of
foreign investors to repatriate their profits. The conversion rates for certain
Eastern European currencies may be artificial to the actual markets values of
the currencies and may be adverse to fund shareholders. Further, accounting
standards which exist in Eastern European countries may differ from U.S.
standards.
Governments in certain Eastern European countries may require that a
governmental or quasi-governmental authority act as custodian of the fund's
assets invested in such country. To the extent such governmental or
quasi-governmental authorities do not satisfy the requirements of the 1940 Act
to act as foreign custodians of the fund's cash and securities, the fund's
investment in such countries may be limited or may be required to be effected
through intermediaries. The risk of loss through governmental confiscation may
be increased in such countries.
Investing in Russian companies involves a high degree of risk and special
considerations not typically associated with investing in the U.S. securities
markets, and should be considered highly speculative. Such risks include,
together with Russia's continuing political and economic instability and the
slow-paced development of its market economy, the following: (a) delays in
settling portfolio transactions and risk of loss arising out of Russia's system
of share registration and custody; (b) the risk that it may be impossible or
more difficult than in other countries to obtain and/or enforce a judgment; (c)
pervasiveness of corruption, insider trading, and crime in the Russian economic
system; (d) currency exchange rate volatility and the lack of available currency
hedging instruments; (e) higher rates of inflation (including the risk of social
unrest associated with periods of hyper-inflation); (f) controls on foreign
investment and local practices disfavoring foreign investors and limitations on
repatriation of invested capital, profits and dividends, and on the fund's
ability to exchange local currencies for U.S. dollars; (g) the risk that the
government of Russia or other executive or legislative bodies may decide not to
continue to support the economic reform programs implemented since the
dissolution of the Soviet Union and could follow radically different political
and/or economic policies to the detriment of investors, including
non-market-oriented policies such as the support of certain industries at the
expense of other sectors or investors, a return to the centrally planned economy
that existed prior to the dissolution of the Soviet Union, or the
nationalization of privatized enterprises; (h) the risks of investing in
securities with substantially less liquidity and in issuers having significantly
smaller market capitalizations, when compared to securities and issuers in more
developed markets; (i) the difficulties associated in obtaining accurate market
valuations of many Russian securities, based partly on the limited amount of
publicly available information; (j) the financial condition of Russian
companies, including large amounts of inter-company debt which may create a
payments crisis on a national scale; (k) dependency on exports and the
corresponding importance of international trade; (l) the risk that the Russian
tax system will not be reformed to prevent inconsistent, retroactive and/or
exorbitant taxation or, in the alternative, the risk that a reformed tax system
may result in the inconsistent and unpredictable enforcement of the new tax
laws; (m) possible difficulty in identifying a purchaser of securities held by
the fund due to the underdeveloped nature of the securities markets; (n) the
possibility that pending legislation could restrict the levels of foreign
investment in certain industries, thereby limiting the number of investment
opportunities in Russia; (o) the risk that pending legislation would confer to
Russian courts the exclusive jurisdiction to resolve disputes between foreign
investors and the Russian government, instead of bringing such disputes before
an internationally-accepted third-country arbitrator; and (p) the difficulty in
obtaining information about the financial condition of Russian issuers, in light
of the different disclosure and accounting standards applicable to Russian
companies.
There is little long-term historical data on Russian securities markets because
they are relatively new and a substantial proportion of securities transactions
in Russia are privately negotiated outside of stock exchanges. Because of the
recent formation of the securities markets as well as the underdeveloped state
of the banking and telecommunications systems, settlement, clearing and
registration of securities transactions are subject to significant risks.
Ownership of shares (except where shares are held through depositories that meet
the requirements of the 1940 Act) is defined according to entries in the
company's share register and normally evidenced by extracts from the register or
by formal share certificates. However, there is no central registration system
for shareholders and these services are carried out by the companies themselves
or by registrars located throughout Russia. These registrars are not necessarily
subject to effective state supervision nor are they licensed with any
governmental entity and it is possible for the fund to lose its registration
through fraud, negligence or even mere oversight. While the fund will endeavor
to ensure that its interest continues to be appropriately recorded either itself
or through a custodian or other agent inspecting the share register and by
obtaining extracts of share registers through regular confirmations, these
extracts have no legal enforceability and it is possible that subsequent illegal
amendment or other fraudulent act may deprive the fund of its ownership rights
or improperly dilute its interests. In addition, while applicable Russian
regulations impose liability on registrars for losses resulting from their
errors, it may be difficult for the fund to enforce any rights it may have
against the registrar or issuer of the securities in the event of loss of share
registration. Furthermore, although a Russian public enterprise with more than
500 shareholders is required by law to contract out the maintenance of its
shareholder register to an independent entity that meets certain criteria, in
practice this regulation has not always been strictly enforced. Because of this
lack of independence, management of a company may be able to exert considerable
influence over who can purchase and sell the company's shares by illegally
instructing the registrar to refuse to record transactions in the share
register. In addition, so-called "financial-industrial groups" have emerged in
recent years that seek to deter outside investors from interfering in the
management of companies they control. These practices may prevent the fund from
investing in the securities of certain Russian companies deemed suitable by
Asset Management Hong Kong. Further, this also could cause a delay in the sale
of Russian company securities by the fund if a potential purchaser is deemed
unsuitable, which may expose the fund to potential loss on the investment.
The fund's management endeavors to buy and sell foreign currencies on as
favorable a basis as practicable. Some price spread on currency exchange (to
cover service charges) may be incurred, particularly when the fund changes
investments from one country to another or when proceeds of the sale of shares
in U.S. dollars are used for the purchase of securities in foreign countries.
Also, some countries may adopt policies which would prevent the fund from
transferring cash out of the country, withhold portions of interest and
dividends at the source. There is the possibility of cessation of trading on
national exchanges, expropriation, nationalization or confiscatory taxation,
withholding and other foreign tax on income or other amounts, foreign exchange
controls (which may include suspension of the ability to transfer currency from
a given country), default in foreign government securities, political or social
instability, or diplomatic developments that could affect investments in
securities of issuers in those nations.
The fund may be affected either unfavorably or favorably by fluctuations in the
relative rates of exchange between the currencies of different nations, by
exchange control regulations and by indigenous economic and political
developments. Some countries in which the fund may invest may also have fixed or
managed currencies that are not free-floating against the U.S. dollar. Further,
certain currencies may not be internationally traded.
Certain currencies have experienced a steady devaluation relative to the U.S.
dollar. Any devaluations in the currencies in which the fund's portfolio
securities are denominated may have a detrimental impact on the fund. Through
the fund's flexible policy, management endeavors to avoid unfavorable
consequences and to take advantage of favorable developments in particular
nations where, from time to time, it places the fund's investments.
The exercise of this flexible policy may include decisions to purchase
securities with substantial risk characteristics and other decisions such as
changing the emphasis on investments from one nation to another and from one
type of security to another. Some of these decisions may later prove profitable
and others may not. No assurance can be given that profits, if any, will exceed
losses.
The Board considers at least annually the likelihood of the imposition by any
foreign government of exchange control restrictions which would affect the
liquidity of the fund's assets maintained with custodians in foreign countries,
as well as the degree of risk from political acts of foreign governments to
which such assets may be exposed. The Board also considers the degree of risk
involved through the holding of portfolio securities in domestic and foreign
securities depositories (see "Investment Management and Other Services -
Shareholder Servicing Agent and Custodian"). However, in the absence of willful
misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on the part of Asset Management Hong
Kong, any losses resulting from the holding of the fund's portfolio securities
in foreign countries and/or with securities depositories will be at the risk of
the shareholders. No assurance can be given that the Board's appraisal of the
risks will always be correct or that such exchange control restrictions or
political acts of foreign governments might not occur.
LOW-RATED SECURITIES. Bonds which are rated C by Moody's are the lowest rated
class of bonds, and issues so rated can be regarded as having extremely poor
prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing. Bonds rated C by S&P
are obligations on which no interest is being paid.
Although they may offer higher yields than do higher rated securities, low rated
and unrated debt securities generally involve greater volatility of price and
risk of principal and income, including the possibility of default by, or
bankruptcy of, the issuers of the securities. In addition, the markets in which
low rated and unrated debt securities are traded are more limited than those in
which higher rated securities are traded. The existence of limited markets for
particular securities may diminish the fund's ability to sell the securities at
fair value either to meet redemption requests or to respond to a specific
economic event such as a deterioration in the creditworthiness of the issuer.
Reduced secondary market liquidity for certain low rated or unrated debt
securities may also make it more difficult for the fund to obtain accurate
market quotations for the purposes of valuing the fund's portfolio. Market
quotations are generally available on many low rated or unrated securities only
from a limited number of dealers and may not necessarily represent firm bids of
such dealers or prices for actual sales.
Adverse publicity and investor perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental
analysis, may decrease the values and liquidity of low rated debt securities,
especially in a thinly traded market. Analysis of the creditworthiness of
issuers of low rated debt securities may be more complex than for issuers of
higher rated securities, and the ability of the fund to achieve its investment
goal may, to the extent of investment in low rated debt securities, be more
dependent upon such creditworthiness analysis than would be the case if the fund
were investing in higher rated securities.
Low rated debt securities may be more susceptible to real or perceived adverse
economic and competitive industry conditions than investment grade securities.
The prices of low rated debt securities have been found to be less sensitive to
interest rate changes than higher rated investments, but more sensitive to
adverse economic downturns or individual corporate developments. A projection of
an economic downturn or of a period of rising interest rates, for example, could
cause a decline in low rated debt securities prices because the advent of a
recession could lessen the ability of a highly leveraged company to make
principal and interest payments on its debt securities. If the issuer of low
rated debt securities defaults, the fund may incur additional expenses to seek
recovery.
DERIVATIVE SECURITIES. The fund's ability to reduce or eliminate its futures and
related options positions will depend upon the liquidity of the secondary
markets for such futures and options. The fund intends to purchase or sell
futures and related options only on exchanges or boards of trade where there
appears to be an active secondary market, but there is no assurance that a
liquid secondary market will exist for any particular contract or at any
particular time. Use of stock index futures and related options for hedging may
involve risks because of imperfect correlations between movements in the prices
of the futures or related options and movements in the prices of the securities
being hedged. Successful use of futures and related options by the fund for
hedging purposes also depends upon Asset Management Hong Kong's ability to
predict correctly movements in the direction of the market, as to which no
assurance can be given.
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS
The fund has adopted the following restrictions as fundamental policies. These
restrictions may not be changed without the approval of a majority of the
outstanding voting securities of the fund. Under the 1940 Act, this means the
approval of (i) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the fund or (ii) 67%
or more of the shares of the fund present at a shareholder meeting if more than
50% of the outstanding shares of the fund are represented at the meeting in
person or by proxy, whichever is less. The fund MAY NOT:
1. Invest in real estate or mortgages on real estate (although the fund may
invest in marketable securities secured by real estate or interests
therein or issued by companies or investment trusts which invest in real
estate or interests therein); invest in interests (other than debentures
or equity stock interests) in oil, gas or other mineral exploration or
development programs; purchase or sell commodity contracts (except
futures contracts as described in the fund's Prospectus); or invest in
other open-end investment companies except as permitted by the 1940
Act./1/
2. Purchase or retain securities of any company in which trustees or
officers of the fund or of Asset Management Hong Kong, individually own
more than 1/2 of 1% of the securities of such company or, in the
aggregate, own more than 5% of the securities of such company.
3. Purchase any security (other than obligations of the U.S. government, its
agencies and instrumentalities) if, as a result, as to 75% of the fund's
total assets (i) more than 5% of the fund's total assets would be
invested in securities of any single issuer, or (ii) the fund would then
own more than 10% of the voting securities of any single issuer./2/
4. Act as an underwriter; issue senior securities except as set forth in
Investment Restriction 6 below; or purchase on margin or sell short (but
the fund may make margin payments in connection with options on
securities or securities indices, foreign currencies, futures contracts
and related options, and forward contracts and related options).
5. Loan money, apart from the purchase of a portion of an issue of
publicly distributed bonds, debentures, notes and other evidences of
indebtedness, although the fund may enter into repurchase agreements
and lend its portfolio securities.
6. Borrow money, except that the fund may borrow money from banks in an
amount not exceeding 33 1/3% of the value of the fund's total assets
(including the amount borrowed), or pledge, mortgage or hypothecate its
assets for any purposes, except to secure borrowings and then only to
an extent not greater than 15% of the fund's total assts. Arrangements
with respect to margin for futures contracts, forward contracts and
related options are not deemed to be a pledge of assets.
7. Invest more than 5% of the value of the fund's total assets in
securities of issuers, including their predecessors, which have been
in continuous operation less than three years.
8. Invest more than 5% of the fund's total assets in warrants, whether or
not listed on the NYSE or the American Stock Exchange, including no
more than 2% of its total assets which may be invested in warrants
that are not listed on those exchanges. Warrants acquired by the fund
in units or attached to securities are not included in this
restriction.
9. Invest more than 25% of the fund's total assets in a single industry.
10. Participate on a joint or a joint and several basis in any trading
account in securities. See "How does the fund Buy Securities for its
Portfolio?" as to transactions in the same securities for the fund,
other clients and/or other mutual funds within the Franklin Templeton
Group of Funds.
11. Invest more than 15% of the fund's total assets in securities of
foreign issuers that are not listed on a recognized U.S. or foreign
securities exchange, including no more than 10% of its total assets in
restricted securities, securities that are not readily marketable,
repurchase agreements having more than seven days to maturity, and
over-the-counter options purchased by the fund. Assets used as cover
for over-the-counter options written by the fund are considered not
readily marketable.
- ------------------------
/1/ As a non-fundamental policy, the fund will not invest more than 10% of its
assets in real estate investment trusts. In addition, the fund has undertaken
that (1) the fund will invest in other open-end investment companies only (a)
for short term investment of cash balances in money market funds, or (b) for
investment in securities in the portfolios of such other open-end investment
companies, direct investment in which is unavailable to the fund; and (2) the
fund will not pay an investment management fee with respect to any portion of
its portfolio comprising shares of other open-end investment companies.
/2/ With respect to 100% of its assets, the fund will not purchase more than 10%
of a company's outstanding voting securities. As a non-fundamental policy, the
fund will not invest in any company for the purpose of exercising control or
management.
The fund may also be subject to investment limitations imposed by foreign
jurisdictions in which the fund sells its shares.
If a bankruptcy or other extraordinary event occurs concerning a particular
security owned by the fund, the fund may receive stock, real estate, or other
investments that the fund would not, or could not, buy. In this case, the fund
intends to dispose of the investment as soon as practicable while maximizing the
return to shareholders.
If a percentage restriction is met at the time of investment, a later increase
or decrease in the percentage due to a change in the value or liquidity of
portfolio securities or the amount of assets will not be considered a violation
of any of the foregoing restrictions.
If the fund receives from an issuer of securities held by the fund subscription
rights to purchase securities of that issuer, and if the fund exercises such
subscription rights at a time when the fund's portfolio holdings of securities
of that issuer would otherwise exceed the limits set forth in investment
restrictions 3 or 9 above, it will not constitute a violation if, prior to
receipt of securities upon exercise of such rights, and after announcement of
such rights, the fund has sold at least as many securities of the same class and
value as it would receive on exercise of such rights. The fund may borrow up to
5% of the value of its total assets to meet redemptions and for other temporary
purposes.
OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES
The Board has the responsibility for the overall management of the fund,
including general supervision and review of its investment activities. The
Board, in turn, elects the officers of the fund who are responsible for
administering the fund's day-to-day operations. The affiliations of the officers
and Board members and their principal occupations for the past five years are
shown below. Members of the Board who are considered "interested persons" of the
fund under the 1940 Act are indicated by an asterisk (*).
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
POSITIONS AND OFFICES
NAME, ADDRESS AND AGE WITH THE FUND PRINCIPAL OCCUPATION DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS
- --------------------- --------------- -----------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C>
HARRIS J. ASHTON Trustee Director, RBC Holdings, Inc. (a bank holding company)
191 Clapboard Ridge and Bar-S Foods (a meat packing company); director or
Greenwich, Connecticut trustee, as the case may be, of 50 of the investment
Age 65 companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds;
and formerly, President, Chief Executive Officer and
Chairman of the Board, General Host Corporation
(nursery and craft centers).
* NICHOLAS F. BRADY Trustee Chairman, Templeton Emerging Markets Investment Trust
The Bullitt House PLC, Templeton Latin America Investment Trust PLC,
102 East Dover Street Darby Overseas Investments, Ltd. and Darby Emerging
Easton, Maryland Markets Investments LDC (investment firms)
Age 68 (1994-present); Chairman and Director, Templeton
Central and Eastern European InvestmentCompany;
Director, Templeton Global Strategy Funds,
Amerada Hess Corporation, Christiana Companies,
and the H.J. Heinz Company; director or
trustee, as the case may be, of 21 of the
investment companies in the Franklin Templeton
Group of Funds; and formerly, Secretary of
the United States Department of the Treasury
(1988-1993) and Chairman of the Board,
Dillon, Read & Co., Inc. (investment banking)
prior to 1988.
FRANK J. CROTHERS Trustee Chairman, Atlantic Equipment & Power Ltd.; Vice
P.O. Box N-3238 Chairman, Caribbean Utilities Co., Ltd.; President,
Nassau, Bahamas Provo Power Corporation; Director of various other
Age 53 business and non-profit organizations; and director
or trustee, as the case may be, of 5 of the
investment companies in the Franklin Templeton Group
of Funds.
S. JOSEPH FORTUNATO Trustee Member of the law firm of Pitney, Hardin, Kipp &
Park Avenue at Morris County Szuch; director or trustee, as the case may be, of 52
P.O. Box 1945 of the investment companies in the Franklin Templeton
Morristown, New Jersey Group of Funds; and formerly, Director, General Host
Age 65 Corporation (nursery and craft centers).
JOHN Wm. GALBRAITH Trustee President, Galbraith Properties, Inc. (personal
360 Central Avenue investment company); Director, Gulf West Banks, Inc.
Suite 1300 (bank holding company) (1995-present); director or
St. Petersburg, Florida trustee, as the case may be, of 20 of the investment
Age 76 companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds;
and formerly, Director, Mercantile Bank (1991-1995),
Vice Chairman, Templeton, Galbraith & Hansberger Ltd.
(1986-1992) and Chairman, Templeton Funds Management,
Inc. (1974-1991).
ANDREW H. HINES, JR. Trustee Consultant for the Triangle Consulting Group;
150 Second Avenue N. Executive-in-Residence of Eckerd College
St. Petersburg, Florida (1991-present); director or trustee, as the case may
Age 75 be, of 22 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly, Director,
Checkers Drive-In Restaurant, Inc.; Chairman of
the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Florida
Progress Corporation (1982-1990) and Director
of various of its subsidiaries.
EDITH E. HOLIDAY Trustee Director (1993-present), Amerada Hess Corporation and
3239 38th St., N.W. Hercules Incorporated; Director, Beverly Enterprises,
Washington, D.C. Inc. (1995-present) and H.J. Heinz Company
Age 46 (1994-present); director or trustee, as the case may
be, of 25 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly, Chairman
(1995-1997) and Trustee(1993-1997) of National
Child Research Center; Assistant to the President
of the United States and Secretary of the Cabinet
(1990-1993), General Counsel to the United States
Treasury Department (1989-1990) and Counselor to the
Secretary and Assistant Secretary for Public
Affairs and Public Liaison-United States Treasury
Department (1988-1989).
* CHARLES B. JOHNSON Trustee, Chairman of the President, Chief Executive Officer and Director,
777 Mariners Island Blvd. Board and Vice President Franklin Resources, Inc.; Chairman of the Board and
San Mateo, California Director, Franklin Advisers, Inc., Franklin Advisory
Age 65 Services, Inc., Franklin Investment Advisory Services,
Inc. and Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc.;
Director, Franklin/Templeton Investor Services, Inc.,
Franklin Templeton Services, Inc.; officer and/or
director or trustee, as the case may be, of most
of the other subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc.
and of 51 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly, Director,
General Host Corporation (nursery and craft centers).
* CHARLES E. JOHNSON Trustee and Vice Senior Vice President and Director, Franklin
500 East Broward Blvd. President Resources, Inc.; Senior Vice President, Franklin
Fort Lauderdale, Florida Templeton Distributors, Inc.; President and Director,
Age 41 Templeton Worldwide, Inc.; President, Chief Executive
Officer, Chief Investment Officer and Director, Franklin
Institutional Services Corporation; Chairman and Director,
Templeton Investment Counsel, Inc.; Vice President,
Franklin Advisers, Inc.; officer and/or director of
some of the subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc.; and
officer and/or director or trustee, as the case may
be, of 35 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds.
BETTY P. KRAHMER Trustee Director or Trustee of various civic associations;
2201 Kentmere Parkway director or trustee, as the case may be, of 21 of the
Wilmington, Delaware investment companies in the Franklin Templeton Group
Age 68 of Funds; and formerly, Economic Analyst, U.S.
government.
GORDON S. MACKLIN Trustee Chairman, White River Corporation (financial
8212 Burning Tree Road services); Director, Fund American Enterprises
Bethesda, Maryland Holdings, Inc., MCI Communications Corporation, CCC
Age 69 Information Services Group, Inc. (information
services), MedImmune, Inc. (biotechnology), Spacehab,
Inc. (aerospace services) and Real 3D (software);
director or trustee, as the case may be, of 50 of
the investment companies in the Franklin Templeton
Group of Funds; amd FORMERLY, Chairman, Hambrecht and
Quist Group, Director, H & Q Healthcare Investors,
and Lockheed Martin Corporation and President, National
Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.
FRED R. MILLSAPS Trustee Manager of personal investments (1978-present);
2665 N.E. 37th Drive Director of various business and nonprofit
Fort Lauderdale, Florida organizations; director or trustee, as the case may
Age 69 be, of 22 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly, Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer of Landmark Banking Corporation
(1969-1978), Financial Vice President of Florida Power
and Light (1965-1969) and Vice President of the Federal
Reserve Bank of Atlanta (1958-1965).
CONSTANTINE DEAN Trustee Physician, Lyford Cay Hospital (1987-present);
TSERETOPOULOS Director of various nonprofit organizations; director
Lyford Cay Hospital or trustee, as the case may be, of 5 of the
P.O. Box N-7776 investment companies in the Franklin Templeton Group
Nassau, Bahamas of Funds; and formerly, Cardiology Fellow, University
Age 44 of Maryland (1985-1987) and Internal Medicine Intern,
Greater Baltimore Medical Center (1982-1985).
J. MARK MOBIUS President Portfolio Manager of various Templeton advisory
Two Exchange Square affiliates; Managing Director of Templeton Asset
Suite 908 Management Ltd.; officer of 8 of the investment
Hong Kong companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds;
Age 61 and formerly, President of International Investment
Trust Company Limited (investment manager of Taiwan R.O.C.
Fund)(1986-1987) and Director, Vickers da Costa, Hong
Kong (1983-1986).
RUPERT H. JOHNSON, JR. Vice President Executive Vice President and Director, Franklin
777 Mariners Island Blvd. Resources, Inc. and Franklin Templeton Distributors,
San Mateo, California Inc.; President and Director, Franklin Advisers,
Age 57 Inc.; Senior Vice President and Director, Franklin
Advisory Services, Inc. and Franklin Investment
Advisory Services, Inc.; Director, Franklin/Templeton
Investor Services, Inc.; and officer and/or director
or trustee, as the case may be, of most of the other
subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc. and of 54 of
the investment companies in the Franklin Templeton
Group of Funds.
HARMON E. BURNS Vice President Executive Vice President and Director, Franklin
777 Mariners Island Blvd. Resources, Inc.; Executive Vice President and
San Mateo, California Director, Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc. and
Age 53 Franklin Templeton Services, Inc.; Executive Vice
President,Franklin Advisers, Inc.; Director,
Franklin/Templeton Investor Services, Inc.; and
officer and/or director or trustee, as the case may
be, of 54 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds.
DEBORAH R. GATZEK Vice President Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Franklin
777 Mariners Island Blvd. Resources, Inc.; Senior Vice President, Franklin
San Mateo, California Templeton Services, Inc. and Franklin Templeton
Age 49 Distributors, Inc.; Vice President, Franklin
Advisers, Inc. and Franklin Advisory Services, Inc.;
Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Chief
Operating Officer, Franklin Investment Advisory
Services, Inc.; and officer of 54 of the investment
companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds.
MARK G. HOLOWESKO Vice President President and Chief Investment Officer, Templeton
Lyford Cay Global Advisors Limited; Executive Vice President and
Nassau, Bahamas Director, Templeton Worldwide, Inc.; officer of 21 of
Age 38 the investment companies in the Franklin Templeton
Group of Funds; and formerly, Investment Administrator
with RoyWest Trust Corporation (Bahamas) Limited
(1984-1985).
MARTIN L. FLANAGAN Vice President Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer,
777 Mariners Island Blvd. Franklin Resources, Inc.; Executive Vice President
San Mateo, California and Director, Templeton Worldwide, Inc.; Director,
Age 37 Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer,
Templeton Investment Counsel, Inc.; Senior Vice
President and Treasurer, Franklin Advisers, Inc.;
Treasurer, Franklin Advisory Services, Inc.;
Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer, Franklin
Investment Advisory Services, Inc.; President, Franklin
Templeton Services, Inc.; Senior Vice President,
Franklin/Templeton Investor Services, Inc.; and
officer and/or director or trustee, as the case may
be, of 54 of the investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds.
JOHN R.KAY Vice President Vice President and Treasurer, Templeton Worldwide,
500 East Broward Blvd. Inc.; Assistant Vice President, Franklin Templeton
Fort Lauderdale, Florida Distributors, Inc.; officer of 25 of the investment
Age 57 companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds;
and formerly, Vice President and Controller, Keystone
Group, Inc.
ELIZABETH M. KNOBLOCK Vice President - General Counsel, Secretary and a Senior Vice
500 East Broward Blvd. Compliance President, Templeton Investment Counsel, Inc.; Senior
Fort Lauderdale, Florida Vice President, Templeton Global Investors, Inc.;
Age 43 officer of 21 of the investment companies in the
Franklin Templeton Group of Funds; formerly, Vice
President and Associate General Counsel, Kidder
Peabody & Co. Inc. (1989-1990), Assistant General
Counsel, Gruntal & Co., Inc. (1988), Vice President
and Associate General Counsel, Shearson Lehman Hutton
Inc. (1988), Vice President and Assistant General
Counsel, E.F. Hutton & Co. Inc. (1986-1988), and
Special Counsel of the Division of Investment
Management of the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (1984-1986).
JAMES R. BAIO Treasurer Certified Public Accountant; Treasurer, Franklin
500 East Broward Blvd. Mutual Advisers, Inc.; Senior Vice President,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida Templeton Worldwide, Inc., Templeton Global
Age 44 Investors, Inc. and Templeton Funds Trust Company;
officer of 22 of the investment companies in the
Franklin Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly,
Senior Tax Manager for Ernst & Young (certified
public accountants) (1977-1989).
BARBARA J. GREEN Secretary Senior Vice President, Templeton Worldwide, Inc.;
500 East Broward Blvd. Senior Vice President, Templeton Global Investors,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida Inc.; officer of 21 of the investment companies in
Age 50 the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds; and formerly,
Deputy Director of the Division of Investment Management,
Executive Assistant and Senior Advisor to the Chairman,
Counselor to the Chairman, Special Counsel and Attorney
Fellow, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission(1986-1995),
Attorney, Rogers & Wells, and Judicial Clerk, U.S.
District Court (District of Massachusetts).
</TABLE>
*Nicholas F. Brady, Charles B. Johnson and Charles E. Johnson are "interested
persons" as defined by the 1940 Act. The 1940 Act limits the percentage of
interested persons that comprise a fund's board of directors. Charles B. Johnson
is an interested person due to his ownership interest in Resources, and Charles
E. Johnson is an interested person due to his employment affiliation with
Resources. Mr. Brady's status as an interested person results from his business
affiliations with Resources and Templeton Global Advisors Limited. Mr. Brady and
Resources are both limited partners of Darby Overseas Partners, L.P. ("Darby
Overseas"). Mr. Brady established Darby Overseas in February 1994, and is
Chairman and shareholder of Darby Emerging Markets Investments LDC, which is the
corporate general partner of Darby Overseas. In addition, Darby Overseas and
Templeton Global Advisors Limited are limited partners of Darby Emerging Markets
Fund, L.P. The remaining Trustees of the fund are not interested persons.
The table above shows the officers and Board members who are affiliated with
Distributors and Asset Management Hong Kong. Nonaffiliated members of the Board
and Mr. Brady are currently paid an annual retainer and/or fees for attendance
at Board and committee meetings. Currently, the fund pays the nonaffiliated
Board members and Mr. Brady an annual retainer of $8,000, a fee of $650 per
Board meeting, and its portion of a flat fee of $2,000 for each audit committee
meeting and/or nominating and compensation committee meeting attended. As shown
above, the nonaffiliated Board members also serve as directors or trustees of
other investment companies in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds. They may
receive fees from these funds for their services. The following table provides
the total fees paid to nonaffiliated Board members and Mr. Brady by the fund and
by other funds in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TOTAL FEES RECEIVED NUMBER OF BOARDS IN THE
FROM THE FRANKLIN FRANKLIN TEMPLETON GROUP
TOTAL FEES RECEIVED TEMPLETON GROUP OF OF FUNDS ON WHICH EACH
NAME FROM THE FUND* FUNDS** SERVES***
<S> <C> <C> <C>
Harris J. Ashton $11,250 $344,642 50
Nicholas F. Brady 11,250 119,675 21
Frank J. Crothers 12,890 35,300 5
S. Joseph Fortunato 11,250 361,562 52
John Wm. Galbraith 11,250 117,675 20
Andrew H. Hines, Jr. 11,250 144,175 22
Edith E. Holiday 11,250 72,875 25
Betty P. Krahmer 11,250 119,675 21
Gordon S. Macklin 11,250 337,292 50
Fred R. Millsaps 11,916 144,175 22
Constantine Dean Tseretopoulos 12,070 33,775 5
</TABLE>
*For the fiscal year ended December 31, 1997.
**For the calendar year ended December 31, 1997.
***We base the number of boards on the number of registered investment companies
in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds. This number does not include the total
number of series or funds within each investment company for which the Board
members are responsible. The Franklin Templeton Group of Funds currently
includes 57 registered investment companies, with approximately 170 U.S. based
funds or series.
Nonaffiliated members of the Board and Mr. Brady are reimbursed for expenses
incurred in connection with attending board meetings, paid pro rata by each fund
in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds for which they serve as director or
trustee. No officer or Board member received any other compensation, including
pension or retirement benefits, directly or indirectly from the fund or other
funds in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds. Certain officers or Board
members who are shareholders of Resources may be deemed to receive indirect
remuneration by virtue of their participation, if any, in the fees paid to its
subsidiaries.
As of February 9, 1998, the officers and Board members, as a group, owned of
record and beneficially the following shares of the fund: approximately 25,882
Class I shares and 22,469 Advisor Class shares, or less than 1% of the total
outstanding Class I and Advisor Class shares of the fund. Many of the Board
members also own shares in other funds in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds.
Charles B. Johnson and Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. are brothers and the father and
uncle, respectively, of Charles E. Johnson.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AND OTHER SERVICES
INVESTMENT MANAGER AND SERVICES PROVIDED. The fund's investment manager is Asset
Management Hong Kong. Asset Management Hong Kong provides investment research
and portfolio management services, including the selection of securities for the
fund to buy, hold or sell and the selection of brokers through whom the fund's
portfolio transactions are executed. Asset Management Hong Kong renders its
services to the fund from outside the U.S. Asset Management Hong Kong's
activities are subject to the review and supervision of the Board to whom Asset
Management Hong Kong renders periodic reports of the fund's investment
activities. Asset Management Hong Kong and its officers, directors and employees
are covered by fidelity insurance for the protection of the fund.
Asset Management Hong Kong and its affiliates act as investment manager to
numerous other investment companies and accounts. Asset Management Hong Kong may
give advice and take action with respect to any of the other funds it manages,
or for its own account, that may differ from action taken by Asset Management
Hong Kong on behalf of the fund. Similarly, with respect to the fund, Asset
Management Hong Kong is not obligated to recommend, buy or sell, or to refrain
from recommending, buying or selling any security that Asset Management Hong
Kong and access persons, as defined by the 1940 Act, may buy or sell for its or
their own account or for the accounts of any other fund. Asset Management Hong
Kong is not obligated to refrain from investing in securities held by the fund
or other funds that it manages. Of course, any transactions for the accounts of
Asset Management Hong Kong and other access persons will be made in compliance
with the fund's Code of Ethics. Please see "Miscellaneous Information - Summary
of Code of Ethics."
MANAGEMENT FEES. Under its management agreement, the fund pays Asset Management
Hong Kong a monthly management fee equal to an annual rate of 1.25% of its
average daily net assets. Each class of the fund's shares pays its proportionate
share of the management fee.
For the fiscal years ended December 31, 1997, 1996 and 1995, management fees
totaling $57,060,597, $37,609,530 and $26,314,151, respectively, were paid to
Asset Management Hong Kong.
MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT. The management agreement is in effect until April 30,
1999. It may continue in effect for successive annual periods if its continuance
is specifically approved at least annually by a vote of the Board or by a vote
of the holders of a majority of the fund's outstanding voting securities, and in
either event by a majority vote of the Board members who are not parties to the
management agreement or interested persons of any such party (other than as
members of the Board), cast in person at a meeting called for that purpose. The
management agreement may be terminated without penalty at any time by the Board
or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the fund's outstanding voting
securities on 60 days' written notice to Asset Management Hong Kong, or by Asset
Management Hong Kong on 60 days' written notice to the fund, and will
automatically terminate in the event of its assignment, as defined in the 1940
Act.
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES. Since October 1, 1996, FT Services has provided certain
administrative services and facilities for the fund. Prior to that date,
Templeton Global Investors, Inc. provided the same services to the fund. These
include preparing and maintaining books, records, and tax and financial reports,
and monitoring compliance with regulatory requirements. FT Services is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Resources.
Under its administration agreement, the fund pays FT Services a monthly
administration fee equal to an annual rate of 0.15% of the fund's average daily
net assets up to $200 million, 0.135% of average daily net assets over $200
million up to $700 million, 0.10% of average daily net assets over $700 million
up to $1.2 billion, and 0.075% of average daily net assets over $1.2 billion.
During the fiscal years ended December 31, 1997, 1996 and 1995, the fund paid
administration fees totaling $3,998,636, $2,831,572 and $2,153,848,
respectively.
SHAREHOLDER SERVICING AGENT. Investor Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of
Resources, is the fund's shareholder servicing agent and acts as the fund's
transfer agent and dividend-paying agent. Investor Services is compensated on
the basis of a fixed fee per account. The fund may also reimburse Investor
Services for certain out-of-pocket expenses, which may include payments by
Investor Services to entities, including affiliated entities, that provide
sub-shareholder services, recordkeeping and/or transfer agency services to
beneficial owners of the fund. The amount of reimbursements for these services
per benefit plan participant fund account per year may not exceed the per
account fee payable by the fund to Investor Services in connection with
maintaining shareholder accounts.
CUSTODIAN. The Chase Manhattan Bank, at its principal office at MetroTech
Center, Brooklyn, New York 11245, and at the offices of its branches and
agencies throughout the world, acts as custodian of the fund's assets. The
custodian does not participate in decisions relating to the purchase and sale of
portfolio securities.
AUDITORS. McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, 555 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10017,
are the fund's independent auditors. During the fiscal year ended December 31,
1997, their auditing services consisted of rendering an opinion on the financial
statements of the fund included in the fund's Annual Report to Shareholders for
the fiscal year ended December 31, 1997, and review of the fund's filings with
the SEC.
HOW DOES THE FUND BUY SECURITIES FOR ITS PORTFOLIO?
Asset Management Hong Kong selects brokers and dealers to execute the fund's
portfolio transactions in accordance with criteria set forth in the management
agreement and any directions that the Board may give.
When placing a portfolio transaction, Asset Management Hong Kong seeks to obtain
prompt execution of orders at the most favorable net price. For portfolio
transactions on a securities exchange, the amount of commission paid by the fund
is negotiated between Asset Management Hong Kong and the broker executing the
transaction. The determination and evaluation of the reasonableness of the
brokerage commissions paid are based to a large degree on the professional
opinions of the persons responsible for placement and review of the
transactions. These opinions are based on the experience of these individuals in
the securities industry and information available to them about the level of
commissions being paid by other institutional investors of comparable size.
Asset Management Hong Kong will ordinarily place orders to buy and sell
over-the-counter securities on a principal rather than agency basis with a
principal market maker unless, in the opinion of Asset Management Hong Kong, a
better price and execution can otherwise be obtained. Purchases of portfolio
securities from underwriters will include a commission or concession paid by the
issuer to the underwriter, and purchases from dealers will include a spread
between the bid and ask price.
Asset Management Hong Kong may pay certain brokers commissions that are higher
than those another broker may charge, if Asset Management Hong Kong determines
in good faith that the amount paid is reasonable in relation to the value of the
brokerage and research services it receives. This may be viewed in terms of
either the particular transaction or Asset Management Hong Kong's overall
responsibilities to client accounts over which it exercises investment
discretion. The services that brokers may provide to Asset Management Hong Kong
include, among others, supplying information about particular companies,
markets, countries, or local, regional, national or transnational economies,
statistical data, quotations and other securities pricing information, and other
information that provides lawful and appropriate assistance to Asset Management
Hong Kong in carrying out its investment advisory responsibilities. These
services may not always directly benefit the fund. They must, however, be of
value to Asset Management Hong Kong in carrying out its overall responsibilities
to its clients.
It is not possible to place a dollar value on the special executions or on the
research services Asset Management Hong Kong receives from dealers effecting
transactions in portfolio securities. The allocation of transactions in order to
obtain additional research services permits Asset Management Hong Kong to
supplement its own research and analysis activities and to receive the views and
information of individuals and research staffs of other securities firms. As
long as it is lawful and appropriate to do so, Asset Management Hong Kong and
its affiliates may use this research and data in their investment advisory
capacities with other clients. If the fund's officers are satisfied that the
best execution is obtained, the sale of fund shares, as well as shares of other
funds in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds, may also be considered a factor
in the selection of broker-dealers to execute the fund's portfolio transactions.
Because Distributors is a member of the NASD, it may sometimes receive certain
fees when the fund tenders portfolio securities pursuant to a tender-offer
solicitation. As a means of recapturing brokerage for the benefit of the fund,
any portfolio securities tendered by the fund will be tendered through
Distributors if it is legally permissible to do so. In turn, the next management
fee payable to Asset Management Hong Kong will be reduced by the amount of any
fees received by Distributors in cash, less any costs and expenses incurred in
connection with the tender.
If purchases or sales of securities of the fund and one or more other investment
companies or clients supervised by Asset Management Hong Kong are considered at
or about the same time, transactions in these securities will be allocated among
the several investment companies and clients in a manner deemed equitable to all
by Asset Management Hong Kong, taking into account the respective sizes of the
funds and the amount of securities to be purchased or sold. In some cases this
procedure could have a detrimental effect on the price or volume of the security
so far as the fund is concerned. In other cases it is possible that the ability
to participate in volume transactions and to negotiate lower brokerage
commissions will be beneficial to the fund.
Sale or purchase of securities, without payment of brokerage commissions, fees
(except customary transfer fees) or other remuneration in connection therewith,
may be effected between any of these funds, or between funds and private
clients, under procedures adopted pursuant to Rule 17a-7 under the 1940 Act.
During the fiscal years ended December 31, 1997, 1996 and 1995, the fund paid
brokerage commissions totaling $15,736,940, $7,221,351 and $4,305,521,
respectively.
As of December 31, 1997, the fund did not own securities of its regular
broker-dealers.
HOW DO I BUY, SELL AND EXCHANGE SHARES?
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON BUYING SHARES
The fund continuously offers its shares through Securities Dealers who have an
agreement with Distributors. Securities laws of states where the fund offers its
shares may differ from federal law. Banks and financial institutions that sell
shares of the fund may be required by state law to register as Securities
Dealers.
When you buy shares, if you submit a check or a draft that is returned unpaid to
the fund we may impose a $10 charge against your account for each returned item.
OTHER PAYMENTS TO SECURITIES DEALERS. Distributors and/or its affiliates provide
financial support to various Securities Dealers that sell shares of the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds. This support is based primarily on the amount of sales
of fund shares. The amount of support may be affected by: total sales; net
sales; levels of redemptions; the proportion of a Securities Dealer's sales and
marketing efforts in the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds; a Securities
Dealer's support of, and participation in, Distributors' marketing programs; a
Securities Dealer's compensation programs for its registered representatives;
and the extent of a Securities Dealer's marketing programs relating to the
Franklin Templeton Group of Funds. Financial support to Securities Dealers may
be made by payments from Distributors' resources, from Distributors' retention
of underwriting concessions and, in the case of funds that have Rule 12b-1
plans, from payments to Distributors under such plans. In addition, certain
Securities Dealers may receive brokerage commissions generated by fund portfolio
transactions in accordance with the NASD's rules.
Distributors routinely sponsors due diligence meetings for registered
representatives during which they receive updates on various Franklin Templeton
Funds and are afforded the opportunity to speak with portfolio managers.
Invitation to these meetings is not conditioned on selling a specific number of
shares, however, those who have shown an interest in the Franklin Templeton
Funds are more likely to be considered. To the extent permitted by their firm's
policies and procedures, a registered representative's expenses in attending
these meetings may be covered by Distributors.
REINVESTMENT DATE. Shares acquired through the reinvestment of dividends will be
purchased at the Net Asset Value determined on the business day following the
dividend record date (sometimes known as the "ex-dividend date"). The processing
date for the reinvestment of dividends may vary and does not affect the amount
or value of the shares acquired.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON EXCHANGING SHARES
If you request the exchange of the total value of your account, declared but
unpaid income dividends and capital gain distributions will be exchanged into
the new fund and will be invested at Net Asset Value. Backup withholding and
information reporting may apply. Information regarding the possible tax
consequences of an exchange is included in the tax section in this SAI and in
the Prospectus.
If a substantial number of shareholders should, within a short period, sell
their shares of the fund under the exchange privilege, the fund might have to
sell portfolio securities it might otherwise hold and incur the additional costs
related to such transactions. On the other hand, increased use of the exchange
privilege may result in periodic large inflows of money. If this occurs, it is
the fund's general policy to initially invest this money in short-term,
interest-bearing money market instruments, unless it is believed that attractive
investment opportunities consistent with the fund's investment goal exist
immediately. This money will then be withdrawn from the short-term, money market
instruments and invested in portfolio securities in as orderly a manner as is
possible when attractive investment opportunities arise.
The proceeds from the sale of shares of an investment company are generally not
available until the fifth business day following the sale. The funds you are
seeking to exchange into may delay issuing shares pursuant to an exchange until
that fifth business day. The sale of fund shares to complete an exchange will be
effected at Net Asset Value at the close of business on the day the request for
exchange is received in proper form. Please see "May I Exchange Shares for
Shares of Another Fund?" in the Prospectus.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON SELLING SHARES
SYSTEMATIC WITHDRAWAL PLAN. There are no service charges for establishing or
maintaining a systematic withdrawal plan. Payments under the plan will be made
from the redemption of an equivalent amount of shares in your account, generally
on the 25th day of the month in which a payment is scheduled. If the 25th falls
on a weekend or holiday, we will process the redemption on the next business
day.
Redeeming shares through a systematic withdrawal plan may reduce or exhaust the
shares in your account if payments exceed distributions received from the fund.
This is especially likely to occur if there is a market decline. If a withdrawal
amount exceeds the value of your account, your account will be closed and the
remaining balance in your account will be sent to you. Because the amount
withdrawn under the plan may be more than your actual yield or income, part of
the payment may be a return of your investment.
The fund may discontinue a systematic withdrawal plan by notifying you in
writing and will automatically discontinue a systematic withdrawal plan if all
shares in your account are withdrawn or if the fund receives notification of the
shareholder's death or incapacity.
THROUGH YOUR SECURITIES DEALER. If you sell shares through your Securities
Dealer, it is your dealer's responsibility to transmit the order to the fund in
a timely fashion. Any loss to you resulting from your dealer's failure to do so
must be settled between you and your Securities Dealer.
REDEMPTIONS IN KIND. The fund has committed itself to pay in cash (by check) all
requests for redemption by any shareholder of record, limited in amount,
however, during any 90-day period to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the value
of the fund's net assets at the beginning of the 90-day period. This commitment
is irrevocable without the prior approval of the SEC. In the case of redemption
requests in excess of these amounts, the Board reserves the right to make
payments in whole or in part in securities or other assets of the fund, in case
of an emergency, or if the payment of such a redemption in cash would be
detrimental to the existing shareholders of the fund. In these circumstances,
the securities distributed would be valued at the price used to compute the
fund's net assets and you may incur brokerage fees in converting the securities
to cash. The fund does not intend to redeem illiquid securities in kind. If this
happens, however, you may not be able to recover your investment in a timely
manner.
GENERAL INFORMATION
If dividend checks are returned to the fund marked "unable to forward" by the
postal service, we will consider this a request by you to change your dividend
option to reinvest all distributions. The proceeds will be reinvested in
additional shares at Net Asset Value until we receive new instructions.
Distribution or redemption checks sent to you do not earn interest or any other
income during the time the checks remain uncashed. Neither the fund nor its
affiliates will be liable for any loss caused by your failure to cash such
checks. The fund is not responsible for tracking down uncashed checks, unless a
check is returned as undeliverable.
In most cases, if mail is returned as undeliverable we are required to take
certain steps to try to find you free of charge. If these attempts are
unsuccessful, however, we may deduct the costs of any additional efforts to find
you from your account. These costs may include a percentage of the account when
a search company charges a percentage fee in exchange for its location services.
All checks, drafts, wires and other payment mediums used to buy or sell shares
of the fund must be denominated in U.S. dollars. We may, in our sole discretion,
either (a) reject any order to buy or sell shares denominated in any other
currency or (b) honor the transaction or make adjustments to your account for
the transaction as of a date and with a foreign currency exchange factor
determined by the drawee bank.
SPECIAL SERVICES. Investor Services may pay certain financial institutions that
maintain omnibus accounts with the fund on behalf of numerous beneficial owners
for recordkeeping operations performed with respect to such owners. For each
beneficial owner in the omnibus account, the fund may reimburse Investor
Services an amount not to exceed the per account fee that the fund normally pays
Investor Services. These financial institutions may also charge a fee for their
services directly to their clients.
Certain shareholder servicing agents may be authorized to accept your
transaction request.
HOW ARE FUND SHARES VALUED?
We calculate the Net Asset Value per share as of the close of the NYSE, normally
4:00 p.m. Eastern time, each day that the NYSE is open for trading. As of the
date of this SAI, the fund is informed that the NYSE observes the following
holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good
Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and
Christmas Day.
For the purpose of determining the aggregate net assets of the fund, cash and
receivables are valued at their realizable amounts. Interest is recorded as
accrued and dividends are recorded on the ex-dividend date. Portfolio securities
listed on a securities exchange or on the NASDAQ National Market System for
which market quotations are readily available are valued at the last quoted sale
price of the day or, if there is no such reported sale, within the range of the
most recent quoted bid and ask prices. Over-the-counter portfolio securities are
valued within the range of the most recent quoted bid and ask prices. Portfolio
securities that are traded both in the over-the-counter market and on a stock
exchange are valued according to the broadest and most representative market as
determined by Asset Management Hong Kong.
Portfolio securities underlying actively traded call options are valued at their
market price as determined above. The current market value of any option held by
the fund is its last sale price on the relevant exchange before the time when
assets are valued. Lacking any sales that day or if the last sale price is
outside the bid and ask prices, options are valued within the range of the
current closing bid and ask prices if the valuation is believed to fairly
reflect the contract's market value.
Trading in securities on European and Far Eastern securities exchanges and
over-the-counter markets is normally completed well before the close of business
of the NYSE on each day that the NYSE is open. Trading in European or Far
Eastern securities generally, or in a particular country or countries, may not
take place on every NYSE business day. Furthermore, trading takes place in
various foreign markets on days that are not business days for the NYSE and on
which the Net Asset Value is not calculated. Thus, the calculation of the Net
Asset Value does not take place contemporaneously with the determination of the
prices of many of the portfolio securities used in the calculation and, if
events materially affecting the values of these foreign securities occur, the
securities will be valued at fair value as determined by management and approved
in good faith by the Board.
Generally, trading in corporate bonds, U.S. government securities and money
market instruments is substantially completed each day at various times before
the close of the NYSE. The value of these securities used in computing the Net
Asset Value is determined as of such times. Occasionally, events affecting the
values of these securities may occur between the times at which they are
determined and the close of the NYSE that will not be reflected in the
computation of the Net Asset Value. If events materially affecting the values of
these securities occur during this period, the securities will be valued at
their fair value as determined in good faith by the Board.
Other securities for which market quotations are readily available are valued at
the current market price, which may be obtained from a pricing service, based on
a variety of factors including recent trades, institutional size trading in
similar types of securities (considering yield, risk and maturity) and/or
developments related to specific issues. Securities and other assets for which
market prices are not readily available are valued at fair value as determined
following procedures approved by the Board. With the approval of the Board, the
fund may utilize a pricing service, bank or Securities Dealer to perform any of
the above described functions.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES
DISTRIBUTIONS
DISTRIBUTIONS OF NET INVESTMENT INCOME. The fund receives income generally in
the form of dividends, interest, original issue, market and acquisition
discount, and other income derived from its investments. This income, less
expenses incurred in the operation of the fund, constitute its net investment
income from which dividends may be paid to you. Any distributions by the fund
from such income will be taxable to you as ordinary income, whether you take
them in cash or in additional shares.
DISTRIBUTIONS OF CAPITAL GAINS. The fund may derive capital gains and losses in
connection with sales or other dispositions of its portfolio securities.
Distributions derived from the excess of net short-term capital gain over net
long-term capital loss will be taxable to you as ordinary income. Distributions
paid from long-term capital gains realized by the fund will be taxable to you as
long-term capital gain, regardless of how long you have held your shares in the
fund. Any net short-term or long-term capital gains realized by the fund (net of
any capital loss carryovers) generally will be distributed once each year, and
may be distributed more frequently, if necessary, in order to reduce or
eliminate federal excise or income taxes on the fund.
Under the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 (the "1997 Act"), the fund is required to
report the capital gain distributions paid to you from gains realized on the
sale of portfolio securities using the following categories:
"28% RATE GAINS": gains resulting from securities sold by the fund after July
28, 1997 that were held for more than one year but not more than 18 months, and
securities sold by the fund before May 7, 1997 that were held for more than one
year. These gains will be taxable to individual investors at a maximum rate of
28%.
"20% RATE GAINS": gains resulting from securities sold by the fund after July
28, 1997 that were held for more than 18 months, and under a transitional rule,
securities sold by the fund between May 7 and July 28, 1997 (inclusive) that
were held for more than one year. These gains will be taxable to individual
investors at a maximum rate of 20% for individual investors in the 28% or higher
federal income tax brackets, and at a maximum rate of 10% for investors in the
15% federal income tax bracket.
The 1997 Act also provides for a new maximum rate of tax on capital gains of 18%
for individuals in the 28% or higher federal income tax brackets and 8% for
individuals in the 15% federal income tax bracket for "qualified 5-year gains."
For individuals in the 15% bracket, qualified 5-year gains are net gains on
securities held for more than 5 years which are sold after December 31, 2000.
For individuals who are subject to tax at higher rates, qualified 5-year gains
are net gains on securities which are purchased after December 31, 2000 and are
held for more than 5 years. Taxpayers subject to tax at the higher rates may
also make an election for shares held on January 1, 2001 to recognize gain on
their shares in order to qualify such shares as qualified 5-year property.
The fund will advise you at the end of each calendar year of the amount of its
capital gain distributions paid during the calendar year that qualify for these
maximum federal tax rates. Additional information on reporting these
distributions on your personal income tax returns is available in Franklin
Templeton's Tax Information Handbook. This handbook has been revised to include
1997 Act tax law changes. Please call Fund Information to request a copy.
Questions concerning each investor's personal tax reporting should be addressed
to the investor's personal tax advisor.
CERTAIN DISTRIBUTIONS PAID IN JANUARY. Distributions which are declared in
October, November or December and paid to you in January of the following year,
will be treated for tax purposes as if they had been received by you on December
31 of the year in which they were declared. The fund will report this income to
you on your Form 1099-DIV for the year in which these distributions were
declared.
EFFECT OF FOREIGN INVESTMENTS ON DISTRIBUTIONS. Most foreign exchange gains
realized on the sale of debt instruments are treated as ordinary income by the
fund. Similarly, foreign exchange losses realized by the fund on the sale of
debt instruments are generally treated as ordinary losses by the fund. These
gains when distributed will be taxable to you as ordinary dividends, and any
losses will reduce the fund's ordinary income otherwise available for
distribution to you. This treatment could increase or reduce the fund's ordinary
income distributions to you, and may cause some or all of the fund's previously
distributed income to be classified as a return of capital.
The 1997 Act also simplifies the procedures by which investors in funds that
invest in foreign securities can claim tax credits on their individual income
tax returns for the foreign taxes paid by the fund. These provisions will allow
investors who claim a credit for foreign taxes paid of $300 or less on a single
return or $600 or less on a joint return during any year (all of which must be
reported on IRS Form 1099-DIV from the fund to the investor) to bypass the
burdensome and detailed reporting requirements on the supporting foreign tax
credit schedule (Form 1116) and report foreign taxes paid directly on page 2 of
Form 1040. YOU SHOULD NOTE THAT THIS SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURE WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE
UNTIL CALENDAR YEAR 1998.
INFORMATION ON THE TAX CHARACTER OF DISTRIBUTIONS. The fund will inform you of
the amount and character of your distributions at the time they are paid, and
will advise you of the tax status for federal income tax purposes of such
distributions shortly after the close of each calendar year. If you have not
held fund shares for a full year, you may have designated and distributed to you
as ordinary income or capital gain a percentage of income that is not equal to
the actual amount of such income earned during the period of your investment in
the fund.
TAXES
ELECTION TO BE TAXED AS A REGULATED INVESTMENT COMPANY. The fund has elected to
be treated as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code, has
qualified as such for its most recent fiscal year, and intends to so qualify
during the current fiscal year. The Board reserves the right not to maintain the
qualification of the fund as a regulated investment company if it determines
such course of action to be beneficial to you. In such case, the fund will be
subject to federal, and possibly state, corporate taxes on its taxable income
and gains, and distributions to you will be taxed as ordinary dividend income to
the extent of the fund's available earnings and profits.
In order to qualify as a regulated investment company for tax purposes, the fund
must meet certain specific requirements, including:
The fund must maintain a diversified portfolio of securities, wherein no
security (other than U.S. government securities and securities of other
regulated investment companies) can exceed 25% of the fund's total assets,
and, with respect to 50% of the fund's total assets, no investment (other
than cash and cash items, U.S. government securities and securities of
other regulated investment companies) can exceed 5% of the fund's total
assets;
The fund must derive at least 90% of its gross income from dividends,
interest, payments with respect to securities loans, and gains from the
sale or disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other
income derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock,
securities, or currencies; and
The fund must distribute to its shareholders at least 90% of its net
investment income and net tax-exempt income for each of its fiscal years.
EXCISE TAX DISTRIBUTION REQUIREMENTS. The Code requires the fund to distribute
at least 98% of its taxable ordinary income earned during the calendar year and
98% of its capital gain net income earned during the twelve month period ending
October 31 (in addition to undistributed amounts from the prior year) to you by
December 31 of each year in order to avoid federal excise taxes. The fund
intends to declare and pay sufficient dividends in December (or in January that
are treated by you as received in December) but does not guarantee and can give
no assurances that its distributions will be sufficient to eliminate all such
taxes.
REDEMPTION OF FUND SHARES. Redemptions and exchanges of fund shares are taxable
transactions for federal and state income tax purposes. The tax law requires
that you recognize a gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between
your tax basis and the amount you received in exchange for your shares, subject
to the rules described below. If you hold your shares as a capital asset, the
gain or loss that you realize will be capital gain or loss, and will be
long-term for federal income tax purposes if you have held your shares for more
than one year at the time of redemption or exchange. Any loss incurred on the
redemption or exchange of shares held for six months or less will be treated as
a long-term capital loss to the extent of any long-term capital gains
distributed to you by the fund on those shares. The holding periods and
categories of capital gain that apply under the 1997 Act are described above in
the "Distributions" section.
All or a portion of any loss that you realize upon the redemption of your fund
shares will be disallowed to the extent that you purchase other shares in the
fund (through reinvestment of dividends or otherwise) within 30 days before or
after your share redemption. Any loss disallowed under these rules will be added
to your tax basis in the new shares you purchase.
DEFERRAL OF BASIS. All or a portion of the sales charge that you paid for your
shares in the fund will be excluded from your tax basis in any of the shares
sold within 90 days of their purchase (for the purpose of determining gain or
loss upon the sale of such shares) if you reinvest the sales proceeds in the
fund or in another of the Franklin Templeton Funds, and the sales charge that
would otherwise apply to your reinvestment is reduced or eliminated. The portion
of the sales charge excluded from your tax basis in the shares sold will equal
the amount that the sales charge is reduced on your reinvestment. Any portion of
the sales charge excluded from your tax basis in the shares sold will be added
to the tax basis of the shares you acquire from your reinvestment.
U.S. GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS. Many states grant tax-free status to dividends paid
to you from interest earned on direct obligations of the U.S. government,
subject in some states to minimum investment requirements that must be met by
the fund. Investments in GNMA/FNMA securities, bankers' acceptances, commercial
paper and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities do
not generally qualify for tax-free treatment. At the end of each calendar year,
the fund will provide you with the percentage of any dividends paid that may
qualify for tax-free treatment on your personal income tax return. You should
consult with your own tax advisor to determine the application of your state and
local laws to these distributions. Because the rules on exclusion of this income
are different for corporations, corporate shareholders should consult with their
corporate tax advisors about whether any of their distributions may be exempt
from corporate income or franchise taxes.
DIVIDENDS-RECEIVED DEDUCTION FOR CORPORATIONS. Because the fund's income is
derived primarily from investments in foreign securities rather than
dividend-paying domestic U.S. securities, no portion of its distributions will
generally be eligible for the intercorporate dividends-received deduction. None
of the dividends paid by the fund for the most recent calendar year qualified
for such deduction, and it is anticipated that none of the current year's
dividends will so qualify.
INVESTMENT IN COMPLEX SECURITIES. The fund's investment in options, futures
contracts and forward contracts, including transactions involving actual or
deemed short sales or foreign exchange gains or losses are subject to many
complex and special tax rules. Over-the-counter options on debt securities and
equity options, including options on stock and on narrow-based stock indexes,
will be subject to tax under Section 1234 of the Code, generally producing a
long-term or short-term capital gain or loss upon exercise, lapse, or closing
out of the option or sale of the underlying stock or security. Certain other
options, futures and forward contracts entered into by the fund are generally
governed by Section 1256 of the Code. These "Section 1256" positions generally
include listed options on debt securities, options on broad-based stock indexes,
options on securities indexes, options on futures contracts, regulated futures
contracts and certain foreign currency contracts and options thereon.
Absent a tax election to the contrary, each such Section 1256 position held by
the fund will be marked-to-market (i.e., treated as if it were sold for fair
market value) on the last business day of the fund's fiscal year (and on other
dates as prescribed by the Code), and all gain or loss associated with fiscal
year transactions and mark-to-market positions at fiscal year end (except
certain currency gain or loss covered by Section 988 of the Code) will generally
be treated as 60% long-term capital gain or loss and 40% short-term capital gain
or loss. Under legislation pending in technical corrections to the 1997 Act, the
60% long-term capital gain portion will qualify as 20% rate gain and will be
subject to tax to individual investors at a maximum rate of 20% for investors in
the 28% or higher federal income tax brackets, or at a maximum rate of 10% for
investors in the 15% federal income tax bracket. While foreign currency is
marked-to-market at year end, gain or loss realized as a result will always be
ordinary. Even though marked-to-market, gains and losses realized on foreign
currency and foreign security investments will generally be treated as ordinary
income. The effect of Section 1256 mark-to-market rules may be to accelerate
income or to convert what otherwise would have been long-term capital gains into
short-term capital gains or short-term capital losses into long-term capital
losses within the fund. The acceleration of income on Section 1256 positions may
require the fund to accrue taxable income without the corresponding receipt of
cash. In order to generate cash to satisfy the distribution requirements of the
Code, the fund may be required to dispose of portfolio securities that it
otherwise would have continued to hold or to use cash flows from other sources
such as the sale of fund shares. In these ways, any or all of these rules may
affect the amount, character and timing of income distributed to you by the
fund.
When the fund holds an option or contract which substantially diminishes the
fund's risk of loss with respect to another position of the fund (as might occur
in some hedging transactions), this combination of positions could be treated as
a "straddle" for tax purposes, possibly resulting in deferral of losses,
adjustments in the holding periods and conversion of short-term capital losses
into long-term capital losses. The fund may make certain tax elections for mixed
straddles (i.e., straddles comprised of at least one Section 1256 position and
at least one non-Section 1256 position) which may reduce or eliminate the
operation of these straddle rules.
The 1997 Act has also added new provisions for dealing with transactions that
are generally called "Constructive Sale Transactions." Under these rules, the
fund must recognize gain (but not loss) on any constructive sale of an
appreciated financial position in stock, a partnership interest or certain debt
instruments. The fund will generally be treated as making a constructive sale
when it: 1) enters into a short sale on the same property, 2) enters into an
offsetting notional principal contract, or 3) enters into a futures or forward
contract to deliver the same or substantially similar property. Other
transactions (including certain financial instruments called collars) will be
treated as constructive sales as provided in Treasury regulations to be
published. There are also certain exceptions that apply for transactions that
are closed before the end of the 30th day after the close of the taxable year.
Distributions paid to you by the fund of ordinary income and short-term capital
gains arising from the fund's investments, including investments in options,
forwards, and futures contracts, will be taxable to you as ordinary income. The
fund will monitor its transactions in such options and contracts and may make
certain other tax elections in order to mitigate the effect of the above rules.
INVESTMENTS IN FOREIGN CURRENCIES AND FOREIGN SECURITIES. The fund is authorized
to invest in foreign currency denominated securities. Such investments, if made,
will have the following additional tax consequences:
Under the Code, gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in foreign currency
exchange rates which occur between the time the fund accrues income (including
dividends), or accrues expenses which are denominated in a foreign currency, and
the time the fund actually collects such income or pays such expenses generally
are treated as ordinary income or loss. Similarly, on the disposition of debt
securities denominated in a foreign currency and on the disposition of certain
options, futures, forward contracts, gain or loss attributable to fluctuations
in the value of foreign currency between the date of acquisition of the security
or contract and the date of its disposition are also treated as ordinary gain or
loss. These gains or losses, referred to under the Code as "Section 988" gains
or losses, may increase or decrease the amount of the fund's net investment
company taxable income, which, in turn, will affect the amount of income to be
distributed to you by the fund.
If the fund's Section 988 losses exceed the fund's other net investment company
taxable income during a taxable year, the fund generally will not be able to
make ordinary dividend distributions to you for that year, or distributions made
before the losses were realized will be recharacterized as return of capital
distributions for federal income tax purposes, rather than as an ordinary
dividend or capital gain distribution. If a distribution is treated as a return
of capital, your tax basis in your fund shares will be reduced by a like amount
(to the extent of such basis), and any excess of the distribution over your tax
basis in your fund shares will be treated as capital gain to you.
INVESTMENT IN PASSIVE FOREIGN INVESTMENT COMPANY SECURITIES. The fund may invest
in shares of foreign corporations which may be classified under the Code as
passive foreign investment companies ("PFICs"). In general, a foreign
corporation is classified as a PFIC if at least one-half of its assets
constitute investment-type assets or 75% or more of its gross income is
investment-type income.
If the fund receives an "excess distribution" with respect to PFIC stock, the
fund itself may be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a portion of the
distribution, whether or not the corresponding income is distributed by the fund
to you. In general, under the PFIC rules, an excess distribution is treated as
having been realized ratably over the period during which the fund held the PFIC
shares. The fund itself will be subject to tax on the portion, if any, of an
excess distribution that is so allocated to prior fund taxable years, and an
interest factor will be added to the tax, as if the tax had been payable in such
prior taxable years. In this case, you would not be permitted to claim a credit
on your own tax return for the tax paid by the fund. Certain distributions from
a PFIC as well as gain from the sale of PFIC shares are treated as excess
distributions. Excess distributions are characterized as ordinary income even
though, absent application of the PFIC rules, certain excess distributions might
have been classified as capital gain. This may have the effect of increasing
fund distributions to you that are treated as ordinary dividends rather than
long-term capital gain dividends.
The fund may be eligible to elect alternative tax treatment with respect to PFIC
shares. Under an election that currently is available in some circumstances, the
fund generally would be required to include in its gross income its share of the
earnings of a PFIC on a current basis, regardless of whether distributions are
received from the PFIC during such period. If this election were made, the
special rules, discussed above, relating to the taxation of excess
distributions, would not apply. In addition, the 1997 Act provides for another
election that would involve marking-to-market the fund's PFIC shares at the end
of each taxable year (and on certain other dates as prescribed in the Code),
with the result that unrealized gains would be treated as though they were
realized. The fund would also be allowed an ordinary deduction for the excess,
if any, of the adjusted basis of its investment in the PFIC stock over its fair
market value at the end of the taxable year. This deduction would be limited to
the amount of any net mark-to-market gains previously included with respect to
that particular PFIC security. If the fund were to make this second PFIC
election, tax at the fund level under the PFIC rules would generally be
eliminated.
The application of the PFIC rules may affect, among other things, the amount of
tax payable by the fund (if any), the amounts distributable to you by the fund,
the time at which these distributions must be made, and whether these
distributions will be classified as ordinary income or capital gain
distributions to you.
You should be aware that it is not always possible at the time shares of a
foreign corporation are acquired to ascertain that the foreign corporation is a
PFIC, and that there is always a possibility that a foreign corporation will
become a PFIC after the fund acquires shares in that corporation. While the fund
will generally seek to avoid investing in PFIC shares to avoid the tax
consequences detailed above, there are no guarantees that it will do so and it
reserves the right to make such investments as a matter of its fundamental
investment policy.
CONVERSION TRANSACTIONS. Gains realized by a fund from transactions that are
deemed to be "conversion transactions" under the Code, and that would otherwise
produce capital gain may be recharacterized as ordinary income to the extent
that such gain does not exceed an amount defined as the "applicable imputed
income amount". A conversion transaction is any transaction in which
substantially all of the fund's expected return is attributable to the time
value of the fund's net investment in such transaction, and any one of the
following criteria are met:
1) there is an acquisition of property with a substantially contemporaneous
agreement to sell the same or substantially identical property in the future;
2) the transaction is an applicable straddle;
3) the transaction was marketed or sold to the fund on the basis that it would
have the economic characteristics of a loan but would be taxed as capital gain;
or
4) the transaction is specified in Treasury regulations to be promulgated in the
future.
The applicable imputed income amount, which represents the deemed return on the
conversion transaction based upon the time value of money, is computed using a
yield equal to 120 percent of the applicable federal rate, reduced by any prior
recharacterizations under this provision or the provisions of Section 263(g) of
the Code dealing with capitalized carrying costs.
STRIPPED PREFERRED STOCK. Occasionally, the fund may purchase "stripped
preferred stock" that is subject to special tax treatment. Stripped preferred
stock is defined as certain preferred stock issues where ownership of the stock
has been separated from the right to receive dividends that have not yet become
payable. The stock must have a fixed redemption price, must not participate
substantially in the growth of the issuer, and must be limited and preferred as
to dividends. The difference between the redemption price and purchase price is
taken into fund income over the term of the instrument as if it were original
issue discount. The amount that must be included in each period generally
depends on the original yield to maturity, adjusted for any prepayments of
principal.
INVESTMENTS IN ORIGINAL ISSUE DISCOUNT (OID) AND MARKET DISCOUNT (MD) BONDS. The
fund's investments in zero coupon bonds, bonds issued or acquired at a discount,
delayed interest bonds, or bonds that provide for payment of interest-in-kind
(PIK) may cause the fund to recognize income and make distributions to you prior
to its receipt of cash payments. Zero coupon and delayed interest bonds are
normally issued at a discount and are therefore generally subject to tax
reporting as OID obligations. The fund is required to accrue as income a portion
of the discount at which these securities were issued, and to distribute such
income each year (as ordinary dividends) in order to maintain its qualification
as a regulated investment company and to avoid income reporting and excise taxes
at the fund level. PIK bonds are subject to similar tax rules concerning the
amount, character and timing of income required to be accrued by the fund. Bonds
acquired in the secondary market for a price less than their stated redemption
price, or revised issue price in the case of a bond having OID, are said to have
been acquired with market discount. For these bonds, the fund may elect to
accrue market discount on a current basis, in which case the fund will be
required to distribute any such accrued discount. If the fund does not elect to
accrue market discount into income currently, gain recognized on sale will be
recharacterized as ordinary income instead of capital gain to the extent of any
accumulated market discount on the obligation.
DEFAULTED OBLIGATIONS. The fund may be required to accrue income on defaulted
obligations and to distribute such income to you even though it is not currently
receiving interest or principal payments on such obligations. In order to
generate cash to satisfy these distribution requirements, the fund may be
required to dispose of portfolio securities that it otherwise would have
continued to hold or to use cash flows from other sources such as the sale of
fund shares.
THE FUND'S UNDERWRITER
Pursuant to an underwriting agreement, Distributors acts as principal
underwriter in a continuous public offering of the fund's shares. The
underwriting agreement will continue in effect for successive annual periods if
its continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a vote of the
Board or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the fund's outstanding voting
securities, and in either event by a majority vote of the Board members who are
not parties to the underwriting agreement or interested persons of any such
party (other than as members of the Board), cast in person at a meeting called
for that purpose. The underwriting agreement terminates automatically in the
event of its assignment and may be terminated by either party on 60 days'
written notice.
Distributors pays the expenses of the distribution of fund shares, including
advertising expenses and the costs of printing sales material and prospectuses
used to offer shares to the public. The fund pays the expenses of preparing and
printing amendments to its registration statements and prospectuses (other than
those necessitated by the activities of Distributors) and of sending
prospectuses to existing shareholders.
Distributors does not receive compensation from the fund for acting as
underwriter of the fund's Advisor Class shares.
HOW DOES THE FUND MEASURE PERFORMANCE?
Performance quotations are subject to SEC rules. These rules require the use of
standardized performance quotations or, alternatively, that every
non-standardized performance quotation furnished by the fund be accompanied by
certain standardized performance information computed as required by the SEC.
Average annual total return quotations used by the fund are based on the
standardized methods of computing performance mandated by the SEC. If a Rule
12b-1 plan is adopted, performance figures reflect fees from the date of the
plan's implementation.
For periods before January 1, 1997, standardized performance quotations for
Advisor Class are calculated by substituting Class I performance for the
relevant time period, excluding the effect of Class I's maximum initial sales
charge, and including the effect of the Rule 12b-1 fees applicable to Class I
shares of the fund. For periods after January 1, 1997, standardized performance
quotations for Advisor Class are calculated as described below.
An explanation of these and other methods used by the fund to compute or express
performance follows. Regardless of the method used, past performance does not
guarantee future results, and is an indication of the return to shareholders
only for the limited historical period used.
TOTAL RETURN
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN. Average annual total return is determined by
finding the average annual rates of return over the periods indicated below that
would equate an initial hypothetical $1,000 investment to its ending redeemable
value. The calculation assumes income dividends and capital gain distributions
are reinvested at Net Asset Value. The quotation assumes the account was
completely redeemed at the end of each period and the deduction of all
applicable charges and fees. If a change is made to the sales charge structure,
historical performance information will be restated to reflect the maximum
front-end sales charge currently in effect.
The average annual total return for Advisor Class for the one- and five-year
periods ended December 31, 1997, and for the period from inception (October 17,
1991) through December 31, 1997 was -9.18%, 12.24% and 8.01%, respectively.
These figures were calculated according to the SEC formula:
P(1+T)n = ERV
where:
P = a hypothetical initial payment of $1,000
T = average annual total return
n = number of years
ERV = ending redeemable value of a hypothetical $1,000
payment made at the beginning of each period at the end
of each period
CUMULATIVE TOTAL RETURN. Like average annual total return, cumulative total
return assumes income dividends and capital gain distributions are reinvested at
Net Asset Value. Cumulative total return, however, is based on the actual return
for a specified period rather than on the average return over the periods
indicated above. The cumulative total return for Advisor Class for the one- and
five-year periods ended December 31, 1997, and for the period from inception
(October 17, 1991) through December 31, 1997, was -9.18%, 78.02% and 61.33%,
respectively.
VOLATILITY
Occasionally statistics may be used to show the fund's volatility or risk.
Measures of volatility or risk are generally used to compare the fund's Net
Asset Value or performance to a market index. One measure of volatility is beta.
Beta is the volatility of a fund relative to the total market, as represented by
an index considered representative of the types of securities in which the fund
invests. A beta of more than 1.00 indicates volatility greater than the market
and a beta of less than 1.00 indicates volatility less than the market. Another
measure of volatility or risk is standard deviation. Standard deviation is used
to measure variability of Net Asset Value or total return around an average over
a specified period of time. The idea is that greater volatility means greater
risk undertaken in achieving performance.
OTHER PERFORMANCE QUOTATIONS
Sales literature referring to the use of the fund as a potential investment for
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), Business Retirement Plans, and other
tax-advantaged retirement plans may quote a total return based upon compounding
of dividends on which it is presumed no federal income tax applies.
The fund may include in its advertising or sales material information relating
to investment goals and performance results of funds belonging to the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds. Resources is the parent company of the advisors and
underwriter of the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds.
COMPARISONS
To help you better evaluate how an investment in the fund may satisfy your
investment goal, advertisements and other materials about the fund may discuss
certain measures of fund performance as reported by various financial
publications. Materials may also compare performance (as calculated above) to
performance as reported by other investments, indices, and averages. These
comparisons may include, but are not limited to, the following examples:
(i) unmanaged indices so that you may compare the fund's results with those of a
group of unmanaged securities widely regarded by investors as representative of
the securities market in general; (ii) other groups of mutual funds tracked by
Lipper Analytical Services, Inc., a widely used independent research firm that
ranks mutual funds by overall performance, investment goals and assets, or
tracked by other services, companies, publications, or persons who rank mutual
funds on overall performance or other criteria; and (iii) the Consumer Price
Index (measure for inflation) to assess the real rate of return from an
investment in the fund. Unmanaged indices may assume the reinvestment of
dividends but generally do not reflect deductions for administrative and
management costs and expenses.
From time to time, the fund and Asset Management Hong Kong may also refer to the
following information:
a) Asset Management Hong Kong's and its affiliates' market share of
international equities managed in mutual funds prepared or published by
Strategic Insight or a similar statistical organization.
b) The performance of U.S. equity and debt markets relative to foreign
markets prepared or published by Morgan Stanley Capital
International(R) or a similar financial organization.
c) The capitalization of U.S. and foreign stock markets as prepared or
published by the International Finance Corporation, Morgan Stanley
Capital International(R) or a similar financial organization.
d) The geographic and industry distribution of the fund's portfolio and
the fund's top ten holdings.
e) The gross national product and populations, including age
characteristics, literacy rates, foreign investment improvements due to
a liberalization of securities laws and a reduction of foreign exchange
controls, and improving communication technology, of various countries
as published by various statistical organizations.
f) To assist investors in understanding the different returns and risk
characteristics of various investments, the fund may show historical
returns of various investments and published indices (E.G., Ibbotson
Associates, Inc. Charts and Morgan Stanley EAFE - Index).
g) The major industries located in various jurisdictions as published by
the Morgan Stanley Index.
h) Rankings by DALBAR Surveys, Inc. with respect to mutual fund
shareholder services.
i) Allegorical stories illustrating the importance of persistent
long-term investing.
j) The fund's portfolio turnover rate and its ranking relative to industry
standards as published by Lipper Analytical Services, Inc. or
Morningstar, Inc.
k) A description of the Templeton organization's investment management
philosophy and approach, including its worldwide search for undervalued
or "bargain" securities and its diversification by industry, nation and
type of stocks or other securities.
l) The number of shareholders in the fund or the aggregate number of
shareholders of the open-end investment companies in the Franklin
Templeton Group of Funds or the dollar amount of fund and private
account assets under management.
m) Comparison of the characteristics of various emerging markets,
including population, financial and economic conditions.
n) Quotations from the Templeton organization's founder, Sir John
Templeton,* advocating the virtues of diversification and long-term
investing, including the following:
/bullet/ "Never follow the crowd. Superior performance is
possible only if you invest differently from
the crowd."
/bullet/ "Diversify by company, by industry and by country."
/bullet/ "Always maintain a long-term perspective."
/bullet/ "Invest for maximum total real return."
/bullet/ "Invest - don't trade or speculate."
/bullet/ "Remain flexible and open-minded about types of
investment."
/bullet/ "Buy low."
- --------
* Sir John Templeton sold the Templeton organization to Resources in
October 1992 and resigned from the Board on April 16, 1995. He is no
longer involved with the investment management process.
/bullet/ "When buying stocks, search for bargains among quality
stocks."
/bullet/ "Buy value, not market trends or the economic outlook."
/bullet/ "Diversify. In stocks and bonds, as in much else,
there is safety in numbers."
/bullet/ "Do your homework or hire wise experts to help you."
/bullet/ "Aggressively monitor your investments."
/bullet/ "Don't panic."
/bullet/ "Learn from your mistakes."
/bullet/ "Outperforming the market is a difficult task."
/bullet/ "An investor who has all the answers doesn't even
understand all the questions."
/bullet/ "There's no free lunch."
/bullet/ "And now the last principle: Do not be fearful or
negative too often."
From time to time, advertisements or information for the fund may include a
discussion of certain attributes or benefits to be derived from an investment in
the fund. The advertisements or information may include symbols, headlines, or
other material that highlights or summarizes the information discussed in more
detail in the communication.
Advertisements or information may also compare the fund's performance to the
return on CDs or other investments. You should be aware, however, that an
investment in the fund involves the risk of fluctuation of principal value, a
risk generally not present in an investment in a CD issued by a bank. For
example, as the general level of interest rates rise, the value of the fund's
fixed-income investments, if any, as well as the value of its shares that are
based upon the value of such portfolio investments, can be expected to decrease.
Conversely, when interest rates decrease, the value of the fund's shares can be
expected to increase. CDs are frequently insured by an agency of the U.S.
government. An investment in the fund is not insured by any federal, state or
private entity.
In assessing comparisons of performance, you should keep in mind that the
composition of the investments in the reported indices and averages is not
identical to the fund's portfolio, the indices and averages are generally
unmanaged, and the items included in the calculations of the averages may not be
identical to the formula used by the fund to calculate its figures. In addition,
there can be no assurance that the fund will continue its performance as
compared to these other averages.
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
The fund may help you achieve various investment goals such as accumulating
money for retirement, saving for a down payment on a home, college costs and
other long-term goals. The Franklin College Costs Planner may help you in
determining how much money must be invested on a monthly basis in order to have
a projected amount available in the future to fund a child's college education.
(Projected college cost estimates are based upon current costs published by the
College Board.) The Franklin Retirement Planning Guide leads you through the
steps to start a retirement savings program. Of course, an investment in the
fund cannot guarantee that these goals will be met.
The fund is a member of the Franklin Templeton Group of Funds, one of the
largest mutual fund organizations in the U.S., and may be considered in a
program for diversification of assets. Founded in 1947, Franklin, one of the
oldest mutual fund organizations, has managed mutual funds for over 50 years and
now services more than 2.9 million shareholder accounts. In 1992, Franklin, a
leader in managing fixed-income mutual funds and an innovator in creating
domestic equity funds, joined forces with Templeton, a pioneer in international
investing. The Mutual Series team, known for its value-driven approach to
domestic equity investing, became part of the organization four years later.
Together, the Franklin Templeton Group has over $221 billion in assets under
management for more than 6 million U.S. based mutual fund shareholder and other
accounts. The Franklin Templeton Group of Funds offers 120 U.S. based open-end
investment companies to the public. The fund may identify itself by its NASDAQ
symbol or CUSIP number.
From time to time, the number of fund shares held in the "street name" accounts
of various Securities Dealers for the benefit of their clients or in centralized
securities depositories may exceed 5% of the total shares outstanding. To the
best knowledge of the fund, no other person holds beneficially or of record more
than 5% of the outstanding shares of any class.
As a shareholder of a Massachusetts business trust, you could, under certain
circumstances, be held personally liable as a partner for its obligations. The
fund's Agreement and Declaration of Trust, however, contains an express
disclaimer of shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the fund. The
Declaration of Trust also provides for indemnification and reimbursement of
expenses out of the fund's assets if you are held personally liable for
obligations of the fund. The Declaration of Trust provides that the fund shall,
upon request, assume the defense of any claim made against you for any act or
obligation of the fund and satisfy any judgment thereon. All such rights are
limited to the assets of the fund. The Declaration of Trust further provides
that the fund may maintain appropriate insurance (for example, fidelity bonding
and errors and omissions insurance) for the protection of the fund, its
shareholders, trustees, officers, employees and agents to cover possible tort
and other liabilities. Furthermore, the activities of the fund as an investment
company, as distinguished from an operating company, would not likely give rise
to liabilities in excess of the fund's total assets. Thus, the risk of you
incurring financial loss on account of shareholder liability is limited to the
unlikely circumstances in which both inadequate insurance exists and the fund
itself is unable to meet its obligations.
In the event of disputes involving multiple claims of ownership or authority to
control your account, the fund has the right (but has no obligation) to: (a)
freeze the account and require the written agreement of all persons deemed by
the fund to have a potential property interest in the account, before executing
instructions regarding the account; (b) interplead disputed funds or accounts
with a court of competent jurisdiction; or (c) surrender ownership of all or a
portion of the account to the IRS in response to a Notice of Levy.
SUMMARY OF CODE OF ETHICS. Employees of the Franklin Templeton Group who are
access persons under the 1940 Act are permitted to engage in personal securities
transactions subject to the following general restrictions and procedures: (i)
the trade must receive advance clearance from a compliance officer and must be
completed by the close of the business day following the day clearance is
granted; (ii) copies of all brokerage confirmations and statements must be sent
to a compliance officer;(iii) all brokerage accounts must be disclosed on an
annual basis; and (iv) access persons involved in preparing and making
investment decisions must, in addition to (i), (ii) and (iii) above, file annual
reports of their securities holdings each January and inform the compliance
officer (or other designated personnel) if they own a security that is being
considered for a fund or other client transaction or if they are recommending a
security in which they have an ownership interest for purchase or sale by a fund
or other client.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The audited financial statements contained in the Annual Report to Shareholders
of the fund, for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1997, including the
auditors' report, are incorporated herein by reference.
USEFUL TERMS AND DEFINITIONS
1940 ACT - Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended
ASSET MANAGEMENT HONG KONG - Templeton Asset Management Ltd. - Hong Kong branch,
the fund's investment manager
BOARD - The Board of Trustees of the fund
CD - Certificate of deposit
CLASS I, CLASS II AND ADVISOR CLASS - The fund offers three classes of shares,
designated "Class I," "Class II," and "Advisor Class." The three classes have
proportionate interests in the fund's portfolio. They differ, however, primarily
in their sales charge and expense structures.
CODE - Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended
DISTRIBUTORS - Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc., the fund's principal
underwriter
FRANKLIN TEMPLETON GROUP - Franklin Resources, Inc., a publicly owned holding
company, and its various subsidiaries
FRANKLIN TEMPLETON GROUP OF FUNDS - All U.S. registered investment companies in
the Franklin Group of Funds(R) and
the Templeton Group of Funds
FT SERVICES - Franklin Templeton Services, Inc., the fund's administrator
INVESTOR SERVICES - Franklin/Templeton Investor Services, Inc., the fund's
shareholder servicing and transfer agent
IRS - Internal Revenue Service
MOODY'S - Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
NASD - National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.
NET ASSET VALUE (NAV) - The value of a mutual fund is determined by deducting
the fund's liabilities from the total assets of the portfolio. The net asset
value per share is determined by dividing the net asset value of the fund by the
number of shares outstanding.
NYSE - New York Stock Exchange
PROSPECTUS - The prospectus for Advisor Class shares of the fund dated May 1,
1998, as may be amended from time to time
RESOURCES - Franklin Resources, Inc.
SAI - Statement of Additional Information
S&P - Standard & Poor's Corporation
SEC - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
SECURITIES DEALER - A financial institution that, either directly or through
affiliates, has an agreement with Distributors to handle customer orders and
accounts with the fund. This reference is for convenience only and does not
indicate a legal conclusion of capacity.
U.S. - United States
WE/OUR/US - Unless a different meaning is indicated by the context, these terms
refer to the fund and/or Investor Services, Distributors, or other wholly owned
subsidiaries of Resources.
APPENDIX
DESCRIPTION OF RATINGS
CORPORATE BOND RATINGS
MOODY'S
AAA - Bonds rated Aaa are judged to be of the best quality. They carry the
smallest degree of investment risk and are generally referred to as
"gilt-edged." Interest payments are protected by a large or exceptionally stable
margin, and principal is secure. While the various protective elements are
likely to change, such changes as can be visualized are most unlikely to impair
the fundamentally strong position of such issues.
AA - Bonds rated Aa are judged to be high quality by all standards. Together
with the Aaa group, they comprise what are generally known as high-grade bonds.
They are rated lower than the best bonds because margins of protection may not
be as large, fluctuation of protective elements may be of greater amplitude, or
there may be other elements present that make the long-term risks appear
somewhat larger.
A - Bonds rated A possess many favorable investment attributes and are
considered upper medium-grade obligations. Factors giving security to principal
and interest are considered adequate, but elements may be present that suggest a
susceptibility to impairment sometime in the future.
BAA - Bonds rated Baa are considered medium-grade obligations. They are neither
highly protected nor poorly secured. Interest payments and principal security
appear adequate for the present but certain protective elements may be lacking
or may be characteristically unreliable over any great length of time. These
bonds lack outstanding investment characteristics and, in fact. have speculative
characteristics as well.
BA - Bonds rated Ba are judged to have predominantly speculative elements and
their future cannot be considered well assured. Often the protection of interest
and principal payments is very moderate and, thereby not well safeguarded during
both good and bad times over the future. Uncertainty of position characterizes
bonds in this class.
B - Bonds rated B generally lack characteristics of the desirable investment.
Assurance of interest and principal payments or of maintenance of other terms of
the contract over any long period of time may be small.
CAA - Bonds rated Caa are of poor standing. Such issues may be in default or
there may be present elements of danger with respect to principal or interest.
CA - Bonds rated Ca represent obligations which are speculative in a high
degree. Such issues are often in default or have other marked shortcomings.
C - Bonds rated C are the lowest rated class of bonds and can be regarded as
having extremely poor prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing.
Note: Moody's applies numerical modifiers 1, 2 and 3 in each generic rating
classification from Aa through B in its corporate bond ratings. The modifier 1
indicates that the security ranks in the higher end of its generic rating
category; modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and modifier 3 indicates
that the issue ranks in the lower end of its generic rating category.
S&P
AAA - This is the highest rating assigned by S&P to a debt obligation and
indicates an extremely strong capacity to pay principal and interest.
AA - Bonds rated AA also qualify as high-quality debt obligations. Capacity to
pay principal and interest is very strong and, in the majority of instances,
differ from AAA issues only in small degree.
A - Bonds rated A have a strong capacity to pay principal and interest, although
they are somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in
circumstances and economic conditions.
BBB - Bonds rated BBB are regarded as having an adequate capacity to pay
principal and interest. Whereas they normally exhibit protection parameters,
adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to
a weakened capacity to pay principal and interest for bonds in this category
than for bonds in the A category.
BB, B, CCC, CC - Bonds rated BB, B, CCC and CC are regarded, on balance, as
predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer's capacity to pay interest
and repay principal in accordance with the terms of the obligations. BB
indicates the lowest degree of speculation and CC the highest degree of
speculation. While such bonds will likely have some quality and protective
characteristics, these are outweighed by large uncertainties or major risk
exposures to adverse conditions.
C - Bonds rated C are typically subordinated debt to senior debt that is
assigned an actual or implied CCC- rating. The C rating may also reflect the
filing of a bankruptcy petition under circumstances where debt service payments
are continuing. The C1 rating is reserved for income bonds on which no interest
is being paid.
D - Debt rated D is in default and payment of interest and/or repayment of
principal is in arrears.
PLUS (+) OR MINUS (-): The ratings from "AA" to "CCC" may be modified by the
addition of a plus or minus sign to show relative standing within the major
rating categories.
COMMERCIAL PAPER RATINGS
MOODY'S
Moody's commercial paper ratings are opinions of the ability of issuers to repay
punctually their promissory obligations not having an original maturity in
excess of nine months. Moody's employs the following designations, all judged to
be investment grade, to indicate the relative repayment capacity of rated
issuers:
P-1 (PRIME-1): Superior capacity for repayment.
P-2 (PRIME-2): Strong capacity for repayment.
S&P
S&P's ratings are a current assessment of the likelihood of timely payment of
debt having an original maturity of no more than 365 days. Ratings are graded
into four categories, ranging from "A" for the highest quality obligations to
"D" for the lowest. Issues within the "A" category are delineated with the
numbers 1, 2 and 3 to indicate the relative degree of safety, as follows:
A-1: This designation indicates the degree of safety regarding timely payment is
very strong. A "plus" (+) designation indicates an even stronger likelihood of
timely payment.
A-2: Capacity for timely payment on issues with this designation is strong.
However, the relative degree of safety is not as overwhelming as for issues
designated A-1.
A-3: Issues carrying this designation have a satisfactory capacity for timely
payment. They are, however, somewhat more vulnerable to the adverse effects of
changes in circumstances than obligations carrying the higher designations.
