Fiscal Year: An accounting period consisting of 12 consecutive months

Front-End Load: Same as Entry Load.

Fund Manager: The individual responsible for making portfolio decision for a mutual fund.

Global Fund: A mutual fund investing in stocks or bonds through out the world.

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Hedging: A strategy designed to reduce investment risk. Hedging techniques uses call options, put options, short selling, or futures contracts. A hedge can help lock in existing profits. Its purpose is to reduce the volatility of a portfolio, by reducing the risk of loss.

Holdings: This is a fund's most recently reported top securities (excluding cash and cash equivalents for all but short-term bond funds). The securities are ranked by the percentage of the portfolio's net assets they occupy. With this information, investors can more clearly identify what drives the fund's performance.

Income Fund: A mutual fund that primarily seeks current income rather than growth of capital. It will tend to invest in stocks and bonds that normally pay high dividends and interest.

Initial Purchase: The smallest investment amount accepted for establishing a new account. The minimum initial purchase notifies the investor of monetary restrictions for becoming a shareholder. Generally speaking, institutional funds have the highest minimum initial purchase amounts. For those investors with only a small amount to invest, checking the fund's minimum initial purchase should be one of the first criteria you use when selecting an appropriate mutual fund.

Interest Rate Sensitivity: Interest-rate sensitivity, measured by the average effective duration � the longer a fund's duration, the more sensitive the fund is to shifts in interest rates. The relationship between funds with different durations is straightforward: A fund with a duration of 10 years is twice as volatile as a fund with a five-year duration. Duration also gives an indication of how a fund's NAV will change as interest rates change. A fund with a five-year duration would be expected to lose 5% from its NAV if interest rates rose by one percentage point or gain 5% if interest rates fell by one percentage point.

Investment Objective: The financial goal (long-term growth, current income, etc.) that an investor or a mutual fund pursues.