Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on

Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load)

(as a percentage of the lower of original

purchase price or sale proceeds)

Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses

After Fee Waivers and Expense Limitation

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on

Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load)

(as a percentage of the lower of original

purchase price or sales proceeds)

•  Assuming complete redemption at end of period

•  Assuming no redemption

$

 

$

 

$

 

$

 

ADRs — American Depositary Receipts evidence ownership of, and represent the right to receive, securities of foreign issuers deposited in a domestic bank or trust company or a foreign correspondent bank. Most ADRs are denominated in U.S. dollars and are publicly traded on exchanges or over-the-counter in the United States. ADRs are subject to the risks of investments in foreign securities and currency risk, if, as is often the case, the underlying securities are denominated in a foreign currency.

Bank obligations — obligations of U.S. banks and savings and loan associations and dollar-denominated obligations of U.S. subsidiaries and branches of foreign banks, such as certificates of deposit, fixed time deposits, bank notes and bankers’ acceptances.

Commercial paper — short-term debt securities often issued by corporate issuers and used for financing current operations.

Common stock — common stock represents an ownership interest in a company. Common stock may take the form of shares in a corporation, membership interests in a limited liability company, limited partnership interests, or other forms of ownership interests. A company’s common stock generally pays dividends only after the company invests in its own business and makes required payments to holders of its bonds, other debt and preferred stock.

Convertible securities — bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stocks and other securities that pay interest or dividends and are convertible into or exchangeable for common stock or other stock of the same or a different issuer at a stated price or rate. The price of a convertible security will normally vary in some proportion to changes in the price of the underlying stock because of this conversion or exercise feature. Convertible securities typically pay an income yield that is higher than the dividend yield of the issuer’s common stock, but lower than the yield of the issuer’s debt securities.

Corporate bonds — obligations issued by U.S. and non-U.S. corporations and other business entities. Corporate bonds may be either secured or unsecured. If a bond is unsecured, it is known as a debenture. Bondholders, as creditors, have a prior legal claim over common and preferred stockholders as to both income and assets of the corporation for the principal and interest due them and may have a prior claim over other creditors if liens or mortgages are involved.

Foreign government obligations — obligations issued, sponsored or guaranteed by: governments or governmental agencies, instrumentalities, government-sponsored enterprises or political subdivisions located in developed or emerging market countries; government owned, controlled or sponsored enterprises located in developed or emerging market countries; and entities organized and/or operated for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of instruments issued by any of the above issuers.

Forward and futures contracts — a forward currency contract is an obligation to purchase or sell a specific foreign currency at an agreed exchange rate (price) at a future date, which is typically individually negotiated and privately traded by currency traders and their customers in the interbank market. A currency futures contract is a standard binding agreement between two parties to buy or sell a specified quantity of a specified currency, at a specified price at a specified later date. When used for hedging purposes, such contracts are used to attempt to protect against possible declines in a currency’s value where a security held or to be purchased by a Portfolio is denominated in that currency.

Illiquid investments — each Portfolio may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. The term “illiquid investments” means any investment that a Portfolio reasonably expects cannot be sold in seven calendar days or less without significantly changing the market value of the investment. Restricted securities (i.e., securities subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale), may be illiquid. However, some restricted securities (such as securities issued pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (“1933 Act”), and certain commercial paper) may be treated as liquid. Certain illiquid investments may require pricing at fair value as determined in good faith under fair value procedures approved by the Trust’s Board of Trustees.

Inflation-indexed bonds — generally are debt securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate of inflation. If the index measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bonds (other than certain inflation-indexed bonds) will be adjusted downward, and consequently the interest payable on these securities (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced. Repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) is guaranteed in the case of U.S. Treasury inflation-indexed bonds. For bonds that do not provide a similar guarantee, the adjusted principal value of the bond repaid at maturity may be less than the original principal. Inflation-indexed bonds decline in value when real interest rates rise. In certain interest rate environments, such as when real interest rates are rising faster than nominal interest rates, inflation-indexed bonds may experience greater losses than other fixed income securities with similar durations.

Obligations of supranational entities — a supranational entity is a bank, commission or company established or financially supported by the national governments of one or more countries to promote reconstruction, trade, harmonization of standards or laws, economic development, and humanitarian, political or environmental initiatives. Supranational debt obligations include those issued by entities such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Import/Export Bank, Asia Development Bank, European Investment Bank and the European Economic Community.

Preferred stock — securities representing an equity ownership interest in a corporate issuer, but generally entitling the holder to receive, in preference to the holders of other stocks such as common stocks, dividends and a fixed share of the proceeds resulting from liquidation of the company. Preferred stock may pay fixed or adjustable rates of return. A company’s preferred stock generally pays dividends only after the company makes required payments to holders of its bonds and other debt. Preferred stocks may be sensitive to changes in interest rates. When interest rates rise, the value of preferred stocks will generally decline.

REITs — pooled investment vehicles that invest primarily in income-producing real estate or real estate related loans or interests.

Repurchase agreements — an agreement by a buyer to purchase securities from a bank, or a registered securities dealer, with an agreement by the seller to repurchase the security at an agreed price within a specified time. If the party agreeing to repurchase should default, a Portfolio will seek to sell the securities which it holds. This could involve procedural costs or delays in addition to a loss on the securities if their value should fall below their repurchase price. A Portfolio will not enter into a repurchase agreement with a duration of more than seven days if, as a result, more than 15% of the value of the Portfolio’s net assets would be invested in illiquid investments.

Rule 144A securities — securities that have not been registered for public sale, but that are eligible for purchase and sale pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act. Rule 144A permits certain qualified institutional buyers, such as the Portfolios, to trade in privately placed securities that have not been registered for sale under the 1933 Act.

Stock — as used in this Prospectus, “stock” refers to an ownership interest, or the right to acquire an ownership interest, in an issuer. Different types of stocks provide different voting and dividend rights and priority in the event of the bankruptcy and/or insolvency of the issuer. In addition to common stocks, stocks include, without limitation, preferred stocks, convertible securities and warrants. A Portfolio also may invest in, and gain exposure to, stocks through purchasing depositary receipts, such as ADRs.

U.S. government and agency securities — securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or government-sponsored enterprises. These include securities issued by the U.S. Treasury that are direct obligations of the U.S. government, including bills, notes and bonds and securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises or federal agencies, which have different levels of credit support. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises or federal agencies include securities backed by the full-faith-and-credit of the United States, those supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury and those backed only by the credit of the issuing agency or entity itself.

Variable, floating rate and inverse floating rate securities — variable and floating rate securities pay interest at rates that are adjusted periodically, according to a specified formula. A “variable” interest rate adjusts at predetermined intervals (e.g., daily, weekly or monthly), while a “floating” interest rate adjusts whenever a specified benchmark rate (such as the bank prime lending rate) changes. Variable and floating rate securities generally are less sensitive to interest rate changes but may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value if interest rates decline. The interest rate on an inverse floating rate debt instrument (“inverse floater”) resets in the opposite direction from the market rate of interest to which the inverse floater is indexed. An inverse floater may have greater volatility in market value, in that, during periods of rising interest rates, the market values of inverse floaters will tend to decrease more rapidly than those of fixed rate securities.

Warrants — securities issued by a company which give the holder the right, but not the obligation, to purchase stock, usually at a price that is higher than the market price at the time the warrant is issued. If the price of the underlying stock does not rise above the exercise price before the warrant expires, the warrant generally expires without any value and a Portfolio would lose any amount it paid for the warrant.

Zero-coupon securities — a zero-coupon security pays no interest to its holder during its life. An investor acquires a zero-coupon security at a discounted price from the face value of the security, which is generally based upon its present value, and which, depending upon the time remaining until maturity, may be significantly less than its face value (sometimes referred to as a “deep discount” price). Upon maturity of the zero-coupon security, the investor receives the face value of the security.

Allocation risk (Permanent Portfolio) — because the Portfolio invests a fixed Target Percentage of its net assets in designated asset classes, the Portfolio has less flexibility in its investment strategy than other funds that are not subject to such limitations. It is possible that investment in the designated asset classes or the individual investments in the asset classes will cause the Portfolio to lose value or to underperform other funds with a similar investment objective.

Bank obligations risk (Permanent Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — investments in bank obligations may expose the Portfolio to adverse developments in or related to the banking industry. Banks may be particularly susceptible to certain economic factors, such as interest rate changes and adverse developments in the real estate markets. Fiscal and monetary policy and general economic cycles can affect the availability and cost of funds, loan demand and asset quality and thereby impact the earnings and financial conditions of banks.

Below investment grade bond risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — below investment grade bonds (also referred to as “high yield” or “junk” bonds) involve greater risk of loss because they are subject to greater levels of credit and liquidity risks. Issuers of below investment grade bonds are not as strong financially as those issuing securities of higher credit quality. Below investment grade bonds are considered primarily speculative with respect to the issuer’s continuing ability to make principal and interest payments. If an issuer stops making interest and/or principal payments, payments on the securities may never resume. These instruments may be worthless and the Portfolio could lose its entire investment. The prices of below investment grade bonds fluctuate more than higher rated bonds. Prices are especially sensitive to developments affecting the issuer’s business or operations and to changes in the ratings assigned by rating agencies. In addition, the entire below investment grade bond market can experience sudden and sharp price swings due to changes in economic conditions, stock market activity, large sustained sales by major investors, a high-profile default, or other factors. Prices of corporate below investment grade bonds often are closely linked with the company’s stock prices and typically rise and fall in response to factors that affect stock prices. Below investment grade bonds are generally less liquid, especially during periods of economic uncertainty or change, than higher-rated bonds. Many of these securities are not registered for sale under the federal securities laws and/or do not trade frequently. When they do trade, their prices may be significantly higher or lower than expected. At times, it may be difficult to sell these securities promptly at an acceptable price, which may limit the Portfolio’s ability to sell securities in response to specific economic events or to meet redemption requests. As a result, below investment grade bonds generally pose greater valuation risks. Substantial declines in the prices of below investment grade bonds can dramatically increase the yield of such securities. The decline in market prices generally reflects an expectation that an issuer may be at greater risk of defaulting on the obligation to pay interest and principal when due. Therefore, substantial increases in yield may reflect a greater risk by the Portfolio of losing some or part of its investment rather than any increase in income that the bond may pay to the Portfolio on its investment. The Portfolio may also from time to time hold defaulted securities or securities of issuers involved in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings. As a result of such proceedings, the Portfolio may hold equity securities received in these proceedings.

Capitalization risk (Permanent Portfolio and Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — to the extent a Portfolio emphasizes stocks of small-, mid-or large-capitalization companies, it takes on the associated risks. At times, any one of these market capitalizations may be out of favor with investors. Small-and mid-capitalization companies may also have shorter histories of operations than larger companies, fewer financial resources and an inability to raise additional capital, smaller customer bases and less diversified product lines, making them more susceptible to market pressure. Investments in the stocks of small-and mid-capitalization companies may be more volatile and less liquid than the stocks of larger companies. Small-and mid-capitalization stocks may also underperform other types of stocks or be difficult to sell when the economy is not robust or during market or sector downturns.

Compared to small-and mid-capitalization companies, large-capitalization companies may be less responsive to market changes and opportunities.

Credit risk (Short-Term Treasury Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — an issuer or guarantor of debt securities, or the counterparty to an investment contract or repurchase agreement, may be unable or unwilling to pay principal and interest when due, or otherwise honor its obligations, or the value of the security will suffer because investors believe the issuer or guarantor is less able to make required principal and interest payments. This is broadly gauged by the credit ratings, if available, of the debt securities in which a Portfolio invests. Credit ratings are only the opinions of the rating agencies issuing them, do not purport to reflect the risk of fluctuations in market value and are not guarantees as to the payment of interest and repayment of principal.

Currency risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — foreign debt securities may be issued and traded in foreign currencies. Revenue from such securities also will be denominated in foreign currencies. The market values in U.S. dollars of foreign debt securities and income from debt securities denominated in foreign currencies may be adversely affected by reductions in the value of those currencies relative to the U.S. dollar. Foreign currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly. They are determined by supply and demand in the foreign exchange markets, the relative merits of investments in different countries, actual or perceived changes in interest rates, and other complex factors. Currency exchange rates also can be affected unpredictably by intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments or central banks or by currency controls or political developments. In light of these risks, the Portfolio may engage in certain currency hedging transactions which involve certain special risks. The Portfolio accrues additional expenses when engaging in currency exchange transactions, and valuation of the Portfolio’s foreign securities may be subject to greater risk because both the currency (relative to the U.S. dollar) and the security must be considered.

Hedging risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — forward currency contracts and currency futures contracts may be used to hedge foreign currency risk. Hedging tends to limit any potential gain that may be realized if the value of the Portfolio’s assets increases because of currency fluctuations. In addition, hedging may increase the Portfolio’s expenses. There is a risk that these contracts intended as a hedge may not perform as intended, in which case the Portfolio may not be able to minimize the effects of foreign currency fluctuations and may suffer a loss. Use of these contracts also could result in a loss if the counterparty to the transaction does not perform as promised, including because of the counterparty’s bankruptcy or insolvency.

Income risk (Short-Term Treasury Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — because a Portfolio can only distribute what it earns, the Portfolio’s distributions to shareholders may decline when prevailing interest rates fall or if the Portfolio experiences defaults on debt securities it holds. A Portfolio’s income generally declines during periods of falling interest rates because the Portfolio must reinvest the proceeds it receives from existing investments (upon their maturity, prepayment, amortization, call or buy-back) at a lower rate of interest or return.

Inflation risk (All Portfolios) — the value of assets or income from investments will be less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the value of a Portfolio’s assets can decline as can the value of a Portfolio’s distributions. Inflation rates may change frequently and significantly as a result of various factors, including unexpected shifts in the domestic or global economy and changes in monetary or economic policies (or expectations that these policies may change), and a Portfolio’s investments may not keep pace with inflation, which would generally adversely affect the real value of Portfolio shareholders’ investment in the Portfolio. This risk is significantly greater if the Portfolio invests a significant portion of its assets in bonds with longer maturities. In addition, this risk may be significantly elevated compared to normal conditions because of recent monetary policy measures and the current interest rate environment.

Interest rate risk (Short-Term Treasury Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — changes in interest rates will affect the value of a Portfolio’s investments. Generally, prices of debt securities tend to fall when prevailing interest rates rise and rise when prevailing interest rates fall. A wide variety of factors can cause interest rates to rise (e.g., central bank monetary policies, inflation rates, general economic conditions, etc.). Debt securities have varying levels of sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Typically, the longer the maturity (i.e., the term of a debt security) or duration (i.e., a measure of the sensitivity of a debt security to changes in market interest rates, based on the entire cash flow associated with the security) of a debt security, the greater the effect a change in interest rates could have on the security’s price. Thus, a Portfolio’s sensitivity to interest rate risk will increase with any increase in the Portfolio’s overall duration. During periods of very low interest rates, income from the Short-Term Treasury Portfolio’s investments may not be sufficient to offset its expenses.

Investment style risk (Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — growth stocks may not perform as well as value stocks or the stock market in general. The Portfolio’s focus on growth stocks increases the potential volatility of its share price. Because the prices of most growth stocks are based on future expectations, these stocks tend to be more sensitive than value stocks to bad economic news and negative earnings surprises. While the price of any type of stock can rise and fall rapidly, growth stocks in particular may underperform during periods when the market favors value stocks.

Liquidity risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — certain of the Portfolio’s investments may be or become illiquid. An investment may be deemed illiquid due to a lack of trading volume in the security or if the security is privately placed and not traded in any public market or is otherwise restricted from trading. An illiquid investment may be difficult to value and the Portfolio may be unable to sell illiquid investments at the time or price it desires and could lose its entire investment in such investments. The Portfolio also may be required to dispose of other investments at unfavorable times or prices to satisfy its obligations, which may result in a loss or may be costly to the Portfolio. Liquidity risk may be heightened during periods of market volatility. Transactions in illiquid investments may entail registration expenses and other transaction costs that are higher than those for transactions in liquid securities.

Market risk (Permanent Portfolio) — prices of the investments held by the Portfolio will fluctuate, sometimes rapidly and unexpectedly. These fluctuations may cause the price of an investment to decline for short-or long-term periods and cause the investment to be worth

less than it was worth when purchased by the Portfolio, or less than it was worth at an earlier time. Investments in each of the Portfolio’s investment categories may decline in value due to factors affecting the gold and silver markets, individual issuers, securities markets generally or particular industries or sectors within the securities markets. Events or circumstances, such as natural disasters, terrorism, war and other geopolitical events, trade, and tariff arrangements, can also have a dramatic adverse effect on the investments held by the Portfolio. Legislative, regulatory or tax developments may also adversely affect the ability of the Portfolio to achieve its investment objective. Changes in market conditions may not have the same impact on all investment categories. In addition, the market and market participants are increasingly reliant on both publicly available and proprietary information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact on a specific issuer, group of issuers, or the market as a whole.

Market risk (Short-Term Treasury Portfolio) — the value of the Portfolio’s assets will fluctuate as the U.S. government securities market fluctuates. These fluctuations may cause the price of a security to decline for short- or long-term periods and cause the security to be worth less than it was worth when purchased by the Portfolio, or less than it was worth at an earlier time. In addition, the market and market participants are increasingly reliant on both publicly available and proprietary information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact on a specific issuer, group of issuers, or the market as a whole.

Market risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — the value of the Portfolio’s assets will fluctuate as the bond market fluctuates. These fluctuations may cause the price of a security to decline for short- or long-term periods and cause the security to be worth less than it was worth when purchased by the Portfolio, or less than it was worth at an earlier time. Debt securities may decline in value due to factors affecting individual issuers, securities markets generally or particular industries or sectors within the securities markets. Events or circumstances, such as natural disasters, terrorism, war and other geopolitical events, trade, and tariff arrangements, can also have a dramatic adverse effect on the investments held by the Portfolio. Legislative, regulatory or tax developments may also adversely affect the ability of the Portfolio to achieve its investment objective. In addition, the market and market participants are increasingly reliant on both publicly available and proprietary information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact on a specific issuer, group of issuers, or the market as a whole.

Market risk (Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — prices of the securities held by the Portfolio will fluctuate, sometimes rapidly and unexpectedly. These fluctuations may cause the price of a security to decline for short-or long-term periods and cause the security to be worth less than it was worth when purchased by the Portfolio, or less than it was worth at an earlier time. Securities may decline in value due to factors affecting individual issuers, securities markets generally or particular industries or sectors within the securities markets. Aggressive growth stock investments are subject to greater risk of price declines, especially during periods where the prices of U.S. stock market investments in general are declining, and events or circumstances, such as natural disasters, terrorism, war and other geopolitical events, trade, and tariff arrangements, can have a dramatic adverse effect on the securities held by the Portfolio. Legislative, regulatory or tax developments may also adversely affect the ability of the Portfolio to achieve its investment objective. When markets perform well, there can be no assurance that the Portfolio’s securities will participate in or otherwise benefit from the advance. In addition, the market and market participants are increasingly reliant on both publicly available and proprietary information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or

other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact on a specific issuer, group of issuers, or the market as a whole.

Non-diversified fund risk (Permanent Portfolio) — the Portfolio is classified as non-diversified. As such, the percentage of the Portfolio’s assets that may be invested in any single issuer or a few issuers is not limited by the 1940 Act. Investing a higher percentage of its assets in any one or a few issuers or types of investments could increase the Portfolio’s risk of loss and its share price volatility, because the value of its shares would be more susceptible to adverse events affecting those issuers or types of investments.

Prepayment and extension risk (Short-Term Treasury Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — a security held by a Portfolio may be paid off by the issuer more quickly than originally anticipated, thereby shortening duration, and a Portfolio may then have to reinvest the proceeds in an investment offering a lower yield, and may not benefit from any increase in value that might otherwise result from declining interest rates and may lose any premium it paid to acquire the security. Higher interest rates generally result in slower payoffs, which effectively increase duration, heighten interest rate risk, and may increase the magnitude of resulting price declines. Floating rate securities can be less sensitive to these risks.

Redemption risk (Permanent Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — market developments and other factors, including a general rise in interest rates, have the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed income securities. Such a move, coupled with a reduction in the ability or willingness of dealers and other institutional investors to buy or hold fixed income securities, may result in decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the fixed income markets. A Portfolio may experience periods of heavy redemptions that could cause it to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value. Redemption risk is heightened during periods of declining or illiquid markets. Heavy redemptions could hurt a Portfolio’s performance.

Repurchase agreement risk (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — the obligations of a counterparty to a repurchase agreement are not guaranteed. There are risks that a counterparty may default at a time when the collateral has declined in value, or a counterparty may become insolvent, which may affect the Portfolio’s right to control the collateral. If the seller in a repurchase agreement transaction defaults on its obligations to repurchase a security, the Portfolio may suffer delays, incur costs and lose money in exercising its rights.

Risks of in-kind redemptions (Permanent Portfolio) — to avoid liability for corporate federal income tax, the Portfolio must, among other things, derive at least 90% of its gross income each taxable year from sources including interest, dividends and gains on sales of securities. Gains on sales of gold and silver by the Portfolio do not qualify as “gains on sales of securities.” Consequently, profitable sales of gold and silver (as might be required for the Portfolio to adhere to its Target Percentages) could subject the Portfolio to liability for corporate federal income tax. To try to reduce the risk of this potential adverse tax result, the Trust, if administratively feasible, may require redeeming shareholders in the Portfolio to accept readily tradable gold or silver bullion or coins from the Portfolio’s holdings in complete or partial payment of redemptions, if it can satisfy a federal tax law provision that permits it to do so without recognizing gain.

Risks of investing in foreign and emerging markets (Permanent Portfolio, Versatile Bond Portfolio and Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — investments in foreign securities involve risks that are in addition to the risks associated with investing in U.S. securities. The securities markets of many foreign countries are relatively small, with the majority of market capitalization and trading volume concentrated in a limited number of companies representing

a small number of industries. Foreign securities may experience greater price volatility and significantly lower liquidity than securities of U.S. companies. Reduced liquidity may also make it more difficult for a Portfolio to obtain accurate market quotations for the purpose of valuing its portfolio. These markets may be subject to greater influence by adverse events generally affecting the market, and by large investors trading significant blocks of securities, than is usual in the United States. Securities registration, custody, and settlement may in some instances be subject to delays and legal and administrative uncertainties. Foreign investment in the securities markets of certain foreign countries is restricted or controlled to varying degrees. These restrictions or controls may at times limit or preclude investment in certain securities and may increase the cost and expenses of a Portfolio. In addition, the repatriation of investment income, capital or the proceeds of sales of securities from certain of the countries is controlled under regulations. A Portfolio could be adversely affected by delays in, or a refusal to grant, any required governmental approval for repatriation, as well as by the application to it of other restrictions on investment. Transaction costs in many foreign countries are generally higher than in the United States. Issuers of securities in foreign jurisdictions are generally not subject to the same degree of regulation as are U.S. issuers with respect to such matters as insider trading rules, restrictions on market manipulation, shareholder proxy requirements, and timely disclosure of information. The reporting, accounting, and auditing standards of foreign countries may differ, in some cases significantly, from U.S. standards in important respects, and less information may be publicly available about non-U.S. issuers than is available about most U.S. issuers. The economies of individual foreign countries may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as growth of gross domestic product or gross national product, rate of inflation, capital reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency, and balance of payments position. Nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, currency blockage, political changes, government regulation, political or social instability, revolutions, wars or diplomatic developments could affect adversely the economy of a foreign country. In the event of nationalization, expropriation, or other confiscation, a Portfolio could lose its entire investment in securities in the country involved. In addition, laws in foreign countries governing business organizations, bankruptcy and insolvency may provide less protection to security holders such as a Portfolio than that provided by U.S. laws. Additionally, legal remedies available to investors in certain foreign countries may be more limited than those available with respect to investments in the United States or in other foreign countries. Investing in emerging market securities may involve higher levels of each of these risks. In addition, foreign investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales and future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization, or creation of government monopolies. The currencies of emerging market countries may experience significant declines against the U.S. dollar, and devaluation may occur subsequent to investments in these currencies by a Portfolio. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had, and may continue to have, negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.

Risks of investing in foreign government and supranational organization obligations (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — no established secondary markets may exist for many foreign government and supranational organization obligations. Reduced secondary market liquidity may have an adverse effect on the market price of such instruments and the Portfolio’s ability to dispose of particular instruments when necessary to meet its liquidity requirements or in response to specific economic events such as deterioration in the creditworthiness of the issuer. Reduced secondary market liquidity for these obligations may also make it more difficult for the Portfolio to obtain accurate market quotations for the purpose of valuing its portfolio. By investing in foreign government obligations, the Portfolio will be exposed to the direct or indirect consequences of political, social, and economic changes in various countries. Political changes in a country may affect the willingness of a foreign

government to make or provide for timely payments of its obligations. The country’s economic status, as reflected in, among other things, its inflation rate, the amount of its external debt and its gross domestic product, may also affect the government’s ability to honor its obligations. The Portfolio may have limited legal recourse in the event of a default with respect to foreign government and supranational organization obligations it holds. For example, remedies from defaults on certain foreign government obligations, unlike those on private debt, must, in some cases, be pursued in the courts of the defaulting party itself. Legal recourse therefore may be significantly diminished. Bankruptcy, moratorium, and other similar laws applicable to issuers of foreign government obligations may be substantially different from those applicable to issuers of private debt obligations. Supranational organizations are often chartered to promote economic development. Typically, the governmental members, or “stockholders,” make initial capital contributions to the supranational organization and may be committed to make additional contributions if the supranational organization is unable to repay its borrowings. There is no guarantee that one or more stockholders of a supranational organization will continue to make any necessary additional capital contributions or otherwise provide continued financial backing to the supranational organization.

Risks of investing in preferred stocks (Versatile Bond Portfolio) — preferred stock is subordinated to any debt the issuer has outstanding but has liquidation preference over common stock. Accordingly, preferred stock dividends are not paid until all debt obligations of the issuer are first met. Preferred stocks therefore may be subject to more fluctuations in market value, due to changes in market participants’ perceptions of the issuer’s ability to continue to pay dividends, than debt of the same issuer. Convertible preferred stock tends to be more volatile than non-convertible preferred stock because its value is related to the price of the issuer’s common stock as well as the dividends payable on the preferred stock. Preferred stocks may be sensitive to changes in interest rates. When interest rates rise, the value of preferred stocks will generally decline.

Risks of investments in aggressive growth stocks (Permanent Portfolio and Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — investments in aggressive growth stocks are subject to market risk, capitalization risk, and risk of investments in foreign securities. Aggressive growth stock investments are subject to greater market risk of price declines, especially during periods when the prices of U.S. or foreign stock market investments in general are declining.

Risks of investments in dollar assets (Permanent Portfolio) — investments in debt securities are generally subject to interest rate risk, credit risk, income risk, and prepayment and extension risk. Interest rate risk is the risk that changes in interest rates will affect the value of the Portfolio’s dollar assets. Generally, prices of debt securities tend to fall when prevailing interest rates rise and rise when prevailing interest rates fall. A wide variety of factors can cause interest rates to rise (e.g., central bank monetary policies, inflation rates, general economic conditions, etc.). Debt securities have varying levels of sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Typically, the longer the maturity (i.e., the term of a debt security) or duration (i.e., a measure of the sensitivity of a debt security to changes in market interest rates, based on the entire cash flow associated with the security) of a debt security, the greater the effect a change in interest rates could have on the security’s price. Thus, the Portfolio’s sensitivity to interest rate risk will increase with any increase in the Portfolio’s overall duration. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or guarantor of debt securities, or the counterparty to an investment contract or repurchase agreement, may be unable or unwilling to pay principal and interest when due, or otherwise honor its obligations, or the value of the security will suffer because investors believe the issuer or guarantor is less able to make required principal and interest payments. This is broadly gauged by the credit ratings, if available, of the debt securities in which the Portfolio invests. Credit ratings are only the opinions of the rating agencies issuing them, do not purport to reflect the risk of fluctuations

in market value and are not guarantees as to the payment of interest and repayment of principal. The Portfolio’s dollar assets are also subject to income risk. The Portfolio’s income generally declines during periods of falling interest rates because the Portfolio must reinvest the proceeds it receives from existing investments (upon their maturity, prepayment, amortization, call or buy-back) at a lower rate of interest or return. In addition to income risk, if a security held by the Portfolio is called or paid off by the issuer more quickly than originally anticipated, the Portfolio may not benefit from any increase in value that might otherwise result from declining interest rates and may lose any premium it paid to acquire the security. Higher interest rates generally result in slower payoffs, which effectively increase duration, heighten interest rate risk, and may increase the magnitude of resulting price declines. Floating rate securities can be less sensitive to prepayment and extension risk.

Risks of investments in gold and silver (Permanent Portfolio) — gold and silver generate no interest or dividends, and the return from investments in gold and silver will be derived solely from the gains and losses realized by the Portfolio upon sale. Prices of gold and silver may fluctuate, sharply or gradually, and over short or long periods of time. The prices of gold and silver have fluctuated widely over the past several years. If gold and silver markets continue to be characterized by the wide fluctuations that they have shown in the past several years, the Portfolio’s performance may be significantly impacted. There is no assurance that gold will maintain its long-term value in terms of future purchasing power. The prices of gold and silver may be significantly affected by factors such as changes in inflation or expectations regarding inflation in various countries, the availability of supplies and demand, change in the attitude of speculators and investors towards gold, changes in industrial and commercial demand, developments in the gold and silver mining industries, gold and silver sales by governments, central banks or international institutions, investment and trading activities of market participants, including hedge funds or speculators, commodity funds and exchange traded funds, hedging activity by producers, currency exchange rates, interest rates, income growth, economic output, and monetary and other economic policies of various governments. The official sector holds a significant amount of gold, most of which is static, meaning that it is held in vaults and is not bought, sold, leased or swapped or otherwise mobilized in the open market. A number of central banks have sold portions of their gold over the past ten years, with the result that the official sector, taken as a whole, has been a net supplier to the open market. Since 1999, most sales have been made in a coordinated manner under the terms of the Central Bank Gold Agreement, as amended, or “CBGA,” under which 21 of the world’s major central banks (including the European Central Bank) agree to limit the level of their gold sales and lending to the market. In the event that future economic, political or social conditions or pressures require members of the official sector to liquidate their gold assets all at once or in an uncoordinated manner, the demand for gold might not be sufficient to accommodate the sudden increase in the supply of gold to the market. Consequently, the price of gold could decline significantly. The possibility of large-scale distress sales of gold by investors in times of crisis also may have a negative impact on the price of gold. For example, the 1998 Asian financial crisis resulted in significant sales of gold by individuals which depressed the price of gold. Crises in the future may impair gold’s price performance. In addition, because the majority of the world’s supply of gold and silver is concentrated in a few countries, the Portfolio’s investments may be particularly susceptible to political, economic and environmental conditions and events in those countries. While gold and silver are used to preserve wealth by investors around the world, there is no assurance that gold or silver will maintain its long-term value in terms of future purchasing power. Furthermore, although gold and silver have been used as portfolio diversifiers due to their historically low-to-negative correlation with stocks and bonds, diversification does not ensure against, nor can it prevent against, risk of loss. The gold and silver bullion and bullion-type coins held by the Portfolio’s subcustodian on behalf of the Portfolio could be lost, damaged, stolen or destroyed. Access to

the Portfolio’s gold and silver holdings could also be restricted by natural events (such as an earthquake) or human actions (such as a terrorist attack). The gold and silver custody operations of the subcustodian are not subject to specific governmental regulatory supervision. The subcustodian’s procedures may not prevent the deposit of gold or silver on behalf of the Portfolio that fails to meet the purity standards agreed to at the time of purchase. Neither the custodian nor any subcustodian will be liable to the Portfolio in the event that any gold or silver otherwise properly inspected by the subcustodian does not meet these purity standards. If the Portfolio purchases gold or silver of inferior quality, the Portfolio may not be able to recover damages from the seller or any other third party. Any of these events may adversely affect the Portfolio and consequently, an investment in the shares of the Portfolio. The Portfolio does not insure its gold and silver holdings and the responsibility of the Portfolio’s custodian and any subcustodian for loss, damage or destruction of the Portfolio’s gold and silver holdings is very limited under the agreements governing the custody and subcustody arrangements. Thus, for example, any losses due to acts beyond the control of the custodian or any subcustodian such as acts of God, strikes, lockouts, riots, acts of war, epidemics, governmental regulations imposed after the fact, fire, communication line failures, power failures, earthquakes or other disasters will be sustained by the Portfolio. In addition, if the Portfolio’s gold and silver bullion and bullion-type coins are lost, damaged, stolen or destroyed under circumstances rendering the custodian, any subcustodian or any other third party liable to the Portfolio (or the custodian or any subcustodian), the responsible party may not have the financial resources (including liability insurance coverage) sufficient to satisfy such claim. The custodian and the subcustodian maintain insurance with regard to its business on such terms and conditions as it considers appropriate. The Portfolio is not a beneficiary of any such insurance and does not have the ability to dictate the existence, nature or amount of coverage. In addition, the Trust’s custodian contract does not require sub-custodians to be insured or bonded with respect to their custodial activities or in respect of the gold or silver held by them on behalf of the Trust. Therefore, there can be no assurance that the custodian or subcustodian will maintain adequate insurance or any insurance with respect to the gold and silver held by the subcustodian on behalf of the Portfolio. Further, shareholders’ legal recourse against the Trust, the custodian and any sub-custodians is limited. Consequently, the value of the Portfolio’s shares may be adversely affected by loss, damage or destruction to the bullion and bullion-type coins for which the Portfolio may not be reimbursed. When holding bullion, the Portfolio may encounter higher custody and other costs than those normally associated with ownership of securities. Gains realized upon the sale of bullion or bullion-type coins will not count towards the requirement in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Code”), that at least 90% of the Portfolio’s gross income in each taxable year be derived from gains on the sale of securities and certain other permitted sources, except to the extent that the Portfolio has invested in bullion as a hedge with respect to investment in the securities of companies engaged in mining gold or silver. Accordingly, the Portfolio may be required to hold its precious metals or to sell them at a loss, or to sell securities at a gain, when for investment reasons it would not otherwise do so. If the Portfolio is not able to satisfy this or other requirements under the Code for any taxable year, the Portfolio would become subject to corporate federal income tax for that year on all of its taxable income and recognized gains.

Risks of investments in real estate and natural resource stocks (Permanent Portfolio) — investments in real estate and natural resource stocks are subject to market risk, capitalization risk, and risk of investments in foreign securities. Any decline in the general level of prices of oil, gas, coal, minerals or real estate would be expected to have an adverse impact on these stocks. The prices of these stocks are particularly vulnerable to decline in the event of deflationary economic conditions. Real estate-related investments, such as stocks of real estate-related companies, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and related instruments, will subject the Portfolio to risks similar to those associated with direct

ownership of real estate, including losses from a casualty or condemnation, changes in local and general economic conditions, supply and demand, interest rates, zoning laws, regulatory limitations on rents, property taxes and operating expenses. The value of investments in the real estate sector also may be affected by macroeconomic developments, and social and economic trends. Additionally, investments in REITs involve other risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, changes to the tax laws and self-liquidation. Domestic REITs could be adversely affected by failure to qualify for tax-free “pass-through” of distributed net investment income and net realized gains under the Code, or to maintain their exemption from registration under the 1940 Act. The value of REIT common shares may decline when interest rates rise. REIT and other real estate company securities tend to be small-to mid-cap securities and are subject to the risks of investing in small-to mid-cap securities. REITs are subject to management fees and other expenses, and so to the extent that the Portfolio invests in REITs the Portfolio will bear its proportionate share of the costs of the REITs’ operations. Investments in natural resource companies can be significantly affected by events relating to international political and economic developments (e.g., war, regime changes and changes in economic activity levels), expropriation or other confiscation, population growth and changing demographics, energy conservation, the success of exploration projects, global commodity prices, adverse international monetary policies, tax and other government regulations, and natural phenomena around the world, such as drought, floods and other adverse weather conditions and livestock disease. The Russian attack on, and war in, Ukraine, has created significant volatility in global agricultural, commodity and energy markets as a consequence, which may impact economies globally in uncertain manners, particularly with respect to natural resource commodities. Specifically, cyclical industries can be significantly affected by general economic trends, including employment, economic growth, interest rates, changes in consumer sentiment and spending, global commodity prices, legislation, government regulation and spending, import controls and worldwide competition and companies engaged in such industries can be subject to liability for, among other things, environmental damage, depletion of resources, and mandated expenditures for safety and pollution control. Furthermore, the natural resources industries and funds that focus their investments in such industries can also be significantly affected by the level and volatility of commodity prices, which have historically been among the most volatile of international prices, often exceeding the volatility of exchange rates and interest rates. Finally, investments in natural resources industries are subject to the risk that the performance of such industries may not correlate with broader equity market returns or with returns on natural resources investments to the extent expected by the investment adviser.

Risks of investments in Swiss franc assets (Permanent Portfolio) — the Swiss franc is subject to the risk that inflation will decrease in the United States, or rise in Switzerland. Swiss government bonds are subject to some risk of default, and their credit quality is not rated by some U.S. rating agencies. The Portfolio may also be significantly affected by other economic, monetary or political developments in Switzerland. The U.S. dollar/Swiss franc exchange rate may adversely affect the value (in U.S. dollar terms) of the Portfolio’s Swiss franc assets. The Swiss franc has shown cyclical periods of strength and weakness against the U.S. dollar, and will likely continue to do so. The performance of the Swiss franc versus the U.S. dollar may be prolonged or amplified by slow growth or other negative developments affecting the European economy.

Security selection risk (All Portfolios) — securities selected for a Portfolio may perform differently than expected. The Portfolios are actively managed and could experience losses if the investment adviser’s judgments about markets, interest rates, or the attractiveness, relative values, liquidity or potential appreciation of particular investments made for a Portfolio’s portfolio prove to be incorrect.

U.S. government and agency securities risk (Permanent Portfolio, Short-Term Treasury Portfolio and Versatile Bond Portfolio) — U.S. government securities are subject to market risk, interest rate risk and credit risk. Securities, such as those issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or Ginnie Mae, that are backed by the full-faith-and-credit of the United States, are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and principal when held to maturity, but the market prices for such securities are not guaranteed and will fluctuate. Notwithstanding that these securities are backed by the full-faith-and-credit of the United States, circumstances could arise that could prevent the payment of interest or principal. This would result in losses to the Portfolio. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are not backed by the full-faith-and-credit of the United States and no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support. Therefore, U.S. government agency securities that are not backed by the full-faith-and-credit of the United States are subject to greater credit risk.

Warrant risk (Permanent Portfolio and Aggressive Growth Portfolio) — warrants are securities issued by a company which give the holder the right, but not the obligation, to purchase stock, usually at a price that is higher than the market price at the time the warrant is issued. If the price of the underlying stock does not rise above the exercise price before the warrant expires, the warrant generally expires without any value and the Portfolio would lose any amount it paid for the warrant.

1.1875% of the first $200 million of the Portfolio’s average daily net assets;

 .8750% of the next $200 million of the Portfolio’s average daily net assets;

 .8125% of the next $200 million of the Portfolio’s average daily net assets; and

 .7500% of all of the Portfolio’s average daily net assets in excess of $600 million.