Infectious
Illness Risk. A widespread
outbreak of an infectious illness, such as the COVID-19 pandemic,
may adversely affect the economies of many nations and the global economy and
may impact individual issuers and capital markets in ways that cannot be
foreseen.
An infectious
illness outbreak may result in travel restrictions, closed international
borders,
disruption of healthcare services, prolonged quarantines, cancellations,
supply chain
disruptions, lower consumer demand, temporary and permanent closures
of
businesses, layoffs, defaults and other significant economic, social and
political impacts, as well
as general concern and uncertainty.
An infectious
illness outbreak may result in extreme volatility, severe losses, credit
deterioration of
issuers, and disruptions in markets, which could adversely impact the
Fund
and its investments, including impairing any hedging activity.
Certain local
markets may be subject to closures. Any suspension of trading in markets
in
which the Fund invests will have an impact on the Fund and its investments and
will impact the Fund’s
ability to purchase or sell securities in such markets. Market or
economic
disruptions could result in elevated tracking error and increased premiums
or
discounts to the Fund's NAV. Additionally, an outbreak could impair the
operations of the Fund’s
service providers, including BFA, which could adversely impact the
Fund.
Governmental and
quasi-governmental authorities and regulators throughout the world may respond to an
outbreak and any resulting economic disruptions with a variety of fiscal and
monetary policy changes, including direct capital infusions into companies
and
other issuers, new monetary policy tools, and changes in interest rates. A
reversal of these policies,
or the ineffectiveness of such policies, is likely to increase market
volatility, which
could adversely affect the Fund’s investments.
An outbreak may
exacerbate other pre-existing political, social and economic risks in
certain countries
or globally, which could adversely affect the Fund and its investments
and
could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund's NAV.
Despite the
development of vaccines, the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its
effects cannot be
predicted with certainty.
Issuer
Risk. The performance of
the Fund depends on the performance of individual securities to
which the Fund has exposure. Any issuer of these securities may perform
poorly, causing
the value of its securities to decline. Poor performance may be caused
by
poor management decisions, competitive pressures, changes in technology,
expiration of
patent protection, disruptions in supply, labor problems or shortages,
corporate
restructurings, fraudulent disclosures, credit deterioration of the issuer or
other
factors. Issuers may, in times of distress or at their own discretion, decide to
reduce or
eliminate dividends, which may also cause their stock prices to decline. An
issuer may also be
subject to risks associated with the countries, states and regions in
which
the issuer resides, invests, sells products, or otherwise conducts
operations.
Large-Capitalization
Companies Risk.
Large-capitalization companies may be less able than smaller
capitalization companies to adapt to changing market conditions. Large-capitalization
companies may be more mature and subject to more limited growth potential
compared with smaller capitalization companies. During different