QAT

About QAT

The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI All Qatar Capped Index (the “Underlying Index”), which is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index composed of securities within the “Broad Qatar Equity Universe,” as defined by MSCI, Inc. (the “Index Provider” or “MSCI”), subject to certain eligibility (e.g., liquidity) and investability criteria as defined by MSCI. The Underlying Index targets a minimum of 25 securities and 20 issuers.The Underlying Index consists of equity securities of companies that are (i) classified in Qatar according to the MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes Methodology and (ii) not classified in Qatar but are either headquartered or listed in Qatar and have a significant linkage to Qatar, as determined by MSCI based on the company's shareholder base, revenues, assets, management, employee base, history and country of incorporation. If the criteria outlined in (i) and (ii) do not result in the target number of securities and issuers, the Underlying Index will also include securities of companies with economic exposure of greater than 10% to Qatar, as determined by MSCI based on the geographic distribution of a company’s revenues. Securities are included in the Underlying Index at their free float-adjusted market capitalization weight, except for securities that are included only on the basis of economic exposure to the country. The maximum weight for such constituents is generally limited to 1% each, although higher weights may result due to the group capping methodology described below.The Underlying Index uses a capping methodology that limits the weight of any single “group entity” (constituents that MSCI determines have a control relationship) to a maximum of 25% of the Underlying Index weight, and the sum of all group entities with a weight above 5% to an aggregate of 50% of the Underlying Index weight. A group entity is a group of companies that operate as an affiliated corporate group but may separately issue listed securities. To determine “group entities,” MSCI analyzes financial accounts of listed companies holding stakes of 20% or more in other listed companies to determine whether these stakes are controlling in nature. In certain cases, even in the absence of consolidated accounts, MSCI may also consider two companies as belonging to the same group entity where there is reasonable evidence of control based on other information. All group entities are reviewed on an annual basis. At each quarterly rebalance, the weight of any single group entity is capped at 22.5%, and all group entities with a weight greater than 4.5% are capped such that, in the aggregate, these group entities do not have a weight greater than 45% of the Underlying Index. The Underlying Index includes large-, mid- and small-capitalization companies and may change over time. As of August 31, 2024, a significant portion of the Underlying Index is represented by securities of companies in the financials industry or sector. The components of the Underlying Index are likely to change over time.BFA uses an indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. The Fund does not try to “beat” the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by aiming to keep portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. “Representative sampling” is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of an applicable underlying index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.The Fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities of its Underlying Index and in investments that have economic characteristics that are substantially identical to the component securities of its Underlying Index (i.e., depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index) and may invest up to 20% of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, including shares of money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index. Cash and cash equivalent investments associated with a derivative position will be treated as part of that position for the purposes of calculating the percentage of investments included in the Underlying Index. The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the Underlying Index before fees and expenses of the Fund.The Underlying Index is sponsored by MSCI Inc. (the “Index Provider” or “MSCI”), which is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index.Industry Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.