Metzler/Payden Press Center

Bric Countries Build on their Strong Economies
Vlad Milev, eastern European equities manager at US mutual fund provider Metzler-Payden, said while there will be a slowdown in emerging markets, it will be less pronounced than in most developed markets. Cleary said that most emerging markets are “in a strong position because of budget surpluses”.

- eFinancialNews.com, 6/23/08

Mapping Out Opportunity Beyond The U.S. Border
But Vladimir Milev, a Metzler/Payden analyst, notes the price of oil and gas — and other commodities — is built in and high. "If oil goes back to $110 per barrel it's not the end of the world," he said. This does bother Milev: Russian firms don't reinvest as much capital as their Middle Eastern and U.S. peers, and that makes the run-up in their stocks shaky.

- Investors.com, 6/20/08

Turkish Bonds, Stocks Fall After Court Upholds Ban
“Investors have been pretty content with the way the AKP has handled the economy and steered the country toward the EU,'' said Vlad Milev , a Los Angeles-based analyst at Metzler Payden, which oversees about $1 billion in east European stocks including Turkish equities. "The possibility of the AKP getting banned, essentially putting the prime minister and the president out of business, certainly can create more volatility.''

- Bloomberg.com, 6/6/08

Russian Funds Sizzle With the Economy
Vlad Milev, investment analyst for the $500 million Metzler/Payden European Emerging Markets fund, said he currently has about 40% of his portfolio allocated to Russian shares, more than the 30% to 35% the fund has generally held over the past five years. He said he has been trying to increase his exposure to the consumer sector.

- Wall Street Journal, 6/4/08

Stocking Up
Mr. Schroeder says […] that in late 2006, he gave a 1% spot in the portfolio to Metzler/Payden European Emerging Markets Fund to "broaden slightly our emerging-market exposure." As of earlier this year, the fund had just over a fourth of its money invested in Russia, and about a fifth in Poland.

- Wall Street Journal, 6/2/08

Investing in Funds: A Quarterly Analysis
The Metzler/Payden European Emerging Markets Fund is listed among the top ten performing funds in the European Region category, based on one-year total returns as of May 31, 2007.

- The Wall Street Journal, 7/3/07

Eastern Europe's Markets Attract Notice
Managers Seek Alternative to Slowdown in the West; Polands Robust Activity
Markus Brueck, who manages Metzler/Payden European Emerging Markets Fund, has been cutting his portfolio's exposure to commodity names, many of which are based in Russia. "In Eastern Europe, three main sectors dominate -- energy, telecom and finance," said Vladimir Milev, a Metzler/Payden analyst. "Energy is very volatile, so the fund's manager has been utting more profits to work in less cyclical areas." That includes Telefonica O2 Czech Republic. The stock has a dividend yield of around 8%, which is far greater than most of its rivals in the region, Milev says. "The telecom business in Eastern Europe has seen very impressive growth in general," he added. "It has grown from almost no growth a decade ago to over 100% in some areas. Telefonica is giving its business in the Czech Republic more resources to gain market share."

- The Wall Street Journal, 5/24/07

Fund Profile - Metzler/Payden European Leaders Fund
One-page article about the Metzler/Payden European Leaders Fund and the investment philosophy and stock selection process used by fund manager Frank Heise.

- Moneyletter.com, 4/6/07

Emerging Markets Report
A series of articles about Central and Eastern European markets with quotes by Vladimir Milev, Investment Analyst with Metzler/Payden.

- CBS Marketwatch, 3/28/07

There’s nothing typical about this Eastern European fund
“The Metzler/Payden European Emerging Markets Fund (MPYMX) offers an example of an Eastern European strategy that thrives by staying off the beaten path. The four-year-old fund, which has $380 million in assets, is hardly your garden-variety allocation to brand-name companies based in Russia, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. “We realized, in order to add value, we had to look beyond the largest and most liquid markets, where every company we were looking at was also being looked at by all the other banks and investment analysts,” said Vlad Milev, a Los Angeles-based analyst assigned to the fund. The general strategy, according to Mr. Milev, is to offer a regional fund investing in Eastern European stocks, with an emerging-markets flavor. To that end, management concentrates on identifying companies likely to benefit from various regional economic growth trends. The portfolio, which typically holds about 75 stocks, pays attention both to the region’s dominant markets and its less-developed economies.”

- Investment News, 3/12/07

International-Europe
“Europe is coming out of its growth funk, and that can only make European stocks even more attractive. The real surprise is New Europe, usually called Emerging Europe. This encompasses Eastern Europe (the old Soviet bloc), Turkey, and Russia. These emerging markets are growing rapidly, not as rapidly as most of their Asian counterparts, but a 4%-6% we are still talking rapid growth. The appeal of many of the countries in the region is that they have applied for membership in the European Union, e.g., Romania and Turkey. This is a new and different breed of emerging country. The world has not passed these markets by. Performance of the Metzler/Payden European Markets Fund has been very strong for four years running now. Still, portfolio manager Marcus Brück remains positive on the 2007 outlook for his fund. We think that Brück's case for the region is a convincing one.”

- Bull & Bear’s Digest of Investment Newsletter, February 2007

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For inquiries, please contact Kimberly Tipton at 213 830-6621 or ktipton@payden-rygel.com.

Quoted performance data represent past performance, which does not guarantee future results. Investment returns and principal value will fluctuate, so investors' shares when sold, may be worth more or less than their original cost. For the most recent month-end performance, which may be higher or lower than that quoted, browse this website or call 866 673-8637. Investment in foreign securities offers different rewards and challenges from investing in domestic securities, including changes in exchange rates, political changes, and differences in reporting standards, and for emerging-market securities, greater volatility. Before investing, investors should carefully read and consider investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other important information, which are contained in the prospectus. For more information and to obtain a prospectus, browse this website or call 866 673-8637. The Metzler/Payden Funds are distributed by Payden & Rygel Distributors, member FINRA.