We break the business risk down into percentage change in sales, percentage change in operating cash flow, dividend payout, dividends per share, dividend yield, and how a company has grown and maintained those metrics through time. Regarding the financial risk, we look at debt, shareholder equity, operating cash flow, long-term debt, and interest coverage.

Q:  What are the key elements of your shorting strategy?

A: On the short side, we use the same methodology but we focus on the stocks with the lowest value/price ratios and relative strength indicators. The value/price ratio is our computed intrinsic value of the company divided by its market price. Therefore, under our methodology, we believe a good op I portunity exists when for every dollar you invest, you receive more than one dollar in value. On the other hand, in periods when the market overvalues an industry or a stock, we can, in theory, capitalize on shorting a company or an industry.

Again, we start at the industry level, and if we find industries that we believe are overvalued and show weakness, we drill down to the company level to spot the weakest companies within that area, and those are the ones we short.

Q:  What is the ratio between the short and the long holdings in the fund?

A: Because our strategy is opportunistic, we cannot be classified as a 130/30 fund, a 120/20 fund, or a market neutral fund.

When we see value completely absent from the market, we may keep 50% in cash and 50% in short positions in an effort to make money on that side as well. So the best description of the fund is that it is an opportunistic fund that follows a strict quantitative methodology.

Q:  What is your view on risk control?

A: We try to control risk at the portfolio level by attempting to limit company specific risk. I typically try to limit portfolio weight to around 1.3%, so I’m not taking a large bet in any given company.

We are aware of benchmark risks as well. We monitor our sector ratings relative to where the benchmark is. Then, as far as the holdings go, we monitor our beta, the measure of risk, the measure of all volatilities incorporated into our model.

Another risk control measure is our rating on management quality which was explained earlier in the portfolio construction process.

Q:  Could you give us a couple of specific examples of stocks or industries that you have selected in the past?

A: REITs represent a good example of finding industries that are overvalued and show weakness. Our discounted cash flow model suggested REITS were not worth as much as the market was valuing them. The REITs were overvalued across the board, so about 15% to 20% of our portfolio was short in REITs as of August 31, 2007.

Q: What do you think makes your long/short investment approach distinctive or differentiated from other long/short funds at other firms?

A: We believe we have the ability to be more opportunistic than many of the funds. I think you’ll find a lot of funds that are market neutral. We don’t try to be market neutral. You’ll find a lot of 130/30 funds, but if you think the market is undervalued by, say, 50%, why would you stay 30% short. I think that’s a big thing.

I think another thing that makes us different is we’re really an all-cap manager. We believe in going anywhere - it doesn’t matter, small cap, large cap, mid cap, value, growth. We don’t constrict ourselves by market cap and we really think that can offer investors some good opportunities.

Consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, and share classes of each ICON Fund carefully before investing. The prospectus and statement of additional information contains this and other information about the Funds and is available by visiting www.iconadvisers.com or by calling 1-800-828-4881; please read the prospectus and statement of additional information carefully before investing.