delayed settlement of portfolio transactions or loss of certificates of portfolio securities, and the risk of unfavorable foreign government actions, including nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, currency blockage, political changes, diplomatic developments or the imposition of sanctions and other similar measures. Foreign securities may also be less liquid and more difficult to value than securities of U.S. issuers
Emerging Markets Risk:the risk of investing in emerging market securities, primarily increased foreign (non-U.S.) investment risk
Sovereign Debt Risk:the risk that investments in fixed income instruments issued by sovereign entities may decline in value as a result of default or other adverse credit event resulting from an issuer's inability or unwillingness to make principal or interest payments in a timely fashion
Currency Risk:the risk that foreign (non-U.S.) currencies will change in value relative to the U.S. dollar and affect the Portfolio's investments in foreign (non-U.S.) currencies or in securities that trade in, and receive revenues in, or in derivatives that provide exposure to, foreign (non-U.S.) currencies
Leveraging Risk:the risk that certain transactions of the Portfolio, such as reverse repurchase agreements, loans of portfolio securities, and the use of when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment transactions, or derivative instruments, may give rise to leverage, magnifying gains and losses and causing the Portfolio to be more volatile than if it had not been leveraged. This means that leverage entails a heightened risk of loss
Management Risk:the risk that the investment techniques and risk analyses applied by PIMCO will not produce the desired results and that actual or potential conflicts of interest, legislative, regulatory, or tax restrictions, policies or developments may affect the investment techniques available to PIMCO and the individual portfolio managers in connection with managing the Portfolio and may cause PIMCO to restrict or prohibit participation in certain investments. There is no guarantee that the investment objective of the Portfolio will be achieved
Short Exposure Risk:the risk of entering into short sales or other short positions, including the potential loss of more money than the actual cost of the investment, and the risk that the third party to the short sale or other short position will not fulfill its contractual obligations, causing a loss to the Portfolio
Collateralized Loan Obligations Risk: the risk that investing in collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs") and other similarly structured investments exposes the Portfolio to heightened credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, market risk and prepayment and extension risk, as well as the risk of default on the underlying asset. In addition, investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) risks related to the capability of the servicer of the securitized assets; (iv) the risk that the Portfolio may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other
tranches; (v) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents may not be fully understood at the time of investment and could lead to disputes with the issuer or among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds or unexpected investment results; and (vi) the CLO's manager may perform poorly
LIBOR Transition Risk:the risk related to the discontinuation and replacement of the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). Certain instruments held by the Portfolio rely or relied in some fashion upon LIBOR. Although the transition process away from LIBOR for most instruments has been completed, some LIBOR use is continuing and there are potential effects related to the transition away from LIBOR or the continued use of LIBOR on the Portfolio, or on certain instruments in which the Portfolio invests, which can be difficult to ascertain and could result in losses to the Portfolio
Please see "Description of Principal Risks" in the Portfolio's prospectus for a more detailed description of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. An investment in the Portfolio is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.
Performance Information
The performance information shows summary performance information for the Portfolio in a bar chart and an Average Annual Total Returns table. The information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio by showing changes in its performance from year to year and by showing how the Portfolio's average annual returns compare with the returns of a broad-based securities market index. The Portfolio's performance information reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods presented. Absent such fee waivers and/or expense limitations, if any, performance would have been lower. Performance shown does not reflect any charges or expenses imposed by an insurance company, and, if it did, performance shown would be lower. The bar chart and the table show performance of the Portfolio's Administrative Class shares. The Portfolio's past performance is not necessarily an indication of how the Portfolio will perform in the future.
The Portfolio's broad-based securities market index is the Bloomberg Global Aggregate (USD Unhedged) Index. The Bloomberg Global Aggregate (USD Unhedged) Index provides a broad-based measure of the global investment-grade fixed income markets. The three major components of this index are the U.S. Aggregate, the Pan-European Aggregate, and the Asian-Pacific Aggregate Indices. The index also includes Eurodollar and Euro-Yen corporate bonds, Canadian Government securities, and USD investment grade 144A securities. It is not possible to invest directly in an unmanaged index.
Performance for the Portfolio is updated daily and monthly and may be obtained as follows: daily updates on the net asset value may be obtained by calling 1-888-87-PIMCO and monthly performance may be obtained at www.pimco.com/pvit.