Van Eck Global’s Joe Foster to Share His Outlook on Metals and Mining Equities at Bloomberg Precious Metals Conference

Joe Foster, portfolio manager for Van Eck’s flagship fund, Van Eck International Investors Gold Fund (INIVX), will be presenting at the Bloomberg Precious Metals Conference in New York on March 13th as part of a panel on “Investing in Mining Companies,” it was announced today.

Among the topics Foster will be discussing are whether mining companies can continue to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns if prices stop rising, those companies and regions worthy of investor consideration, and whether mining companies should consider linking dividends to commodity prices.

“Precious metals, particularly gold and gold equities, have been on a tremendous run in recent years,” said Foster. “I’m looking forward to sharing my views on the factors driving those increases and some of the key trends that will shape investment returns from this space in the months and years to come.”

In addition to leading the team responsible for INIVX, the first gold mutual fund which traces its roots back to 1968, Mr. Foster also lends his expertise on gold and precious metals to the 12-member investment team responsible for overseeing the Van Eck Global Hard Assets Fund (GHAAX) and the Van Eck VIP Global Hard Assets Fund. Collectively, these three funds had $8.6 billion in assets under management (AUM) as of January 31, 2012.

In addition to actively managed funds, the company is the distributor of two gold-mining exchange-traded funds (ETFs): Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE Arca: GDX), the first ETF focused on the gold mining industry, with approximately $8.0 billion in AUM, and Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (NYSE Arca: GDXJ), which invests in junior gold companies and has approximately $2.0 billion in AUM, both as of January 31, 2012.

About Van Eck Global

Founded in 1955, Van Eck Global was among the first U.S. money managers helping investors achieve greater diversification through global investing. Today the firm continues this tradition by offering innovative, actively managed global investment choices in hard assets, emerging markets, precious metals including gold, and other alternative asset classes.

Van Eck Global offers mutual funds, insurance portfolios, separate accounts and alternative investments. Designed for investors seeking innovative choices for portfolio diversification, Van Eck Global’s investment products are often categorized in asset classes having returns with low correlations to those of more traditional U.S. equity and fixed income investments.

Market Vectors exchange-traded products have been offered by Van Eck Global since 2006 when the firm launched the nation’s first gold mining ETF. Today, Market Vectors ETFs and ETNs span several asset classes, including equities, municipal bonds and other fixed income as well as currencies.

Van Eck Funds:

You can lose money by investing in the Funds. Any investment in the Funds should be part of an overall investment program, not a complete program. The Funds’ investments in foreign securities involve risks related to adverse political and economic developments unique to a country or a region, currency fluctuations or controls, and the possibility of arbitrary action by foreign governments, including the takeover of property without adequate compensation or imposition of prohibitive taxation. The Funds are subject to risks associated with investments in debt securities, derivatives, commodity-linked instruments, illiquid securities, asset-backed securities, CMOs and small- or midcap companies. The Funds are also subject to inflation risk, short sales risk, market risk, non-diversification risk and leverage risk. GHAAX is subject to risks associated with concentrating its investments in hard assets and the hard assets sector, including real estate, precious metals and natural resources, and can be significantly affected by events relating to these industries, including international political and economic developments, inflation, and other factors. The Fund’s portfolio securities may experience substantial price fluctuations as a result of these factors, and may move independently of the trends of industrialized companies. INIVX is subject to the risks associated with concentrating its assets in the gold industry, which can be significantly affected by international economic, monetary and political developments. The Fund’s overall portfolio may decline in value due to developments specific to the gold industry.

Market Vectors ETFs:

Gold- and silver-related investments are subject to risks, including bullion price volatility, changes in world political developments, competitive pressures and risks associated with foreign investments. In times of stable economic growth, the value of gold, silver and other precious metals may be adversely affected. Mining companies are subject to elevated risks, which include, among others, competitive pressures, commodity and currency price fluctuations, and adverse governmental or environmental regulations. In particular, small- and mid-cap mining companies may be subject to additional risks, including inability to commence production and generate material revenues, significant expenditures and inability to secure financing, which may cause such companies to operate at a loss, greater volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger companies. Investors should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility and the potential of significant loss.

Fund shares are not individually redeemable and will be issued and redeemed at their NAV only through certain authorized broker-dealers in large, specified blocks of shares called “creation units” and otherwise can be bought and sold only through exchange trading. Creation units are issued and redeemed principally in kind. Shares may trade at a premium or discount to their NAV in the secondary market. You will incur brokerage expenses when trading Fund shares in the secondary market.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Returns for actual Fund investments may differ from what is shown because of differences in timing, the amount invested, and fees and expenses.

Investing involves substantial risk and high volatility, including possible loss of principal. An investor should consider the investment objective, risks, charges and expenses of a Fund carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus and summary prospectus, which contains this and other information, call 800.826.2333 or visit vaneck.com. Please read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Shares of the Van Eck VIP Global Hard Assets Fund are available for purchase only through a variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policies offered by the separate accounts of participating insurance companies.