Vanguard to Disclose Mutual Fund Expenses

Vanguard Group, the country’s second-largest mutual fund company, said Wednesday that it would disclose details about fund operating expenses in its 2003 shareholder reports.

Vanguard said it would include a table that shows the cost an investor would incur over the fund’s latest fiscal year assuming a $10,000 investment and using the fund’s actual expenses and total return for the period.

The idea is to “help shareholders better understand the actual expenses associated with their investment,” Vanguard Chairman Jack Brennan said.

The format of the disclosure is based on an SEC proposal put forth earlier this year.