New research from SSgA shows that investors are primarily using ETFs for gaining tactical exposure to certain markets and asset classes. Gaining market access is considered to be one of the most important benefits of investing in ETFs, alongside cost-effectiveness and liquidity, according to the research which was conducted among 354 fund buyers. The study found that just over half of all respondents use ETFs to gain tactical exposure to specific markets, while one in five uses them as core/satellite building blocks.

Investors have a differentiated view on ETF replication methods, according to EDHEC-Risk Institute’s annual survey of European ETF investors. In general, respondents prefer full physical replication over either sampling replication or swap-based synthetic replication. However, there is a clear preference for synthetic ETFs in challenging universes, such as illiquid alternative asset classes and broad indices with more than 1,000 constituents.

Teucrium Trading, the sponsor of the Teucrium family of commodity ETFs, has launched the Teucrium Agricultural Fund (TAGS), an ETF providing exposure to four agricultural commodities in a single fund of ETFs. The new fund, which trades on the NYSE Arca, will invest in corn, soybeans, wheat and sugar by holding an equal weighting of existing Teucrium single commodity ETFs, namely, the Teucrium Corn Fund (CORN), the Teucrium Soybean Fund (SOYB), the Teucrium Sugar Fund (CANE) and the Teucrium Wheat Fund (WEAT).

ProShares, a leading US-based provider of leveraged and inverse ETFs, has announced the launch of the ProShares UltraPro Short 20+ Year Treasury ETF (TTT), an ETF designed to provide 3x the inverse daily performance of the Barclays Capital US 20+ Year Treasury Bond Index. TTT is the third ProShares ETF providing inverse exposure to long-term Treasuries. The company already offers single and double leveraged inverse products on the same benchmark.

Guggenheim Investments has expanded its range of defined-maturity corporate bond ETFs with the launch of three new BulletShares. Defined-maturity ETFs, which Guggenheim brands ‘BulletShares’, are structured to track an index comprised of bonds that all mature in a particular year. During that year, the index and thus the ETF terminate and the fund’s net assets are distributed to shareholders. This gives defined-maturity ETFs an investment and cash-flow profile similar to bonds but with all the advantages inherent in an ETF.

Pimco will change the NYSE ticker for the recently-launched Pimco Total Return ETF from TRXT to BOND on 4 April, 2012. The shift from TRXT to BOND is designed to make it easier for investors to access the Pimco Total Return ETF. “Our aim is to enable investors to access the Pimco Total Return ETF easily and conveniently, and we believe that re-naming the NYSE ticker to BOND is another step toward achieving that objective,” said Pimco founder Bill Gross.

Tradition and Nomura have announced that Amundi ETF has made 48 of its most liquid ETFs available on the Navesis-ETF platform, a multilateral trading facility for ETFs. Amundi ETF joins six other issuers whose exchange-traded products (ETPs) are already on the platform, including db X-trackers, iShares, Lyxor, ETF Securities, HSBC and Source. Following the launch of Navesis-ETF in February, there are now almost 200 ETPs live on the platform, covering a range of different asset classes and geographies.

Delta One Data, a market leader in index and ETF data, has launched SOLA, a platform designed to provide accessibility and visibility to ETF and index data. “Delta One trading is a highly complex area. That complexity, combined with the levels of growth of this market, means most current systems will struggle. SOLA creates one standard model for data which can be fed into real-time engines, risk or order management systems – all leading to more accurate risk modelling and better hedging,” says Bernie Thurston, Head of Delta One Data.

For much of the past two decades Japan has been an underweight position in both institutional and private investor portfolios. This could be about to change. According to the latest BofA Merrill Lynch Survey of Fund Managers, managers of Japan funds are the most bullish with a net 91% saying that Japan’s economy will strengthen, up from a net 47% two months ago. The Nikkei’s stellar performance so far this year, up over 20%, suggests they are putting their money where their mouths are.

The American restaurant industry is starting to simmer. Consumers are spending more on meals and foot traffic at establishments is improving, albeit from a diminished base, according to the Chain Restaurant Industry Review. “Restaurateurs are no longer in survival mode; now they’re planning for the future,” said Trey Brown, commercial leader of GE Capital Franchise Finance. “To capture that growth and maintain a competitive advantage, they’re investing in their businesses by building new stores, remodelling existing ones or investing in new equipment.”