WisdomTree has launched a new actively managed ETF on the Nasdaq market. Sub-advised by Western Asset, the WisdomTree Global Corporate Bond ETF (GLCB) invests in corporate fixed income securities from around the world. The ETF maintains at least 55% in investment grade assets, with the ability to also invest in US and international high yield as well as emerging market corporate debt. With an intermediate duration target and a bias towards high-quality bonds, the fund is positioned as a core fixed income holding.

Vanguard Asset Management has announced the cross-listing of three of its Irish-domiciled exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the SIX Swiss Exchange, broadening the asset manager’s presence in the European ETF market following its launch on the London Stock Exchange last year. The ETFs, which are physically backed and track well-known indices from FTSE and S&P, provide Swiss investors with low-cost access to US, global and emerging equity markets.

Amundi, one of Europe’s leading providers of exchange-traded funds, has a launched a new ETF designed to offer broad access to European equities but without exposure to financial companies. Listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris, the Amundi ETF MSCI Europe Ex Financials (EUXF) tracks the MSCI Europe Ex Financials Index, an index which specifically excludes banks, insurers, real estate and diversified financial companies.

Credit Suisse has launched a new exchange-traded note (ETN) that offers investors exposure to the performance of gold, as represented by SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), in addition to monthly income distributions. Listed on the Nasdaq exchange, the Credit Suisse Gold Shares Covered Call ETN (GLDI) becomes the first exchange-traded product in the US to deploy a covered call strategy on gold.

Thomson Reuters Indices has teamed up with real estate specialists Global Property Research (GPR) and industry group Asia Pacific Real Estate Association (APREA) to launch a suite of indices designed specifically to be the most comprehensive listed real estate benchmarks available for the Asia Pacific region.

ComStage, the ETF business of Commerzbank, has rolled out a new ETF based on the S&P SMIT 40 Index. The fund has been listed on Deutsche Börse’s Xetra platform. The S&P SMIT 40 Index, which was launched by S&P Dow Jones Indices in October 2012, is designed to measure the performance of 40 leading companies from four long-term growth emerging markets, as identified by Goldman Sachs: South Korea, Mexico, Indonesia and Turkey (SMITs).

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) today marked the twentieth anniversary of their SPDR ETF business. The launch of the first US-listed SPDR ETF, the now somewhat legendary SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), in 1993 was a ground-breaking innovation that improved access to the market for investors.

In a recent research report, analysts at AXA Investment Managers came out bullish on Asian emerging market equities, putting it among their top calls. One way to implement this trade is via exchange-traded funds (ETFs) linked to the MSCI Emerging Markets Asia Index (MSCI EM Asia), an index which targets the precise region the AXA analysts are positive on.

The size of the global exchange-traded products (ETP) industry has now surpassed the milestone figure of $2 trillion, according to the ETP Research team at BlackRock, the owner of iShares. The ETP market had a record-breaking year for flows in 2012, attracting $262.7 billion in assets globally and growing by 27% compared with the end of 2011. This momentum has carried into January and the industry reached $2 trillion in assets under management on 18 January 2013.

BMO Asset Management led the Canadian ETF industry in new assets for the second consecutive year in 2012, attracting $5 billion in net new assets, up 130 per cent from the previous year. Overall, BMO accounted for 40 per cent of all Canadian ETF new asset inflows for the year.