Archive for April 2016

Growing need for sustainable income ETF strategies, finds Source

Apr 12th, 2016 | By
Source highlights benefits of commodity ETFs with flexible trading strategies

European ETF provider Source has released research suggesting there is a growing need for innovative approaches to income investing that address issues such as the quality and sustainability of dividends. More than 61% of institutional investors anticipate that dividends from UK companies will stay the same or decline this year when compared to 2015, according to survey results of 77 institutional investors. Dr. Chris Mellor, Executive Director, Equity Product Management at Source, commented: “Finding quality stocks that pay attractively consistent dividends is becoming much more challenging. Given this, we teamed up with Research Affiliates, the market leaders in smart beta, to develop a suite of ETFs that addresses this growing issue.”


Amundi captures 40% of emerging equity ETF inflows in March

Apr 12th, 2016 | By
Amundi’s ultra-low cost ‘Prime’ ETF range surpasses €2bn asset milestone

Flows into Amundi ETF’s emerging market equity exchange traded funds accounted for over 40% of all European emerging market equity ETF flows last month. According to data from the provider it saw €560m of net inflows into its emerging equity ETFs, compared to total net flows of €1.4bn into the sector. Emerging equity markets outperformed developed markets in the first three months of 2016, with the Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (AUEM) gaining 20.6% between its lowest point this year on 20 January 2016 and 1 April 2016. Fannie Wurtz, Managing Director at Amundi ETF, Indexing & Smart Beta, said: “We believe emerging markets are the challengers for the coming weeks.”


Deutsche launches smart beta EM fixed income ETF

Apr 12th, 2016 | By
Deutsche Asset Management expands fixed income smart beta suite with new emerging markets ETF

Deutsche Asset Management has launched a new smart beta exchange traded fund that tracks emerging markets sovereign debt, while weighting its constituents according to the credit quality of the issuers. The db x-trackers iBoxx USD Emerging Sovereigns Quality Weighted UCITS ETF (XQUA) is launched on the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Bourse. The new ETF tracks the Markit iBoxx USD Emerging Markets Sovereigns Quality Weighted Index. Martin Weithofer, Deutsche Asset Management’s Head of Strategic Beta, said in a statement: “For emerging markets… we found that the fundamental quality-weighted methodology can be useful in under-weighting countries prior to downgrades, which have often trailed fundamental underlying changes.”


What’s the play on equities in 2016?

Apr 8th, 2016 | By
HANetf confirms Authorised Participants ahead of first ETF launch

Volatility ripped through stock markets in the first two months of the year and despite recovering their losses towards the end of March and into April, equities still look as though they’re in for a rocky ride as investors react to geopolitics, macro events and central bank policies. Convergex said of equities in a research note put out in early April, that “while future performance remains unclear… history tells us that 2016 will likely be a big year–one way or the other.” Rebecca Hampson, Associate Editor at ETF Strategy, talks to three ETF investors to get their views on equities in 2016.


Hedge UK and European equities before EU referendum, says WisdomTree Europe

Apr 8th, 2016 | By
Hedge UK and European equities before EU referendum, advises ETF provider WisdomTree Europe

WisdomTree Europe has stated that investors with long positions in UK or European equities may wish to consider hedging their positions ahead of the referendum on Britain’s membership in the European Union (EU). The European provider of exchange-traded funds references the performance of UK and European equity and government bond markets in the lead up to the Greek referendum on EU membership as a proxy for the likely market performance leading up to the ‘Brexit’ referendum on 23 June 2016. It was found that the FTSE 100 and EURO STOXX 50 fell by approximately 6% in the 30 days leading up to the referendum while safe haven assets such as German Bunds performed relatively well.


MSCI report on executive/worker pay gap points to benefits of ESG/SRI ETFs

Apr 7th, 2016 | By

Companies that have a low gap between their highest paid executives and the average worker’s salary have higher-than-average profit margins, according to research from global index provider MSCI. The data comes amid increased interest in SRI (Socially Responsible Investing) and ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) investing – a growing area of ETF product development.


S&P launches Carbon Emitter Scorecard as ESG gains traction

Apr 7th, 2016 | By
Tim Edwards, Senior Director, Index Investment Strategy, S&P Dow Jones Indices.

S&P Dow Jones Indices has launched the first carbon emitter scorecard amid rising interest in the ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) sector as investors look at how they can impact climate change. On its debut, the S&P Index Carbon Emitter Scorecard, which is based on the S&P Global 1200, found that only 15% of global emissions are directly produced by the world’s blue-chip organisations. The scorecard analyses carbon production and efficiency for major indices and styles across global markets. Tim Edwards, Senior Director of Index Investment Strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a statement: “Our S&P Index Carbon Emitter Scorecard helps to frame the importance of corporate and investor participation in the efforts to limit carbon emissions.”


Stoxx launches fixed income equivalent of Euro Stoxx 50

Apr 7th, 2016 | By
Matteo Andreetto, Head of SPDR ETF Business, EMEA

Index provider Stoxx has introduced a fixed income equivalent of its flagship equity index. The newly launched Euro Stoxx 50 Corporate Bond Index tracks the corporate debt of the constituents of Euro Stoxx 50, an index of the 50 largest blue-chip companies in the Eurozone. The index has been designed to act as an underlying for exchange-traded funds and derivatives. “We now translate the success factors of our flagship index to the bonds market, by creating the Euro Stoxx 50 Corporate Bond Index which enables market participants to measure the performance of bonds issued by companies of the Euro Stoxx 50. This link allows a consistent analysis of the bond and equity market in the Eurozone,” said Matteo Andreetto, chief executive officer, Stoxx.


First Trust switches entire AlphaDEX smart beta ETF range to Nasdaq

Apr 7th, 2016 | By
Dave Gedeon Nasdaq

First Trust, a US-based provider of exchange-traded funds, will move all 12 of its AlphaDEX smart beta ETFs from the NYSE to Nasdaq exchange on 8 April 2016. Following the switch, all ETFs will change index provider from S&P and begin tracking Nasdaq indices. The funds will maintain their original ticker codes but their respective indices will be rebranded to reflect the change in provider. Commenting on the benefits to both parties, Dave Gedeon, Head of Research & Development, Nasdaq Global Indices, commented: “Part of the conversation is aligning the ETF provider and index provider such that they have a joint belief in the product and use opportunities like this to deepen the relationship.”


REX Shares launches gold hedged US and EM equity ETFs

Apr 7th, 2016 | By
Greg King CEO REX Shares

US-based exchange-traded fund provider REX Shares has launched two new gold hedged equity funds, giving investors an efficient way to add gold exposure to broad equity holdings. The ETFs provide exposure to US equities and emerging-markets equities, while offering long exposure to the gold price through the use of futures contracts. The REX Gold Hedged S&P 500 ETF (NYSE Arca: GHS) and the REX Gold Hedged FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (NYSE Arca: GHE) are listed on NYSE Arca. Greg King, Founder and CEO of REX Shares, commented: “Our new ETFs allow them (investors) an unprecedented type of access to the movements in the price of gold without asking them to choose between gold or stocks.”