Global ETF News Older than One Year
State Street custodian bank delves into data mining
December 1, 2013--With low interest rates crimping its net interest margins, State Street is the latest custodian bank to attempt to drive its sluggish revenues higher by moving into data mining.
State Street's idea is to profit from helping asset managers exploit investment data to gain an edge against competitors. This cannot be described as an original thought, however, as BNY Mellon and other rival banks are pursuing similar strategies.
Source: FT.com
OPEC Monthly Oil Report November 2013
December 1, 2013--Oil Market Highlights
The OPEC Reference Basket declined by $2.04 to $106.69/b in October after four consecutive
months of gains. All Basket component values moved lower, but by varying degrees. Most
components were affected by high crude oil inventories, as refineries entered into autumn seasonal
turnaround and refining margins remained low.
Crude oil futures prices on both sides of the Atlantic moved lower in October with ICE Brent down $1.81 to $109.44/b and Nymex WTI declining by $5.68 to $100.55/b, which widened the Brent-WTI spread to $8.90/b. Downside pressure came on US futures due to the sharp climb in US crude inventories, even as the Federal Reserve left its economic stimulus intact following the US government shutdown. Easing geopolitical tensions also continued to deflate the risk premium in the market.
World economic growth forecasts for 2013 and 2014 remain unchanged at a moderate level of 2.9% and 3.5%, respectively.
Source: OPEC
London Stock Exchange to quit World Federation of Exchanges
November 28, 2013--London Stock Exchange Group is to resign from the World Federation of Exchanges, the main trade association for global bourses, according to two people familiar with the situation.
The highly unusual move for an exchange to leave the WFE comes only four years after the LSE withdrew from the Federation of European Securities Exchanges, an equivalent European association.
Source: FT.com
E-gold Founder Backs New Bitcoin Rival That Will Have Gold Reserves
November 28, 2013-- Now this is an interesting e-currency. FT reports:
The founder of one of the earliest virtual currencies has re-emerged with a rival to Bitcoin, more than five years after his first venture, e-gold, was shut down by the US Department of Justice.
Douglas Jackson is consulting for a membership organisation called Coeptis that hopes to launch a new version of his gold-backed currency, which attracted millions of users at its height.
Source: Economic Policy Journal
IOSCO Research launches statistics web portal on securities markets
November 28, 2013--The Research Department of the International Organization of Securities Commissions today launched a statistics web portal that provides the public with a global overview of specific securities markets.
The objectives of the new portal are threefold. First, it seeks to provide a centralized point for monitoring global trends, risks and vulnerabilities; second, to provide a mechanism for comparison of how well markets are recovering in light of the crisis; and finally, to provide IOSCO members and the broader financial community with easy access to key statistics, charts and indicators on a number of securities markets, including:
Source: IOSCO
Nasdaq to sign agreement with Istanbul Stock Exchange
November 27, 2013--Nasdaq and İstanbul Stock Exchange will sign the technological cooperation agreement on December 11 at İstanbul. In the first stage of the negotiation CEO Robert Greifeld will come Turkey for the first time to sign agreement.
After the approval of the Capital Market Board, the agreement will be signed between Nasdaq CEO Robert Greifeld and İstanbul Stock Exchange Chairman of the Board and General Director İbrahim Turan.
Source: portturkey.com
Setting the standard for a safer, more trusted financial services sector
Report identifies need for voluntary standards within Financial Services with majority of professionals in sector calling for more voluntary standards
November 26, 2013-- The financial services industry is failing to adopt voluntary standards crucial to rebuilding trust in banking, despite overwhelming support from those working in the sector.
Backing Market Forces, a report jointly commissioned by BSI, the UK National Standards Body, and the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI), the professional body for securities and investment practitioners, argues that adopting voluntary standards, alongside regulation, could provide a 'third way' between self-regulation and over regulation from government.
view the report- Backing Market Forces
Source: BIS
China seeks closer ties with France through yuan markets
November 26, 2013--Senior officials of China and France have agreed to promote the development of the offshore yuan market in Paris and seek closer bilateral economic relations.
The agreement was noted in a joint statement after the First China-France High-Level Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing, held on Tuesday.
Vice-Premier Ma Kai said at the dialogue that China will consider supporting the offshore yuan market in the French capital through the renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor mechanism "at the appropriate time".
Source: China Daily
As Greece Joins Emerging Markets Index, Some are Wary
November 26, 2013--Wednesday marks Greece's return to a widely tracked emerging-markets stock index after a 12-year absence, but some fund managers aren't enthused.
Many investors who specialize in developing economies say they don't intend to invest in Greece's stock market the minute Greece officially becomes part of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, to which about $1.4 trillion in portfolios are benchmarked. In June, MSCI said it would again label Greece as an emerging market. Greece had been deemed a developed market since May 2001, shortly after it adopted the euro.
Source: Wall Street Journal
Gold price in a range of currencies since December 1978 XLS version
November 25, 2013--Excel file of gold price charts and data-Updated weekly in 19 curriences: US dollar, Euro, Japanese yen, Pound sterling, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, Indian rupee,
Chinese renmimbi, Turkish lira, Saudi riyal, Indonesian rupiah, UAE dirham, Thai baht, Vietnamese dong, Egyptian pound, Korean won, Russian ruble, South African rand, Australian dollar
Source: World Gold Council
