Global ETF News Older than One Year
BlackRock shifts iShares' chief strategist to broader company role
November 19, 2012--Russ Koesterich was named chief investment strategist at BlackRock (BLK).
The position is new. Mr. Koesterich "will focus on communicating the firm's investment strategy and perspective on the markets and economy to investors," according to a news release.
Mr. Koesterich will report to Ken Kroner, senior managing director and global head of multiasset strategies, and will continue in his current role as global investment strategist for BlackRock's iShares business.
Source: Pensions & Investments
Index Industry Association appoints executive director
November 19, 2012--The Index Industry Association (IIA) has appointed Rick H. Redding as its first executive director.
The IIA also announced that Russell Index Group, Russell Investments has joined the association, following in the footsteps of Barclays and Nasdaq OMX Global index Group who both joined in June.
Rick Redding has spent most of his career in senior leadership roles with The CME Group, a leading provider of benchmark futures and options products and an innovator in futures trading. Rick held the post of managing director, products and services at CME. In this role he led global sales, product development, and strategic global growth initiatives. He played an integral part in the transition of CME’s ownership stake in Dow Jones Indexes to the S&P Dow Jones Indices joint venture. He also held senior positions in CME’s index products division.
Source: FTSE Global Markets
Are Hedge Fund ETFs all they Seem?
November 19, 2012--Hedge fund exchange-traded funds at first glance appear to be a contradiction in terms.
ETFs have built their reputation on low fees, transparency and liquidity. Hedge funds, by contrast, find themselves under increasing pressure for offering exactly the opposite. But a combination of the two could be a winner – the appeal of hedge fund exposure in an environment of shrinking returns wrapped in the safety and security of an ETF.
Source: Albourne Village
EU, Japan Warn Against New US Swaps Rules
October 18, 2012--In a show of unity, finance authorities from the European Union, the U.K., France and Japan pressured a key U.S. counterpart to avoid rushing through proposals on the trading of swaps between U.S. and foreign trading firms.
The finance chiefs of the four markets warned that the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's proposals, if handled wrongly, risk weakening the global trade of derivatives.
Source: Wall Street Journal
World Bank Online: New Report Examines Risks of 4 Degree Hotter World by End of Century
Highlights:
New World Bank-commissioned report warns the world is on track to a "4°C world" marked by extreme heat-waves and life-threatening sea level rise.
Adverse effects of global warming are "tilted against many of the world's poorest regions" and likely to undermine development efforts and goals.
Bank eyes increased support for adaptation, mitigation, inclusive green growth and climate-smart development.
November 18, 2012--Like summer's satellite image of the melting Greenland ice sheet, a new report suggests time may be running out to temper the rising risks of climate change.
"Turn Down the Heat: Why a 4°C Warmer World Must be Avoided," (pdf) (eBook version) warns we’re on track for a 4°C warmer world marked by extreme heat-waves, declining global food stocks, loss of ecosystems and biodiversity, and life-threatening sea level rise.
Moreover, adverse effects of a warming climate are “tilted against many of the world's poorest regions” and likely to undermine development efforts and global development goals, says the study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Climate Analytics, on behalf of the World Bank. The report, urges "further mitigation action as the best insurance against an uncertain future."
view the World Bank report-Turn Down the Heat: Why a 4°C Warmer World Must be Avoided
Source: World Bank
Strategic alliances change face of industry
November 17, 2012--Index providers and stock exchange operators are forging new alliances as the fortunes of these two sectors become more intertwined and the influence of index-linked instruments and investment vehicles grows.
Exchange traded funds accounted for almost one-fifth of US equity trading last year, illustrating the vital role that index-linked investment vehicles now play in the activities of exchange operators.
Source: FT.com
FTSE Deal Prompts LSE Management Reshuffle
October 17, 2012--The London Stock Exchange (LSE.LN) has announced two senior management changes as part of its integration of FTSE, the global index provider it acquired in full in December.
David Lester, an 11-year LSE veteran and group director of information services, will take on the newly created role of group director of corporate strategy, the LSE said this morning.
He will continue in his other roles as chairman of both FTSE and Turquoise, the exchange's pan-European trading platform, as well as chairman of Proquote, its market data provider.
Mark Makepeace, chief executive of FTSE, will move into Lester's role to become group director of information services, incorporating both FTSE and the LSE Group's information services businesses. Makepeace, who will retain his role of FTSE chief, will report directly to Xavier Rolet, LSE chief executive.
Source: Wall Street Journal
IMF Working Paper-Effects of Capital Flow Liberalization-What is the Evidence from Recent Experiences of Emerging Market Economies
November 16, 2012-- Summary: This paper analyzes the experiences of emerging market economies (EMEs) that have liberalized capital flows over the past 15 years with respect to macroeconomic performance and risks to financial stability.
The results of the panel data regressions indicate that greater openness to capital flows is associated with higher growth, gross capital flows, and equity returns and with lower inflation and bank capital adequacy ratios. The effects vary depending on thresholds. As a potential application of these findings, the paper explores the possible effects of liberalization on China by applying the coefficients of explanatory variables to the corresponding variables of China in 2012–16.
Source: IMF
EPFR Global Fund Data News Release-US Equity Funds bear brunt of latest fears about policy and global growth
November 16, 2012--The second week of November saw investors digesting an unpleasant cocktail of European data, US budget skirmishes, Japanese politics and renewed violence in the Middle East.
They responded by pulling over $7 billion out of US Equity Funds and over $1 billion from US High Yield Bond Funds while slowing the pace of their commitments to Emerging Markets Equity and Bond Funds.
Overall, EPFR Global-tracked Bond Funds took in $5.29 billion during the week ending Nov. 14 while net redemptions from Equity Funds hit their highest level since the week preceding the US Federal Reserve’s announcement of QE3. Money Market Funds recorded outflows of $7.06 billion and Balanced Funds, which invest in both debt and equities, saw $1.12 billion taken out.
Visit http://www.epfr.com/overview.aspx for more info
Source: EPFR
IOSCO Publishes Recommendations for Securitisation Regulation
November 16, 2012--The International Organization of Securities Organizations (IOSCO) has published today a final report on Global Developments in Securitisation Regulation, which proposes a series of recommendations aimed at ensuring securitisation markets develop, but on a sound and sustainable basis.
When functioning properly, securitisation is a valuable financing tool that contributes to economic growth and the efficient diversification of risk. However, the Global Financial Crisis is recognised as having damaged investor interest and confidence in these markets. Since the outbreak of the Crisis, global securitisation markets activity has suffered a significant downturn. The Financial Stability Board (FSB) is in the process of reviewing reforms of securitisation markets, as part of its ongoing work for the G20 on the shadow banking sector. In this context, the FSB requested that IOSCO conduct a stock-taking exercise on certain aspects of securitisation, including risk retention, transparency and standardisation, and develop policy recommendations as necessary.
view the Global Developments in Securitisation Regulation
Source: OECD
