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Investor Appetite For Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) On The Rise, Says New Schwab Study
Forty-four percent plan to invest more; nearly half need more schooling on ETFs
September 22, 2011--Forty-four percent of individual investors surveyed plan to invest more in ETFs over the next 12 months, and eight in ten who currently own ETFs say they will invest more in ETFs over the next two years, according to a new study from Charles Schwab, a retail marketplace leader for ETFs.
The ETF Investor Study by Charles Schwab is an online survey of more than 1,000 individual investors with at least $25,000 in investable assets and familiarity with ETFs. The study was designed to gauge individual investors’ attitudes toward and understanding of ETFs, and how or if they would use them as part of their investment portfolios. Nearly two-thirds of all respondents to the survey own ETFs; while the remainder plan to invest in an ETF in the next two years.
The study shows investors’ appetite for ETFs in several ways: in addition to the 44 percent who plan to invest more, just two percent say they will decrease their ETF investments. According to the study, the boom in interest is driven in part by a distinct set of benefits unique to the product. ETF owners say the biggest benefit of ETFs is that they trade like stocks, while those considering them cite diversification as the top benefit.
But the study also offers insights on the gaps that still exist in investors’ knowledge about ETFs. Forty-six percent of investors surveyed call themselves ETF “novices,” and one-fourth of all respondents indicate that they do not understand their costs or how to best use them. Thirty-one percent of all investors say they don’t know how to use ETFs across asset classes, and more than 25 percent know nothing about the difference between actively managed and index-based ETFs.
“Individual investors are attracted to the efficiency and flexibility of ETFs, but many do not have a solid grasp on how they work,” said Beth Flynn, vice president of ETF Platform Management at Charles Schwab. “As more flavors of ETFs come to market, it is clear that the emphasis on education will be more important than ever.”
ETFs Are Used for Market Access and Asset Allocation
Half of ETF owners surveyed say they use these products to access specific sectors or markets, and 44 percent use them to invest in core asset allocation strategies. Sector ETFs were cited as the type most frequently evaluated for purchase, followed closely by equity and international ETFs. Thirty-four percent of respondents also report interest in commodity ETFs, and more than one in four (26 percent) say they are considering fixed income funds for their next ETF purchase.
view ETF Investor Study by Charles Schwab
Source: Charles Schwab
PowerShares files with the SEC
September 22, 2011--PowerShares has filed a post-effective amendment, registration statement with the SEC.
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
Guggenheim launches Yuan Bond ETF
Provides Access to China's Offshore Bond Market
September 22, 2011--Guggenheim Investments announced the launch of the Guggenheim Yuan Bond ETF (NYSE Arca:RMB), a fund that provides access to China's growing Dim Sum bond market. The new offering from Guggenheim will seek to replicate the AlphaShares Yuan Bond Index (the "Index"), which includes bonds that are eligible for investment by U.S. and other foreign investors.
The securities included in the Index are denominated in Chinese Yuan, whether issued by Chinese or non-Chinese issuers and traded in the secondary market, a market commonly referred to as the "Dim Sum" bond market.
"China is increasing the internationalization of its currency and the evolution of the Dim Sum bond market is reflective of that process," said Scott Minerd, Chief Investment Officer, Guggenheim Partners. "The Guggenheim Yuan Bond ETF allows fixed-income investors to participate in these developments and the dynamic growth potential of the Chinese economy."
This Guggenheim ETF provides investors with the opportunity to benefit from the appreciation potential of the Yuan, a currency that previously has been very difficult for investors to access.
read more
Source: Guggenheim Investments
Brazil reverses policy in real defence
September 22, 2011--Brazil has intervened to defend its plunging currency, the real, against a resurgent dollar for the first time in two years, in a sudden reversal of policy for Latin America`s largest economy.
The collapse of the real, which is now one of the worst-performing emerging market currencies after weakening as much as 4.1 per cent on Thursday, marks a dramatic turnround for a currency that only in July hit a 12-year high against the dollar.
read more
Source: FT.com
Morningstar to rate ETF model portfolios
September 22, 2011--Morningstar Inc. is poised to start ranking exchange-traded fund model portfolios, the Chicago-based research firm said at its annual ETF Invest Conference on Thursday.
ETF model portfolios - a way for advisers to provide investors with an actively managed portfolio of exchange-traded funds - have grown in popularity together with ETFs.
Morningstar, which defines ETF managed accounts as portfolios of securities where more than 50 percent is invested in ETFs, tracks more than 330 ETF managed portfolios, with about $22 billion in assets. Nearly a third of those were launched over the past three years.
read more
Source: Reuters
ISE Price Improvement Mechanism (PIM) Now Accepts Tied-to-Stock Orders
Latest Enhancement Demonstrates Fast and Flexible Release Cycle of OptimiseTM
September 22, 2011 – The International Securities Exchange (ISE) announced that multi-legged orders that include a stock component can now be entered into its Price Improvement Mechanism (PIM). ISE accepts multi-legged strategy orders of up to eight options legs plus a stock leg.
These latest enhancements underscore the new OptimiseTM system’s capability to support a faster time-to-market for upgrades than ISE’s previous trading platform.
“With the new streamlined release cycle for Optimise, we will be able to deliver functionality and performance enhancements more quickly and seamlessly to our member firms,” said Boris Ilyevsky, Managing Director of ISE’s options exchange. “By upgrading PIM to now accept orders that include a stock component, we have further strengthened our industry-leading capabilities for trading multi-legged orders and are delivering yet another benefit of our new trading system.”
In addition to functionality changes, the latest Optimise release also delivered several performance enhancements to further improve the latency profile of the system. With Optimise, new releases are backward compatible, minimizing any technology changes required by member firms.
Multi-legged orders for PIM, like all other ISE crossing orders, can be entered via PrecISE Trade®, FIX and ISE’s Direct Trading Interface (DTI) application. For more information, contact ISE Business Development at bizdev@ise.com.
Source: International Securities Exchange (ISE)
First Trust files with the SEC
September 22, 2011--First Trust has filed a post-effective amendment, registration statement with the SEC for the
First Trust Germany AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust Canada AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust Australia AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust Taiwan AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust Hong Kong AlphaDEX(R) Fund
First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX(R) Fund
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
DB Global Equity Research: US ETF Market Weekly Review-- ETP AUM recovers $30bn on market reversal
September 22, 2011--Is this really the comeback of risk?
Equities regained attention during last week as the ECB in conjunction with 4 of the main central banks in the developed world stepped in to commit additional liquidity to the financial system through the year. Equity markets in the US (S&P 500) rallied and recorded their second best week for the year (+5.35%).
The total US ETP flows from all products registered $11.5bn of inflows during last week vs $1.7bn of inflows the previous week, setting the YTD weekly flows average at +$2.1bn.
Last week long only ETPs received healthy inflows of $10.8bn following an increase in investors' risk appetite as the equity market rallied underpinned by news of aid for the distressed European financial markets. Long only equity ETPs received almost $10.0bn in new cash, while fixed income and commodity ETPs followed distantly with +$549m and +$455m (Figure 1).
Despite the significant size of last week's flows, we believe that we shouldn't hasten to call this the end of the risk off trade and the comeback to risk. The main reason is that last week's reading is not a pure one as it is probably affected by flows related to the S&P 500 index rebalancing and derivatives expiry activity. Actually, it is possible that as much as $6.0bn of inflows (mostly into SPY) could be related to such activity and thus deemed as temporary. On the other hand, inflows into equity ETPs after adjusting by this abnormal activity would still be above $3.0bn and therefore worth to keep under our risk radar.
Although the usual defensive trades were not reversed during last week, risk-related trades dominated the flows during such period. Among equity sector flows, Domestic (+$762m) and Global (+$180m) Cyclicals overtook Defensives (+$30m); while in the fixed income world High Yield (+$170m) slightly overtook Investment Grade (+$152) funds.
New Launch Calendar: Expanding the offering beyond plain equity
There were 4 new ETFs and 3 new ETNs listed on NYSE Arca during the previous week. The new products cover a broad range of asset classes employing elaborated strategies and focusing in niche sectors.
Turnover Review: exchange trading stabilizes on lower volatility
Total weekly turnover increased by 27.8% to $458bn vs. $358bn in the previous shorter week; while on a daily average basis it remained fairly constant ($89.5bn vs. $91.6bn, respectively). The largest increase was on Equity ETP turnover, which rose by $99bn or 32.2% to $409bn. Fixed Income ETP turnover increased by $629m to $14.9bn last week. Finally, Commodity ETPs products turnover decreased by $1.7bn, totaling $28.2bn at the end of last Friday.
Assets Under Management (AUM) Review: ETP AUM rose by almost $30bn
Strong inflows and a significant market rally took ETP AUM to higher levels. US ETP AUM rose by $29.8bn or 3.0% compared to the previous week and closed at $1.037 trillion or 4.2% up YTD.
to request report
Source: Deutsche Bank - Global Equity Research
What is the Federal Reserve's maturity extension program (referred to by some as "operation twist") and what is its purpose?
September 21, 2011--Under the maturity extension program, the Federal Reserve intends to sell $400 billion of shorter-term Treasury securities by the end of June 2012 and use the proceeds to buy longer-term Treasury securities. This will extend the average maturity of the securities in the Federal Reserve's portfolio.
By reducing the supply of longer-term Treasury securities in the market, this action should put downward pressure on longer-term interest rates, including rates on financial assets that investors consider to be close substitutes for longer-term Treasury securities. The reduction in longer-term interest rates, in turn, will contribute to a broad easing in financial market conditions that will provide additional stimulus to support the economic recovery.
Source: FRB
Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC files with the SEC
September 21, 2011--Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC has filed a Application for an Order to Amend a Prior Order for exemptive relief with the SEC.
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
