Global ETF News Older than One Year
IntercontinentalExchange Stockholders Approve Acquisition of NYSE Euronext
June 3, 2013--IntercontinentalExchange (NYSE: ICE), a leading operator of global markets and clearing houses, announced the results of the special meeting of stockholders today to approve ICE's acquisition of NYSE Euronext.
ICE stockholders approved the agreement to acquire NYSE Euronext, with approximately 99.68% of the shares present at the special meeting voted for the approval of the combination, representing 85.05% of ICE's outstanding common shares. All other proposals passed with an average of 97% of the shares present at the special meeting voting for each of the governance-related proposals and the adjournment proposal.
Source: CNBC
ETF Securities-Precious Metals Weekly: Platinum and Palladium Prices Rise on Start of South Africa "Strike Season"
June 3, 2013--Tepid economic data from the US eased fears that the Fed will imminently cut back on quantitative easing, sending precious metals higher last week.
The gold price temporarily rose above US$1,400/oz. for the first time in two weeks, breaking above key technical resistance before fading in early Monday trade. With Fed policy so tightly tied to labour market improvements, all eyes will be on the US non-farm payrolls data this week.
Source: ETF Securities
EPFR Global News Release-EM Fund groups stumble into June
May 31, 2013--With Europe backing away from austerity, visions of life after QE3 unnerving global markets and profit takers sending key Japanese indexes plunging, some investors opted to pull the sell-in-May-and-go-away trigger heading into June.
Emerging Equity and Bond Funds found themselves first in the line of fire. Those tracked by EPFR Global experienced their biggest redemptions since late 4Q11 and 2Q12 respectively during a week when Europe Equity Funds posted outflows for the 12th time since the beginning of March and flows into Japan Equity Funds fell to a 14 week low.
Overall, EPFR Global-tracked Equity Funds recorded collective outflows of $2.79 billion during the week ending May 29 as retail redemptions hit a year-to-date high while Bond Funds attracted $1.37 million, their second lowest total of 2013. Money Market Funds took in a net $8.52 billion, with commitments to US funds offsetting redemptions from Europe and Japan Funds, thereby posting back-to-back weekly inflow for the first time since early January.
Visit www.epfr.com for more info
Source: EPFR
Final report-Technical advice on CRA regulatory equivalence on Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Hong Kong and Singapore
May 31, 2013--The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has provided advice to the European Commission in respect of the equivalence between the EU regulatory regime for credit rating agencies and the respective legal and supervisory frameworks of Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Source: ESMA
BRICS Exchanges Alliance Launches Website
May 30, 2013--On May 29, 2013 BRICS Exchanges Alliance launched its own website at BRICSMART.org. The basic concept of the new website is to create a single data portal containing information on financial products and services offered by the BRICS Exchanges-members of the alliance.
The website BRICSMART.org has been designed for investors from all over the world who are interested in opportunities provided by the exchanges operating on the emerging markets. Current information on the BRICS countries, new investment products and instruments, specifications for shared contracts is available on the website. The Exchanges will update the website regularly and develop it by new sections.
Source: WFE
ESMA promotes global supervisory co-operation on alternative funds
May 30, 2013--The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has approved co-operation arrangements between EU securities regulators, with responsibility for the supervision of alternative investment funds (AIFs), including hedge funds, private equity and real estate funds, and 34 of their global counterparts.
ESMA has negotiated the agreements on behalf of all 27 EU Member State securities regulators as well as the authorities from Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
Source: ESMA
IMF Working paper-Inclusive Growth: Measurement and Determinants
May 30, 2013--Summary: We estimate a unified measure of inclusive growth for emerging markets by integrating their economic growth performance and income distribution outcomes, using data over three decades.
Country distributions are calibrated by combining PPP GDP per capita and income distribution from survey data. We apply the microeconomic concept of a social mobility function at the macroeconomic level to measure inclusive growth that is closer to the absolute definition of pro-poor growth. This dynamic measure permits us to focus on inequality as well as distinguish between countries where per capita income growth was the same for the top and the bottom of the income pyramid, by accounting for the pace of growth. Our results indicate that macroeconomic stability, human capital, and structural changes are foundations for achieving inclusive growth. The role of globalization could also be positive with foreign direct investment and trade openess fostering greater inclusiveness, while financial deepening and technological change have no discernible effect.
view the IMF Working paper-Inclusive Growth: Measurement and Determinants
Source: IMF
Global economy advancing but pace of recovery varies, says OECD Economic Outlook
May 29, 2013--The global economy is moving forward, but divergence between countries and regions reflects the uneven progress made toward recovery from the economic crisis, according to the OECD's latest Economic Outlook.
Historically high unemployment remains the most serious challenge facing governments.
World real gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to increase by 3.1% this year and by 4% in 2014. Across OECD countries, GDP is projected to rise by 1.2% this year and by 2.3% in 2014, while growth in non-OECD countries will rise by 5.5% this year and 6.2% in 2014.
In the US, activity is projected to rise by 1.9% this year and by a further 2.8% in 2014. GDP in the euro area is expected to decline by 0.6% this year and then rebound by 1.1% in 2014, while in Japan GDP is expected to grow by 1.6% in 2013 and 1.4% in 2014.
view the OECD Economic Outlook-Volume 2013 Issue 1-Preliminary version
Source: OECD
World Federation of Exchanges Reports on High Frequency Trading (HFT)
May 29, 2013--The World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) today released a review on High Frequency Trading (HFT), describing it as a technology that financial firms are embracing around the world. Besides, the study notes the many initiatives and risk management practices that exchanges have adopted to enhance the safety, stability and integrity of the markets.
The review was directed by the WFE Board of Directors. “Exchanges have enacted many safeguards to ensure orderly markets. The WFE is committed to coordinating information and sharing principles among market operators on surveillance and risk management practices which may also be applied to HFT.” said Hüseyin Erkan, Chief Executive Officer of WFE.
Among the key points in the review
All around the world and across all markets, economic pressures and competition are pushing businesses to find the most effective ways to invest and hedge risks. Today, strategies using algorithmic trading and HFT play a central role on financial exchanges, alternative markets, and some banks’ internalized (over-the-counter) dealings.
Exchanges have adapted to the speed and automation of today’s markets by deploying sophisticated risk mitigation and surveillance technology, and are continuing to innovate in these areas to further enhance the safety, stability and integrity of the markets.
Today’s exchange markets are unquestionably faster, more transparent and more efficient than the market structures that preceded them. The substantial majority of the empirical research has concluded that HFT has had measurable beneficial impacts on a variety of core market quality metrics[1], including tighter spreads, increased liquidity, more efficient price formation, reduced transaction costs for market participants and lower market volatility in most circumstances.
view the Understanding High Frequency Trading (HFT) paper
Source: World Federation of Exchanges (WFE)
Trading precious metals using ETP data returns as much as 30%-JPMorgan
The bank says trading precious metals using ETPs would have returned an annual profit of about 30% since 2007.
May 29, 2013--Trading precious metals against each other based on purchases and sales through exchange-traded products would have returned an annual profit of about 30 percent since 2007, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The bank rates investment in the products on a weekly basis, buying the metal with the highest current holding relative to the past six months and selling the one with the lowest relative holding. The strategy, which was first calculated this month, would have been successful about 56 percent of the time since 2007, according to JPMorgan.
Source: MineWeb.com
