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CME Group and the Mexican Derivatives Exchange Announce Launch of North-to-South Order Routing Agreement
July 1, 2011-- CME Group, the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, and the Mexican Derivatives Exchange (MexDer), the derivatives subsidiary of the BMV Group and second largest exchange in Latin America, today announced the successful launch of their north-to-south order routing agreement, giving customers in the U.S. access to MexDer's benchmark derivatives contracts, including Mexican Stock Exchange Index Futures, Bond Futures and MXN Peso / US Dollar Futures Contracts.
The first phase of CME Group’s strategic partnership with MexDer went live April 4, 2011 and gave Mexican investors access to CME Group’s benchmark derivatives contracts including interest rates, foreign currencies, equity indexes, energy, metals and agricultural commodities.
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Source: CME Group
ISE Reports Business Activity for July 2011
August 1, 2011--Dividend trades made up 4.2% of industry volume in July 2011.
ISE is the third largest equity options exchange in July with market share of 18.4%, excluding dividend trades.
The International Securities Exchange (ISE) today reported average daily volume of 2.9 million contracts
in July 2011. This represents an increase of 13.6% compared to July 2010. Total options volume for the
month was 57.3 million contracts. ISE was the third-largest U.S. equity options exchange in July with
market share of 18.4%*.
Business highlights for the month of July include:
On July 6, 2011, ISE announced that First Trust Advisors L.P. launched the First Trust ISE Cloud
Computing Index Fund (Ticker: SKYY), based on the ISE Cloud ComputingTM Index (Ticker: CPQ). This new benchmark includes companies that are direct service providers for the “cloud,”
firms that provide goods and services in support of the cloud computing space, and technology
conglomerates whose business model uses or supports cloud computing technology.
On July 15, 2011, ISE enhanced its Price Improvement Mechanism (PIM) to accept multi-legged option orders. This feature represents one of the first value-added attributes of the new OptimiseTM technology that will directly benefit options customers.
On July 25, 2011, ISE successfully completed the rollout of its new trading system based on Deutsche Börse Group’s Optimise trading architecture, concluding ISE’s three-month migration to the new system.
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Source: International Securities Exchange
Treasury ETFs Fly Despite Likely U.S. Debt Downgrade
July 29, 2011--ETFs holding U.S. government debt surged Friday as GDP figures were revised downward and Washington remained deadlocked over raising the debt ceiling.
As the 10-year Treasury yield tumbled to a 2011 low, the Pimco 25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury Index ETF (ZROZ) rose 2.8% to 73.82, surpassing the performance of all but two ETFs in the nonleveraged ETF universe. It yields 4.5%. IShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond(TLT) — the most widely traded fixed-income ETF — jumped 1.8% to 97.83. It yields 4.34%.
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Source: Investors.com
CBOE to Begin Publishing Values for CBOE VIX Tail Hedge Index
New CBOE Volatility Strategy Index to Help Investors Manage Extreme Downward Movements in a Portfolio
July 29, 2011-The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) today began publishing values for the CBOE VIX Tail Hedge Index(SM) (ticker symbol: VXTH(SM)), the latest addition to a suite of CBOE strategy indexes designed to manage equity risk.
VXTH, which tracks the performance of a hypothetical S&P 500 investment portfolio protected against tail risk by using VIX calls, provides investors with a benchmark for VIX-based "tail risk" hedge strategies. Tail risk is the risk of a sudden and steep drop in the S&P index.
"CBOE continues to leverage its research and development expertise to further develop the volatility frontier," CBOE Chairman and CEO William J. Brodsky said. "The CBOE VIX Tail Hedge Index was created by our research team in order to help investors control portfolio risk when unusual, high-impact events are on the horizon. The index also can be used by CBOE and/or licensed to others to create tradable products aimed at hedging tail risk."
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Source: CBOE
Standard & Poor's Announces Changes In The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index
July 29, 2011--Standard & Poor's will make the following changes in the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index after the close of trading on Friday, July 29, 2011:
Culane Energy Corp. (TSXVN:CLN) will be removed from the index. The shares of the company have been acquired by Killam Acquisition Company Ltd. for $C2.32 cash per share.
Goldminco Corporation (TSXVN:GCP) will be removed from the index. The shares of the company have been acquired by Straits Resources Limited for $C0.10 cash per share.
The shares of EIS Capital Corp. (TSXVN:EIE) will trade under the new name Entrec Transportation Services Ltd. The new ticker symbol will be "ENT" and the new CUSIP number will be 29382D 10 8. There is no consolidation of capital.
Company additions to and deletions from an S&P equity index do not in any way reflect an opinion on the investment merits of the company.
Source: Standard & Poor's
SEC Staff Issues Summary Report of Sweep Examination of Structured Products Sold to Retail Investors
July 27, 2011 — The Securities and Exchange Commission staff today issued a report identifying common weaknesses seen in sales of structured securities products and describing measures by broker-dealers to better protect retail investors from fraud and abusive sales practices.
The report summarizes the results of a sweep examination of the retail structured securities products business of 11 broker-dealers, covering a cross-section of the industry. Structured securities products generally do not represent ownership of a particular asset (such as stock in a manufacturing company); instead, the products promise returns to investors based on the performance of one or more underlying assets.
Among other things, the staff observed that broker-dealers might have:
recommended unsuitable structured securities products to retail investors;
traded at prices disadvantageous to retail investors;
omitted material facts about structured securities products offered to retail investors;
engaged in questionable sales practices with customers.
view the Staff Summary Report on Issues Identified in Examinations of Certain Structured Securities Products Sold to Retail Investors
Source: SEC.gov
Weakening US demand squeezes oil
July 29, 2011--Oil glided lower in the week, weighed down by sluggish economic growth and jitters over the outcome of the debt ceiling debate in Washington.
The declines came as data showed the US expanded at a weaker than expected annualised rate of 1.3 per cent in the second quarter.
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Source: FT,com
CFTC.gov Commitments of Traders Reports Update
July 29, 2011--The current reports for the week of July 26, 2011 are now available.
view updates
Source: CFTC.gov
Global X files with the SEC
July 29, 2011--Global X has filed a second amended and restated application for exemptive relief with the SEC.
view filing
Source: SEC.gov
National Income and Product Accounts Gross Domestic Product: Second Quarter 2011 (Advance Estimate) Revised Estimates: 2003 through First Quarter 2011
July 29, 2011--Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property
located in the United States -- increased at an annual rate of 1.3 percent in the second quarter of 2011,
(that is, from the first quarter to the second quarter), according to the "advance" estimate released by the
Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the first quarter, real GDP increased 0.4 percent.
The Bureau emphasized that the second-quarter advance estimate released today is based on
source data that are incomplete or subject to further revision by the source agency (see the box on page
3). The "second" estimate for the second quarter, based on more complete data, will be released on
August 26, 2011.
The estimates released today reflect the annual revision of the national income and product accounts (NIPAs). In addition to the regular revision of estimates for the most recent 3 years and the first quarter of 2011, current-dollar GDP and some components are revised back to the first quarter of 2003. In cases for which the estimates for the reference year (2005) are revised, this results in revisions to the levels of the related index numbers and chained-dollar estimates for the entire historical period; revisions to percent changes before the first quarter of 2003 are small. Annual revisions, which are usually released in July, incorporate source data that are more complete, more detailed, and otherwise more reliable than those previously available. This release includes the revised quarterly estimates of GDP, corporate profits, and personal income and provides an overview of the results of the revision.
view highlights of report
Source: BEA
