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Charles Schwab buys OptionsXpress for $1 billion
March 21, 2011--Charles Schwab is buying online brokerage services provider OptionsXpress for $1 billion.
OptionsXpress stock jumped $2.51, 16.4 per cent, to $17.84 in pre-market trading. Schwab shares added 9 cents to $17.65.
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Source: FT.com
First Global Agribusiness Small Cap ETF (CROP) Set to Launch by IndexIQ
IQ Global Agribusiness Small Cap ETF (CROP) provides exposure to sector where fast growth is driven by rising food prices, rapidly expanding populations and demand for alternative energy
March 21, 2011--IndexIQ, a leading developer of index-based liquid alternative investment solutions, is set to launch the IQ Global Agribusiness Small Cap ETF (NYSE Arca: CROP) on March 22, 2011, it was announced today.
CROP is the first Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) designed to provide exposure to global small capitalization companies engaged in the fast-growing agribusiness sector, including agricultural machinery, livestock operations, crop production and farming, and biofuels and alternative energy. It seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the performance of the IQ Global Agribusiness Small Cap Index (Bloomberg Index Ticker: IQSMCROP).
The CROP launch comes only one month after food prices soared 3.9% in February, representing the biggest monthly increase since November 1974. Meat and dairy prices also rose in February, boosted by higher prices for corn and soybean that are used in animal feed. Economists widely expect food prices to continue rising for the remainder of 2011. Earlier this month, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization announced that global food prices have risen to their highest levels since 1990, when the agency first began tracking them.
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Source: Index IQ
Horizons Gold Yield Fund Re-Opened for Investment
March 21, 2011-- Jovian Capital Corporation ("Jovian") (JOV: TSX) is pleased to announce that its subsidiary AlphaPro Management Inc. ("AlphaPro"), manager of the Horizons AlphaPro exchange-traded funds (the "ETFs"), has filed a preliminary short form prospectus for a public offering (the "Offering") of additional units of Horizons Gold Yield Fund (the "Fund").
The Offering is expected to close on or about April 1, 2011. The Offering comprises Class A and Class F Units (the "Units"). The initial public offering of the Fund closed in December 2010 and, together with the exercise of the over-allotment option, approximately 5.25 million Units were issued for gross proceeds of approximately of $52.5 million. The Class A units of the Fund are listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") under the symbol HGY.UN.
The Fund's investment objectives are to provide holders of Units with: (i) exposure to the price of gold bullion hedged to the Canadian dollar, less the Fund's fees and expenses; and (ii) tax-efficient monthly distributions. The targeted monthly distribution rate for the second quarter of 2011 is $0.0542 per Unit ($0.65 per annum). This expected rate will be applicable to the distributions declared in April, May and June 2011. It is expected that monthly distributions received by investors will consist primarily of return of capital.
The Fund was created to offer investors a low cost exposure to the price of gold bullion, while providing monthly tax-efficient distributions. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objectives by gaining exposure to a portfolio consisting of securities and other instruments that provide exposure to the price of gold bullion (the "Gold Portfolio"). The Gold Portfolio is managed by JovInvestment Management Inc. (the "Portfolio Manager"). The Portfolio Manager writes at-the-money covered call options on approximately, and not more than, 33% of the securities in the Gold Portfolio. The Gold Portfolio does not employ leverage.
To enhance overall liquidity, the Fund is expected to convert automatically into an exchange traded fund by no later than July 31, 2012.
Source: Jovian Capital Corporation
MarketRiders launches all-ETF energy hedge portfolio
March 21, 2011--The high cost of oil and the fast-rising price of gas is stimulating the markets this month -- but in the wrong direction. To help investors who want to profit from and have a portfolio hedge from rising energy prices, MarketRiders is offering its own all-Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) energy hedge fund. The MarketRiders Energy Hedge Portfolio provides greater diversity to the energy sector for about .5% versus the average 1.5% for energy mutual funds like Blackrock Energy & Resources and Invesco Energy.
MarketRiders built this portfolio as a template in its web-based portfolio manager, so anyone who wants to allocate some investment dollars to take advantage of the run up in oil prices can do so. "Most investors have no business picking specific energy sector company stocks. Buying the ETFs in our Energy Hedge Portfolio is the best way to invest in the whole gamut of energy," explains Mitch Tuchman, CEO. "The portfolio we recommend is the most logical and low cost way to apportion your investment in this sector and gives you a shot at being the one who wins while the rest of us groan when we fill up our cars every week."
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Source: MarketRiders
NYSE Euronext outlines Amex deal
March 21, 2011--NYSE Euronext announced the terms of a deal to sell a majority of its NYSE Amex options market to dealers such as Citadel, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, which could bolster its efforts to get regulatory approval for its merger with Deutsche Börse.
The plan to sell a stake in Amex was originally announced in 2009, in the hopes of boosting the struggling exchange’s trading volumes. However final terms were delayed as details were hammered out and regulators shifted their focus to broader market structure reforms.
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Source: FT.com
The Federal Reserve on Friday announced it has completed the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR)
March 18, 2011--The Federal Reserve on Friday announced it has completed the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR), its cross-institution study of the capital plans of the 19 largest U.S. bank holding companies.
As a result of the CCAR, some firms are expected to increase or restart dividend payments, buy back shares, or repay government capital. The Federal Reserve on Friday will discuss the reviews and its decisions with firms that requested a capital action. All 19 firms will receive more detailed assessments of their capital planning processes next month.
In February 2009, the Federal Reserve advised bank holding companies that safety and soundness considerations required that dividends be substantially reduced or eliminated. Since that time, the Federal Reserve has indicated that increased capital distributions would generally not be considered prudent in the absence of a well-developed capital plan and a capital position that would remain strong even under adverse conditions.
The Federal Reserve's actions on capital distributions come after significant improvement in both economic conditions and the capital positions of financial institutions. From the end of 2008 through 2010, common equity increased by more than $300 billion at the 19 largest U.S. bank holding companies. Moreover, conclusion of the Basel III agreement to increase capital requirements and passage of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act have substantially clarified the regulatory environment in which these firms will be operating. The return of capital to shareholders under appropriate conditions is a step in the process of improvement in the financial sector and will help to promote banks' long-term access to capital. Such access will support lending to consumers and businesses. The capital plan reviews foster appropriate capital distributions in a measured fashion while still helping to ensure continued increases in firms' capital bases.
read more view the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review: Objectives and Overview
Source: Federal Reserve
CFTC.gov Commitments of Traders Reports Update
March 18, 2011---CFTC.gov Commitments of Traders Reports have been updated for the week of March 15, 2011 are now available.
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Source: CFTC.gov
Van Eck files with the SEC
March 18, 2011---Van Eck has filed a post-effective amendment, registration statement with the SEC for the Market Vectors Fixed Income Closed-End Fund ETF.
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Source: SEC.gov
Van Eck files with the SEC
March 18, 2011--Van Eck has filed a post-effective amendment, registration statement with the SEC for the Market Vectors GDP – Emerging Markets Small-Cap Equity ETF.
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Source: SEC.gov
Support Rises in US for Covered Bonds Law
March 18, 2011--Look at a list of the 10 biggest dollar-denominated covered bond deals and one thing stands out: the only US bank present is Bank of America, and it lies at the bottom.Last year, foreign banks sold $30bn of the bonds – an ultra-safe form of securitisation – to US investors, and watchers expect those sales to nearly double in 2011.
Yet only two US banks have ever issued covered bonds and none seems likely to do so this year.
Non-US cover bond issuers dominateThere is a reason, say advocates of covered bonds; the US market does not have the legislative protection the sector enjoys elsewhere. Last week, US legislators set about trying to change this with the launch of a bill in the House of Representatives sponsored by Scott Garrett, a Republican congressman, and Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat.
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Source: LoanSafe.org
