FTSE creates new index for State Street’s first Greater China themed ETF
September 20, 2010--FTSE Group (“FTSE”), the award-winning global index provider, has created a new customised version of its FTSE
Greater China Index for State Street Global Advisors Asia Limited (State Street). The new index, FTSE Greater China HKD Index, will be the basis of State Street’s first Greater China
themed Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) which lists in Hong Kong today.
The new FTSE Greater China HKD Index is calculated in Hong Kong Dollars (HKD) and made up of large and mid cap China (H Shares, B Shares and Red Chips), Hong Kong SAR (Hong Kong stocks and P Chips) and Taiwan stocks. Creating products based on the index will give
international investors access to the Greater China growth story without the restriction of Qualified Foreign Institutional Investment (QFII) quotas.
FTSE continues to build on its leadership position in the Chinese market through index benchmarking and the customization of investment solutions which meet the needs of both global and regional investors. Nearly 60% of assets under management in Chinese ETFs listed globally are benchmarked to FTSE’s China Index Series. Licensing the use of FTSE Greater China HKD Index for State Street’s ETF further enhances the wide range of investment solutions available to global investors who want financial exposure to Greater China.
Paul Hoff, Director of Business Development, Asia said, “FTSE indices have become the natural choice for ETF issuers globally who wish to create new, Chinese themed investment products. These indices are built on FTSE’s internationally recognised standards which are widely accepted as the basis for tradable products globally. The new FTSE Greater China HKD index further demonstrates FTSE’s ability to innovate through customisation. We are delighted to have worked with State Street on their new ETF which aims to capture the Greater China growth story.”
Bernard Reilly, Senior Managing Director and Head of Asia Pacific for State Street commented, “There is a growing interest among investors to access investment opportunities across the Greater China region and therefore capture the broader China growth story. China, Hong Kong and Taiwan each have their own unique strengths and advantages which, when combined, generate many vital synergies for long term growth. Choosing the representative and easily replicable FTSE Greater China HKD Index as the basis of our ETF helps investors capture three markets in one in a cost efficient and transparent way.”
The customised FTSE Greater China HKD Index is based on the FTSE All-World Index and therefore adopts award winning methodology which includes free float adjustment and liquidity screens, and is managed in accordance with a clear and transparent set of index rules.
For more information on the construction of FTSE Greater China Index, please visit www.ftse.com/allworld.
Source: FTSE
Tokyo action puts brake on yen
The authorities are alarmed by the yen’s sudden rise, fearing its impact on exports. The central bank sells yen worth US$ 1.21 billion.
September 17, 2010--Japanese authorities reacted negatively to the yen’s sudden rise yesterday, which touched a 15-year high against the US dollar. This morning, the central bank stepped to sell yen in currency markets. This is the first time Japanese monetary authorities intervened since March 2004; the main goal was to protect Japan’s exports.
In yesterday trading, the US currency hit 83.36, a significant loss compared to 83.71 just two days earlier. A few hours before, the greenback even hit 83.25, the best rate since May 1995.
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Source: Asia News.it
Japan intervenes to weaken yen
September 15, 2010--Tokyo intervened in the currency markets on Wednesday for the first time in more than six years, a move that immediately sent the yen lower against the dollar but attracted criticism from Europe over Japan’s decision to act alone.
The unilateral intervention also marks a further easing of monetary policy, since the Bank of Japan has decided to leave in the market the yen which were used to buy dollars, where they will add to general liquidity.
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Source: FT.com
S. Korean bourse signs tie-up deal with Japanese exchange
September 15, 2010--outh Korea's stock market operator Korea Exchange (KRX) signed an agreement with a Japanese exchange on Wednesday to cooperate in the joint development of the regional tech-laden bourse.
The memorandum of understanding with Osaka Securities Exchange (OSE) calls for boosting their cooperation in tech-heavy secondary stock markets -- Korea's KOSDAQ and Japan's JASDAQ to be launched next month, the KRX said in a statement.
Source: Yonhap News Agency
SGX to launch ADRs with effect from October 22
September 14, 2010--Market operator Singapore Exchange (SGX) said on Tuesday that it will launch American Depository Receipts (ADRs) with effect from October 22.
Investors will be able to trade in the shares of 19 major Asian companies including Chinese search engine, Baidu, China Eastern Airlines, China Mobile and Petrochina.
The tie-up marks the first time that investors can act on news-flow about these companies during Asian trading hours as some of these US-listed Asian companies do not have Asian home exchanges.
ADRs quoted on GlobalQuote will also provide investors with round-the-clock trading opportunities as they are fully fungible with US-listed ADRs.
SGX added that the launch of the trading of the ADRs marks the start of its cooperation with NASDAQ OMX to bring ADR quotations to SGX's new GlobalQuote board.
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Source: Channel Asia
Renminbi rises to peak against dollar
September 13, 2010--The renminbi rose to a post-revaluation high against the dollar as strong Chinese economic data and mounting pressure from the US prompted the People’s Bank of China to let its currency rise.
The PBoC fixed the renminbi’s daily midpoint against the dollar, about which it is allowed to fluctuate by plus or minus 0.5 per cent, at Rmb6.7509.
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Source: FT.com
DB Global Equity Index & ETF Research-- Asia-Pacific ETP Market Weekly Review
September 13, 2010--Market Overview
There are 231 equity based ETFs in the Asia Pacific region with 324 listings across 12 countries and 15 exchanges. Japan has the largest market share by AUM accounting for 39.11% of the whole market, whilst China has the largest market share by turnover with 37.03%.
There was no new listing last week.
Turnover
Monthly average daily turnover remained at about the same level in the last week. Turnover for the previous week was USD 841m. The largest ETF by turnover was the iShares Asia Trust - iShares FTSE/Xinhua A50 China Tracker issued by BlackRock with USD 137m accounting for 16.3% of total turnover.
Assets Under Management
AUM rose 1.3% in the previous week. AUM as of Sep 10th were USD 64.4bn. The largest ETF by AUM is the iShares Asia Trust - iShares FTSE/Xinhua A50 China Tracker managed by BlackRock with AUM of USD 6.8bn.
To request a copy of the report
Source: DB Global Equity Index & ETF Research
India's gold ETF collection doubles to 12.13T in Aug
September 13, 2010--India's gold collection under exchange-traded funds for August almost doubled to 12.132 tonnes as investors sought hedge to protect wealth from global economic uncertainty, data from the funds showed.
Gold futures on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was trading 0.07 per cent lower at Rs 18,851 per 10 grams, down 1.8 per cent from the all-time high of Rs 19,211 struck on Tuesday.
The contract had gained 7.7 per cent in August.
Though gold collections under ETFs are growing, they remain miniscule against India's imports of about 400-700 tonnes annually.
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Source: Business Standard
ETFs trading volumes up by 20% this year
September 13, 2010--Experts have said Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are back in vogue in Asia, with trading volumes growing by 10 to 20 per cent so far this year.
Demand for ETFs from retail investors is still low, but industry players expect it to rise, similar to trends seen in the US.
The ETFs started trading in the US in 1993. Since then, the securities have grown at a compounded annual growth rate of some 20 to 30 per cent a year.
This increase has also driven up participation from retail investors who account for half of the market.
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Source: Channel News Asia
China dodging hard landing risk
September 10, 2010--The Chinese economy appears to be stabilising after several months of slowdown, reducing the risk that the country will suffer a hard landing as post-crisis stimulus is withdrawn.
Coming on top of a surge in imports last month, figures released over the weekend indicated that domestic demand remains robust and suggested that the authorities will likely be able to avoid an abrupt slowing in economic growth, a matter of intense concern among investors globally.
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Source: FT.com
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