Europe ETP News Older Than 1 year-If your looking for specific news, using the search function will narrow down the results
German institutional investors to double equity allocations
October 12, 2010-- German institutional investors are aiming to increase their equity exposure by 6.8 percentage points in the first half of next year, nearly doubling the current allocation, according to a survey by SEB Asset Management.
This summer, the average equity allocation in the portfolios of the 458 institutional investors surveyed stood at approximately 7%.
At the same time, survey respondents said they intended to decrease their overall bond exposure – currently around 76% – by 4.1 percentage points. SEB said mainly Pensionskassen and other pension vehicles would take this step.
read more
Source: IP&E
The Istanbul Stock Exchange breaks another record
October 12, 2010--The Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB) reached an all-time record of 69,163.38 points during the first half of trading on Tuesday.
However, the IMKB did not stop with this record. In the first half the day, stocks appreciated by 0.24 percent, while the IMKB-100 index reached 69,163.38 points after gaining 163.42 points over Monday, an all-time high. The trading volume on Tuesday was limited to TL 971 million.
read more
Source: Todays Zaman
XACT launches commodity ETF on Stockholm Stock Exchange
October 11, 2010--XACT Fonder will list a new ETF tomorrow that tracks the price of 15
commodities, including oil, electricity, pulp, and gold.
"In recent years the popularity of both commodities and ETFs has increased
sharply, so it is only logical for us to offer a commodity ETF," says Henrik
Norén, Managing Director of XACT Fonder, the world's largest provider of ETFs
with a Nordic focus.
"Our new commodity ETF offers investors a unique opportunity to invest in a
product that combines the traditional fund's risk sharing with the stock trading opportunities for a low fee," Henrik Norén continues.
XACT Råvaror is the first exchange-traded fund that combines global exposure with a clear Nordic focus, offering electricity and paper pulp in the commodity mix.
"For those who believe in yet another cold winter, XACT Råvaror offers an interesting investment opportunity. The price of electricity rises with the cold, which will also be reflected in fund performance," says Henrik Norén.
Different commodity-based investments are attracting increasing numbers of investors and have become an integral part of the diversification of risk in many portfolios. "In a medium risk portfolio with a 10-year investment horizon, we currently recommend up to 20% commodities," says Torbjorn Iwarson, commodity manager at Handelsbanken.
Commodities have performed well, both over the past decade as well as the previous 40 years. They also offer risk diversification and security for long- term savings. "The commodities included in the index are largely those that the investor will consume in the future, which, in a way, makes an investment in the ETF a simple way to save for future consumption, " says Torbjorn Iwarson.
XACT Råvaror follows the index "SHB Commodity Index Excess Return", which this year rose by 41.6% (September) as the global economic recovered. The new ETF will be listed on the OMX Stockholm on Tuesday, October 12th. Exchange-traded funds (ETF) are currently the fastest growing financial product, and XACT Råvaror is the ninth new ETF listed by XACT Fonder during the fall of 2010.
ETF Råvaror follows a total of 15 commodities (percentage of fund total):
Gasoline (13%), Gasoil (diesel) (13%), Crude oil (13%), Electricity (12%),
Copper (11%), Aluminium (9%), Gold (7%), Soybeans (5%), Zinc (4%), Wheat (3%),
Cattle (3%), Silver (2%), Pulp (2%), Pork (2% ) and Nickel (1%), all of great
importance to the Nordic economies. The ETF is registered in Luxembourg.
Source: XACT
ETF Securities Preparing to Market Funds in London in Industrial Metals
October 11, 2010--ETF Securities Ltd., manager of $22 billion in assets, said it’s preparing to start exchange-traded commodities funds backed by six industrial metals.
Deutsche Bank AG’s London branch will provide trading, administrative and custody services for the funds -- aluminum, copper, lead, nickel, tin and zinc, ETF Securities said in an e- mailed statement today. A date hasn’t been set for the start of the funds, which need the approval of regulators and the London Stock Exchange, according to spokeswoman Noreen Shah.
read more
Source: Bloomberg Business Week
ETF Securities launches base metals funds
Says to launch ETPs for all six major base metals
No launch date set yet
Deutsche says copper fund could hold 300,000-400,000t
October 11, 2010--UK-based ETF Securities said on Monday it would launch exchange-traded products for base metals, as it seeks to tap into a global market worth nearly $120 billion that has been dominated by investment in gold.
The new products will include copper, aluminium, zinc, nickel, lead and tin as well as a basket of all six major base metals, although no launch date has yet been set.
read more
Source: Reuters
London Stock Exchange claims fastest trading speed
October 11, 2010--The race to have the fastest trading speed passed a new milestone on Monday after the London Stock Exchange said it was using the quickest share trading system in the world to drive one of its share dealing platforms.
Xavier Rolet, chief executive, said that trades in pan-European equities on its Turquoise trading platform were taking place in 124 microseconds, since the system went live last week. That is faster than Nasdaq OMX and double the average of the fastest speeds on platforms operated by BATS Global Markets.
read more
Source: FT.com
Financial services: simplified rules on prospectuses for securities
October 11, 2010--The Council adopted today a directive aimed at simplifying rules on prospectuses for securities and on information about the issuers of transferable securities on financial markets, whilst at the same time upgrading investor protection (doc. 29/10).
The text, which amends directives 2003/71/EC and 2004/109/EC, is part of a legislative simplification plan agreed by the European Council in March 2007 with the aim of boosting the competitiveness of European companies by reducing administrative burdens that generate costs and inefficiencies.
The existing rules allow for a prospectus approved by the competent authority in one member state to be valid for public offers and the admission to trading of the relevant security within the entire EU. They have had a favourable impact on the quality of information made available to investors, and the Commission's assessment, five years after entry into force of those rules, is positive.
However, the Commission's review also revealed some deficiencies, and the new directive sets out to improve legal clarity and reduce the burdens imposed on issuers and intermediaries.
In particular, cost savings are expected to be generated by:
reducing disclosure requirements for companies with reduced market capitalisation;
the removal of rules leading to double transparency obligations;
exemption of employee shares schemes from the obligation to publish a prospectus;
reducing disclosure requirements for raising capital through rights issues;
excluding detailed information on the financial situation of the guarantor in the case of government guarantee schemes.
view doc. 29/10
Source: Council of the European Union
BNY Mellon Asset Servicing goes live on Calastone to offer mutual fund STP choice.
October 11, 2010--Calastone, the independent cross-border transaction network for the mutual funds industry, has today announced that BNY Mellon Asset Servicing, the global leader in securities servicing, has gone live with its connection to the network to offer full mutual fund processing STP for its UTAS mutual fund clients.
BNY Mellon provides a comprehensive range of services for its mutual fund clients. In recognition of the market appetite for greater automation and mutual fund processing efficiency, connecting to Calastone’s transaction network will enable the end clients to reap STP efficiencies and benefit from connectivity to Calastone’s fast growing global mutual fund community in addition to the efficiencies that will be provided by their settlement offering.
Calastone’s independent cross-border transaction network services provides electronic message automation to help clients improve their account opening, re-registration, creation and liquidation, switching, settlement, reconciliation, cash reporting or any associated funds messaging processes. Calastone is the only protocol and message neutral transaction network where the global fund industry can meet to electronically transact their mutual funds with its growing community of fund providers, distributors, wrap platforms, wealth managers, stockbrokers, transfer agents, hedge funds and pension funds.
read more
Source: Calastone
Investor enthusiasm leads to early closure of third bond subscription in a row
Nabaltec AG bond issue met with high level of demand / Many retail investors keen to subscribe to SME bond at issue price
October 11, 2010--Subscription for the fifth corporate bond to be listed in Bondm, Boerse Stuttgart’s dedicated SME trading segment, started on 5 October via buy orders of investors’ banks or the issuer’s website. However, demand for the Nabaltec AG bond, which comes with a 6.5 percent coupon, was so high that by today the entire issue of EUR 30 million was fully subscribed, four days before the planned closing date.
That makes Nabaltec’s bond offer the third issue in a row to close early. Bids were scaled down and subscriptions ended at 2 p.m. on 8 October. The bonds are due to be listed in the SME segment Bondm from 12 October.
“Naturally, we are delighted by the huge level of demand for the issue. Those investors who were unable to acquire the bond during the subscription period can do so from next Tuesday onwards in our Bondm segment. We are also planning another attractive SME bond issue in the near future,” observed Sabine Traub, Head of Bond Trading at Boerse Stuttgart.
Source: Boerse Stuttgart
Newly launched VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index licenses to Barclays Capital
October 11, 2010--STOXX Limited, a global index provider and creator of the leading European equity indices, today announced the launch of the EURO STOXX 50 Volatility Mid-Term Futures Index (VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index). The new index is an addition to the existing VSTOXX Short-Term Futures Index. Both indices measure the performance of a hypothetical, rolling portfolio invested into constant maturity implied volatilities on the underlying EURO STOXX 50 Index.
The VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index has been licensed to Barclays Capital to underlie an exchange-traded note (ETN).
“The VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index is the latest addition to our range of innovative and complex strategy indices,” said Hartmut Graf, chief executive officer, STOXX Ltd. “With a rising interest in volatility as an asset class of its own, the new index complements the existing VSTOXX Short-Term Futures Index. We are now offering market participants an opportunity to also measure the return from rolling long positions in the mid-term EUREX VSTOXX futures contracts through a sophisticated and rules-based index.”
“The launch of the second investible VSTOXX Futures Index complements the existing VSTOXX offering by providing access to longer dated volatility exposure, which typically exhibits lower carry costs in stable markets," said Antti Suhonen, head of origination, Equity and Fund Structured Markets (EFS) at Barclays Capital. "It therefore could be suited for buy-and-hold investors wishing to allocate part of their portfolio to an asset class which may deliver positive returns in times of market distress. Barclays Capital will soon offer direct access to the index in a simple and transparent format through an iPath ETN.”
The VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index replicates a hypothetical portfolio which measures the returns from a rolling investment made into four VSTOXX futures contracts traded on EUREX with a remaining maturity of four, five, six and seven months.
At the beginning of the futures contracts’ maturity, the weight of the index is allocated in equal parts to the fourth, fifth and sixth month contracts. The index then rolls from the fourth month futures contract into the seventh month futures contract. On a daily basis a fraction of the fourth month contract is sold and an equal notional amount of the seventh month contract is bought until the next settlement date, at which the index roll is complete and the fourth month EUREX VSTOXX futures contract is settled. On the EUREX VSTOXX futures settlement date, all of the weight is allocated to the fifth, sixth and seventh month futures contract. At this point, the remaining maturity of the fifth month contract is four months, therefore it becomes the new fourth month contract, and the index is gradually rolled into a new futures contract with a seven month maturity. During the roll period, the weight allocated to the fifth and sixth month futures contracts are not being changed.
The VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index is available in excess and total return versions. In the total return version of the index, the investment into the futures contracts is fully collateralized by a daily investment into the EONIA market (Euro Over Night Index Average). The interest earned from this collateralization is re-invested into the portfolio on a daily basis.
The VSTOXX Mid-Term Futures Index is part of the STOXX Strategy Index family. Further information on the STOXX Strategy Indices is available at www.stoxx.com.
Source: STOXX
If you are looking for a particuliar article and can not find it, please feel free to contact us for assistace.
