Global ETF News Older than One Year
OFR Working Paper--Systemwide Commonalities in Market Liquidity
May 28, 2015--This paper identifies hidden liquidity regimes (high, medium and low) across a broad range of financial markets that can be used for characterizing periods of market stress and identifying underlying predictors of liquidity shocks.
This regime could have provided meaningful predictions up to 15 trading days in advance of the 2008 financial crisis. These methods offer a potential framework for monitoring and predicting a systemwide collapse in market liquidity, which could signal a collapse of liquidity in the funding markets and a broader financial crisis.
Source: OFR (Office of Financial Research)
DECPG Global Weekly
May 29, 2015--Taking Stock
U.S. GDP contracted in Q1 2015. According to a second official estimate, U.S. GDP contracted 0.7 percent (q/q saar) in Q1 2015, a downward revision from the earlier estimate showing a 0.2 percent uptick.
This contraction followed a 2.2 percent expansion in Q4. Weaker U.S. exports due to the stronger dollar, and a slower stockpiling of inventories by companies than initially estimated, were largely responsible for the revision.
Bailout negotiations for Greece continued. Negotiations between Greece and its creditors over the aid-for-reform bailout deal continued on Friday. Greek officials suggested on Wednesday that the country was nearing a "staff level agreement". However, European Central Bank (ECB) officials downplayed the prospects of any imminent agreement for the release of funds. Meanwhile, the Greek economy contracted 0.2 percent (q/q sa) in Q1 2015, following a 0.4 percent deciline in Q4 2014.
Shanghai stocks plunged.
China's Shanghai Composite Index dropped 6.5 percent on Thursday, one of its steepest
single-drops in 15 years, after several major brokerages tightened margin financing requirements for
clients and the central bank reduced money market liquidity through bonds sales. The index lost another 0.2 percent at Friday's closing.
Source: World Bank
Metal Funds Rule Commodities in May as Traders Bet on Gains
May 29, 2015--Investors are buying into industrial-metal funds at a faster pace than any other commodity, underscoring optimism about the health of the global economy.
U.S. exchange-traded products backed by the metals attracted $71.1 million in May, putting flows on track for the biggest monthly increase since 2012, according to data compiled by Bloomberg as of Wednesday.
Source: Bloomberg
Cash holdings rise as investors fear reverse for expensive stocks, bonds: poll
May 29, 2015--Fearful of a looming tumble in stocks and bonds from multi-year highs, global investors have increased the share of safe-haven cash in their portfolios to the highest levels in seven months, while also raising allocation to property.
World stocks hit record highs earlier this month .MIWD00000PUS while Japanese shares trading off the weak yen, are at 15-year peaks. European bourses from Spain to Germany are up 10-20 percent year-to-date, thanks primarily to money-printing operations in Japan and the euro zone.
Source: Reuters
US Lew: Greece Negotiation Delays Raise Risk Of Accident
May 29, 2015--US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew issued a strong appeal to his European counterparts Friday to find a quick solution to the ongoing Greek crisis, warning that failure to do so risked a default or a Greek exit from the Eurozone and possible damage to the global economy.
Speaking at the press conference of the US delegation after the conclusion of the G-7 summit in Dresden, Lew called on both sides of the negotiation table to make concessions.
Source: MNI
Structure Matters: The GDP factor in the emerging markets
May 29, 2015--Interview series: Investment Factors that drive ETF performance
In this interview I am pleased to be speaking to Brendan Ahern, the Chief Investment Officer of Kraneshares.
Index methodologies in emerging markets equities are highly differentiated with meaningful results that are driven by factors that result in varying allocations to countries, market cap size, industries and fiscal policies. We hope that readers appreciate, if only for educational purposes, that exploring alternative allocation methodologies should be constructive for any investor as it leads to a deeper understanding of what drives returns.
Source: Access ETF Solutions
MSCI launches new ESG Ratings Service
May 28, 2015--Index provider MSCI has announced the launch of the MSCI ESG Ratings tool,
aimed at supporting institutional investors' rowing ESG integration, manager reporting, engagement and portfolio monitoring needs.
Source: Investment Europe
BSE derivatives volumes exceed 1 billion contracts on its Deutsche Boerse T7 powered trading platform
May 28, 2015--BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) and Deutsche Börse today announced that the cumulative volume on BSE's derivatives markets since the launch of its new trading platform BOLT Plus-which is based on Deutsche BBörse's T7 trading technology-has surpassed the 1 billion traded contracts mark.
This milestone underlines BSE's competitive edge in terms of speed, transparency and reliability.
Source: Deutsche Börse
Is China backing the Yuan with gold?
The inconvenient truth about a gold-backed Yuan.
May 27, 2015--Over the last several years, there have been many stories about the rising Chinese economy and an increasing role for the Chinese currency on the world stage.
Some have gone so far as to predict that the Chinese yuan will take over the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency.
Source: MineWeb
UPDATE 1-Global lower rate environment harmful to investors-BlackRock CEO
May 27, 2015--Lowering interest rates around the world to boost the global economy has reached a point where it is now "quite harmful" to clients, including pension funds and insurers, BlackRock Inc Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Laurence Fink said on Wednesday.
The "low rate environment is having a profound impact on how they're going to operate," Fink said...
Source: Reuters
