Global ETF News Older than One Year
International Investing: Portugal Keeps Coming Up In the News
May 26, 2015--Portugal fascinates me. Ever since I wrote an article examining whether the Greek crisis had spread to other countries in the EU which are dealing with similar austerity programs, I found Portugal intriguing.
Here is a country that borrowed heavily from the EU to bail out their economy, and then paid back the money in 2014.
Source: Peter Kohli of DMS for Nasdaq.com
GDP Growth-First Quarter 2015, Quarterly National Accounts, OECD
OECD GDP growth slows to 0.3% in the first quarter of 2015
May 26, 2015--
Growth of real gross domestic product (GDP) in the OECD area slowed to 0.3% in the first quarter of 2015, down from 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2014, according to provisional estimates.
Among the Major Seven economies, growth slowed most significantly in the United States (to 0.1%) and in Germany (to 0.3%), down from 0.5% and 0.7% respectively in the fourth quarter of 2014. Growth also decelerated in the United Kingdom, to 0.3%, down from 0.6% in the previous quarter.
Source: OECD
OPEC Monthly Oil Market Report May 2015
May 26, 2015--Oil market highlights
Crude Oil Price Movements
The OPEC Reference Basket rose in April to its highest value this year supported by various bullish factors.
The Basket increased $4.84 to $57.30/b, although remainedcconsiderably lower y-o-y. ICE Brent contract rose $4.20 to $61.14/b and Nymex WTI jumped $6.77 to $54.63/b.
World Economy
World economic growth for 2015 has been revised down to 3.3% from 3.4% previously, in line with last year's growth. This is mainly due to the US, where growth has been revised to
2.6% from 2.9%, following sluggish growth in 1Q15. Euro-zone and Japan remain unchanged at 1.3% and 0.8%, respectively. In the emerging markets, China has been revised to 6.9% from 7.0% and Brazil to -0.4% from 0.2%. Russia and India remain
unchanged at -3.2% and 7.5%, respectively.
Source: OPEC
FTSE Starts Transition To Include China A Shares In Global Benchmarks
May 26, 2015--China could be included in key benchmark in two years
China A shares to have initial weighting of 5 pct in new indexes
Tax, capital mobility, and clearing remain key hurdles
FTSE Russell, one of the world's largest index providers, said it will launch two transitional indexes that include China A shares, paving the way for local Chinese shares to be included in its emerging markets benchmark in two to three years.
Source: CNBC
FSB publishes Thematic Review on Supervisory Frameworks and Approaches for SIBs
May 26, 2015--The Financial Stability Board (FSB) published today a thematic peer review on supervisory frameworks and approaches for systemically important banks (SIBs).
The review, which was conducted in close collaboration with the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), assesses progress towards enhancing supervisory frameworks and approaches for SIBs since the financial crisis, in particular for global systemically important banks (G-SIBs). Increasing supervisory effectiveness is a key pillar of the FSB policy framework for reducing the moral hazard of systemically important financial institutions (SIFIs).
view theThematic Review on Supervisory Frameworks and Approaches for SIBs-Peer Review Report
Source: FSB
ISRA and SC Launch Joint Publication on "Islamic Capital Markets: Principles and Practices"
May 26, 2015--The International Shari'ah Research Academy for Islamic Finance (ISRA) and the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) today launched a joint publication on "Islamic Capital Markets: Principles and Practices."
The Islamic capital market textbook was launched by the SC Deputy Chief Executive Dato Dr. Nik Ramlah Mahmood at the IFN Asia Forum in Kuala Lumpur on 26 May 2015.
Source: Securities Commission Malaysia
Stoxx Changes Composition Of Benchmark Indices
Results of the second regular quarterly review to be effective Jun. 22, 2015
May 26, 2015--STOXX Limited, the market-moving provider of innovative, tradable and global index concepts, today announced the new composition of STOXX Benchmarks and their sub and sector indices, among them the STOXX Europe 600 Index, STOXX North America 600 Index and STOXX Asia/Pacific 600 Index.
Effective as of the open of European markets on Jun. 22, 2015, the following stocks will be added to and deleted from the STOXX Europe 600 Index and its respective size and sector indices:
Source: STOXX
World Bank-Carbon Pricing Initiatives Valued at Close to US$50 billion
May 26, 2015--New Countries and Regions are Putting a Price on Carbon
The global value of carbon pricing instruments today is estimated at just under US$50 billion, according to Carbon Pricing Watch 2015, a new publication from the World Bank Group and Ecofys.
Emissions trading systems have grown in value from US$32 billion in 2014 to US$34 billion today. That rise is due in part to the addition of the South Korea emissions trading scheme and the expansion of the California and Quebec cap-and-trade programs. Existing carbon tax systems are valued today at around $14 billion, according to the report, released at Carbon Expo today.
Source: World Bank
FTSE to upgrade Palestine Exchange to Frontier market status
May 24, 2015--FTSE group recently informed the PEX of its possible upgrade to frontier market status during the next classification review on September 2015.
Palestine Exchange was informed by a letter from FTSE group that it meets the five qualities of markets criteria, including: regulatory environment, capital controls, clearing & settlement, and market transparency.
Source: Palestine Exchange
Smart beta here to stay, research confirms
May 22, 2015--Smart beta is present in over half of the world's portfolios, with professional investors increasingly combining multiple smart beta strategies, new global research found.
The FTSE Russell Smart Beta: 2015 Global Survey Findings from Asset Owners survey confirmed that 55% of respondents are allocating more than 10% of their portfolios to smart beta strategies.
Source: Financial Standard
