Global ETF News Older than One Year
Broker ICAP prepares systems for euro zone meltdown
November 29, 2011--ICAP, the world's top broker for foreign exchange and government bonds, has tested its trading systems to handle the collapse of the euro zone and the re-emergence of national currencies.
ICAP said on Monday it has been testing EBS, the world's largest foreign exchange platform, to ensure it could handle trading the Greek drachma in response to growing fears over a euro zone disintegration.
"We have contingency tested the Greek drachma in currency pairs versus the euro and the US Dollar because our customers have expressed concerns about how the euro zone situation will play out and we have to be prepared for every eventuality," said a spokesman for ICAP.
Source: Reuters
Hedge funds see global growth dipping
November 28, 2011--Hedge fund managers see global growth dipping next year amid likely eurozone sovereign defaults and a slowdown in China.
The views are disclosed as part of a survey covering more than a third of the world's hedge fund managers with $800bn ..
Source: FT.com
Dollar falls as risk appetite improves
November 28, 2011--Improved market sentiment left the dollar flagging on Monday, with the euro clawing back some of its losses from the previous week.
The rise in risk sentiment came amid hopes for eurozone treaty changes that would allow weightier bond purchases by the European Central Bank. Rumours that the International Monetary Fund was to offer aid to Italy, which were later denied by the IMF, boosted the euro in early trading.
Source: FT.com
Carbon plunges more than 11 pct to new lows
November 25, 2011-- European Union carbon permits and U.N.-backed credits plunged to new depths on Friday, as a continuation of panic selling amid fear of recession has wiped more than 25 percent off carbon prices this week alone.
Front-year carbon permits called EU Allowances (EUAs) hit a fresh record low of 6.98 euros a tonne, and were pegged at 7.05 euros at 0925 GMT.
Source: Reuters
Advisers steer clients away from trackers
November 25, 2011--Independent financial advisers (IFAs) and wealth managers continue to show a marked preference for actively managed funds in the recommendations they send clients – in spite of the cost benefits of using passive trackers – new research has found.
In a survey of 16 major firms carried out by the Financial Times, nine said they did not include conventional tracker funds in their “recommended” fund lists, while eight refused to include exchange traded funds (ETFs) tracking equity indices. Reasons given for excluding trackers ranged from unsuitable market conditions to inferior long-term performance.
Source: Financial Times
Renminbi threat to dollar could be stalling
November 23, 2011--The Chinese renminbi could pose a threat to the international dominance of the US dollar within five to 10 years, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission warned this month in its annual report to Congress.
But based on the latest data, this prediction may be premature. In contrast to popular perception, evidence from China suggests that the internationalisation of the renminbi is stalling – and in many respects it has barely got off the ground.
Source: Financial Times
ESMA publishes updated list of measures adopted by competent authorities on short selling
November 21, 2011--ESMA today published an update regarding the measures taken by EU competent authoritites regarding short selling.
This update includes measures taken by Austria.
view the Update on measures adopted by competent authorities on short selling
Source: ESMA
UN-backed report spotlights links between global warming and extreme weather
November 18, 2011-- A United Nations-backed report confirms the link between climate change and current trends in extreme weather such as floods and heat waves, and warns that existing measures, even in developed countries, are not enough to cope with the severity of these events.
The report, whose summary was approved today by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Kigali, Uganda, reveals that high and low daily temperatures have risen on a global scale due to the rise of greenhouse gases, causing an increase in floods, heat waves, droughts, and other extremes associated with damage caused by high sea levels and heavy precipitation.
The report also states that extreme weather conditions have become more powerful and dangerous as a result of climate change, increasing the vulnerability of densely-populated regions in coastal zones as well as populations that live in conditions of poverty and have limited ways to cope with natural disasters.
Source: UN
NYSE and D Börse gamble on concessions
November 18, 2011--NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Börse have launched a high-stakes gamble to assuage serious competition concerns in Brussels over the exchanges’ planned merger with a package of concessions offering rivals partial access to their Germany-based clearing house.
After succeeding in overturning some but not all of the concerns expressed by European antitrust authorities, the exchanges have also proposed to sell some single stock equities and futures businesses on both sides of the Atlantic, eliminating an overlap in their businesses.
Source: FT.com
November 18, 2011--NYSE Euronext (NYSE:NYX) and Deutsche Börse AG (XETRA: DB1) today confirm that they have submitted a remedy proposal to the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition (DG Competition). The proposed remedies are designed to address the remaining concerns of DG Competition in derivatives trading and clearing while preserving the compelling industrial logic of the transaction.
The remedy proposal aims at eliminating the existing overlap in European single equity derivatives and ensures continued competition in European interest rate and equity index derivatives.
With respect to European single equity derivatives, the notifying parties have proposed to divest the portions of their respective businesses in which they overlap. NYSE Euronext would divest its pan-European single equity derivatives business, including Bclear, except the options businesses in its home markets, where Deutsche Börse would divest its respective business. This remedy addresses DG Competition’s stated concerns in the area of single equity derivatives.
With respect to European interest rate and equity index derivatives, Deutsche Börse and NYSE Euronext propose to grant unprecedented third-party access to Eurex Clearing for derivatives product innovations taking advantage of the merged entities clearing services. The clearing services would be provided on a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory basis and include cross margining.
Source: Deutsche Börse
