Global ETF News Older than One Year
Exchanges asked to crack down on 'inadequate' reporting
February 21, 2011--Institutional investors with a total of $1.6trn (€1.2trn) in assets under management have written to 30 of the world's largest stock exchanges asking them to address inadequate sustainability reporting by listed companies.
Based on Bloomberg data, the letter also ranks individual listing authorities on a sustainability league table that assesses the current level of environmental social and governance (ESG) disclosure among listed companies.
Source: IP&E
Cowen Group to acquire LaBranche for $192.8m
February 18, 2011--Diversified financial services firm Cowen Group has agreed to acquire LaBranche, a former New York Stock Exchange floor specialist, for approximately $192.8m.
As per the terms of the agreement, LaBranche shareholders will receive upon closing a fixed ratio of 0.9980 of a share of Cowen Class A common stock for each their outstanding common stock.
Source: BBR Prime Brokerages
Trade pact is 'win-win' for South Korea, EU
February 18, 2011-- A sweeping free trade agreement between South Korea and the European Union is a "win-win" deal for both parties, an EU diplomat said Friday after Europe's parliament approved the deal.
The parliament in Strasbourg voted 465-128 for the pact Thursday after securing safeguards to protect Europe's auto industry from tough South Korean rules on fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions.
Source: Eubusiness
BM&FBOVESPA: Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with Shanghai Stock Exchange will not cover cross listing of company´s stocks
February 18, 2011--Bolsa de Valores, Mercadorias e Futuros (the "Company") announces that, on February 21st, 2011, BM&FBOVESPA and Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) will sign a MoU in order to start discussions regarding business opportunities and information exchange.
Unlike articles released by national and international press, this MoU will not cover cross listing of company´s stocks listed in the two exchanges.
Source: WFE
Investing in Public Investment: An Index of Public Investment Efficiency-IMF Working paper
February 17, 2011--Summary: This paper introduces a new index that captures the institutional environment underpinning public investment management across four different stages: project appraisal, selection, implementation, and evaluation.
Covering 71 countries, including 40 low-income countries, the index allows for benchmarking across regions and country groups and for nuanced policy-relevant analysis and identification of specific areas where reform efforts could be prioritized. Potential research venues are outlined.
Investing in Public Investment: An Index of Public Investment Efficiency=IMF working paper
Source: IMF
GDP growth slows to 0.4% in the fourth quarter of 2010
February 17, 2011--Gross domestic product (GDP) in the OECD area grew by 0.4% in the fourth quarter of 2010, down from the 0.6% growth recorded in the previous quarter.
GDP contracted by 0.3% in Japan and by 0.5% in the United Kingdom in the fourth quarter of 2010. In Japan the slowdown partly reflected the unwinding of stimulus measures to boost domestic demand while in the United Kingdom it partly reflected the severe weather; with services and construction being particularly affected.
Growth also slowed in Germany to 0.4% (from 0.7% in the previous quarter) and Italy to 0.1% (from 0.3%). In the United States growth accelerated to 0.8% from 0.6% in the previous quarter and in France and the euro area growth remained broadly stable at 0.3%. While in the European Union growth fell to 0.2% from 0.5% in the previous quarter.
Relative to a year earlier, GDP in the fourth quarter of 2010 expanded by 2.7% in the OECD area, down from 3.2% in the previous quarter. Among Major Seven* economies, Germany at 4.0% had the highest rate and Italy at 1.3% the lowest.
Over the whole of 2010, GDP in the OECD area expanded by 2.9%, significantly up from the sharp decline of 3.5% recorded in 2009.
Source: OECD
IOSCO publishes final report on Intermediary Internal Controls on SFP Price Verification and Regulatory Approaches to Liquidity Risk Management
February 17, 2011--Chapter 1 Background and Purpose of the Project
In May 2008, the IOSCO Technical Committee (TC) published its Report on the Subprime Crisis (Subprime Report).2 The TC noted in the Subprime Report that, among other things, many institutional investors and investment banking firms had inadequate risk modelling and internal controls in place to understand and address the risks they were assuming when buying many types of structured finance products.
The TC further noted the work of the Senior Supervisors Group (SSG) in analyzing this issue.3 As a result of its findings, the TC recommended that its Standing Committee on the Regulation of Market Intermediaries (TCSC3) ?undertake a study of the internal control systems of financial firms, including asset managers, in different IOSCO jurisdictions and develop principles to address any concerns identified.
The Subprime Report also addressed the critical importance of balance sheet liquidity for financial institutions. It observed that firms that proved more resilient during the market turmoil also appear to have more effectively managed their contingent liquidity needs. In some cases, this led firms to forego investments and business lines related to the subprime market because of the contingent liquidity risk they potentially posed. By contrast, firms that experienced greater difficulties tended to not align their treasury functions with their risk management processes, or may have based their contingency funding plans on incomplete or inaccurate information or faulty valuation practices. Indeed, the TC concluded that many institutional investors and investment banking firms had inadequate balance sheet liquidity, even when adequately capitalized.
Source: IOSCO
NYSE and Deutsche Börse set $340m break-up fee
February 17, 2011-NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Börse, who agreed a merger earlier this week, have set a price of €250m for abandoning the deal in favour of another combination.
The large break-up fee is meant to discourage rivals from attempting to break up the deal, which is being done as a stock swap with only a nominal premium being paid for NYSE Euronext shares.
Source: FT.com
Cotton prices hit record as mills scramble
February 17, 2011--Cotton prices have burst through $2 a pound for the first time, threatening sharp rises in the price of jeans, tee-shirts and other everyday clothing, as mills around the globe race to secure supplies.
The gains to record levels have been stoked by a short-term squeeze as the mills have scrambled to buy futures contracts to fix the prices of physical supplies before Friday, the last available day they can do this on the current March contract
Source: FT.com
Silver rises to 30-year high as mints start to ration coins
February 17, 2011--Silver jumped to a 30-year high amid record levels of investor buying that has drained mints of silver coins.
The price of the precious metal hit $31.37 a troy ounce on Thursday, up 16 per cent since mid-January and the highest since March 1980. The world’s leading mints have reported record sales of silver coins in January and some, including the Royal Canadian Mint and Austrian Mint, have had to ration sales.
Source: FT.com
