Foreign

The Brazilian market had an enviable second quarter of 2008 compared to the weak trend of emerging markets in general. The International Herald Tribune reports that Brazil portfolios were up nearly 15% during the second quarter, while markets like China and India continued downward. There are various contributing factors to the success of Brazil. The [...]

The Dow Jones Africa Titans 50 Index has just debuted, and Van Eck Global will issue the first ETF to follow the pan-African index. The Market Watch article explains that the new index is made up of 50 companies either headquartered in Africa or that produce more than half of their revenues within the continent. [...]

Invesco has released results from their latest European asset management survey to find ETFs now playing a major role in pension funds. The Financial Times article by Sophia Grene reports that this eighth European institutional asset management survey found 44% of institutional investors are now using ETFs in their pension funds, as compared with only [...]

MSCI Inc. has unveiled its second quarter 2008 results based on six months ending May 31, 2008. Business Wire shares that ETF assets invested in MSCI indices has grown to nearly $200 billion, which is an increase of nearly $50 billion, or 33%, compared to total assets at the same time last year. The three [...]

The booming Cleantech Index (CTIUS) has expanded its global territory by adding 33 new companies to the mix. The American Stock Exchange lists CTIUS, which is now made up of 76 companies. According to the Business Wire article, approximately half of the companies within the index are non-U.S., and 23 of the newly added companies [...]

There is new ownership for two gold bullion ETFs from World Gold Council’s Gold Bullion Holdings. Reuters reports that Gold Bullion Holdings has sold the management and control of two of its gold bullion ETFs to ETF Securities. Though there is a change in ownership, the Reuters article confirms that there will be no other [...]

The PowerShares Global Wind Energy Portfolio has now been introduced and is ready for listing on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The ETF portfolio will be trading under the ticker symbol of PWND, according to the Market Wire press release. PWND will track the NASDAQ OMX Clean Edge Global Wind Energy Index, which includes various companies [...]

Vanguard has gone worldwide with the release of its fourth ETF on the NYSE Arca, an industry leading exchange for ETF listings. The Business Wire press release identifies the new fund as Vanguard Total World Stock ETF (VT), which is constructed to follow approximately 2,900 company stocks in 47 different countries around the globe. VT [...]

In a period of economic indecision, The Street has provided their list of individual ETFs that have shown the greatest improvement within a handful of categories. The rating system from The Street is meant to provide investors with a list of ETFs that have been showing individual strength, distinguishing them from those funds that have [...]

Many investment firms have been looking for ways to incorporate exchange-traded funds into 401(k) retirement plans. A New Jersey-based firm, known as Hennion and Walsh, has found a way to incorporate ETFs by developing three mutual funds made up of ETFs. According to Jesse Emspak of Investor’s Business Daily, 401(k) plans are designed to invest [...]