ShariaShares ETF Trust last week applied to register the first two Sharia-law-compliant U.S.-traded ETFs.

ShariahShares FTSE USA Fund and the ShariahShares FTSE Developed ex-U.S. Fund will invest in foreign and domestic companies that meet the stringent requirements of Sharia law.

ShariaShares FTSE USA Fund will track the FTSE Sharia USA Index, which comprises 241 mid- and large-cap U.S.-traded shares.

ShariaShares FTSE Developed ex-U.S. Fund will track the FTSE Sharia Developed ex-U.S. Index, a market-cap weighted index which comprises stocks from 25 of the 48 countries in the FTSE GEIS Index Series.

The exchange-traded funds will be permitted to invest 80 percent of their assets in underlying securities, and 20 percent in futures and options contracts

In keeping with Sharia law, the funds will not be allowed to invest in non-Islamic

...

ShariahShares ETF Trust last week applied to register the two Sharia-law-compliant U.S.-traded ETFs.

[Correction: An earlier version of this article suggested that the new ShariahShares would be the first Shariah ETFs in the U.S.  The Javelin ETF (NYSE Arca: JVS) launched in June of this year and provides exposure to the global ex-U.S. markets.]

ShariahShares FTSE USA Fund and the ShariahShares FTSE Developed ex-U.S. Fund will invest in foreign and domestic companies that meet the stringent requirements of Sharia law.

ShariahShares FTSE USA Fund will track the FTSE Shariah USA Index, which comprises 241 mid- and large-cap U.S.-traded shares.

ShariahShares FTSE Developed ex-U.S. Fund will track the FTSE Shariah Developed ex-U.S. Index, a market-cap weighted index which comprises stocks from 25 of the 48 countries in the FTSE

...

Global X proposes new sector funds for China, as well as seven new single-country emerging markets ETFs. 

Exchange-traded fund provider Global X Funds filed a prospectus on Sept. 10 with the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch six new ETFs, which will track different sectors of the Chinese economy.

The funds are: Global X Consumer, Global X China Energy, Global X China Financials, Global X China Industrials, Global X China Materials and Global X China Technology.

The funds will be 80 percent invested in American Depositary Receipts and Global Depositary Receipts, and 20 percent invested in swaps and options contracts.

The funds will employ strategies to replicate to 95 percent accuracy the performance of the underlying FTSE-created sector-specific indexes they follow after fees and expenses, and will issue creation units in blocks of 50,000 shares. Global X did not mention what management fee would be charged for investing in the funds.

The new ETFs are

...

Except for Japan, the growth in ETF assets is looking a little stale compared to the rest of the world. But on the plus side, U.S. investors still enjoy some of the best bargains to be found.

At least that’s what a new Barclays Global Investors study reveals. The research team led by Deborah Fuhr found that total U.S. assets in the ETF market hit an all-time high of $582 billion at the end of the second quarter, its highest mark since December 2007.

Interestingly, however, the number of U.S. ETFs, pegged at 706 from some 22 providers on three exchanges, is smaller than its European counterparts, which account for 753 ETFs for assets estimated at $183 billion.

According to Barclays, U.S. ETF assets have risen by more than 17 percent on the year – which is more than the 10 percent rise seen in the MSCI U.S. Index in dollar terms in

...

The author says forget about most of Europe and Japan. He also talks about his new ETF and the role of demographics in investing.

Harry Dent is founder and chief executive of Tampa, Fla.-based HS Dent Investment Management LLC. He is a best-selling author and money manager who has developed quantitative investment models based on demographic research.

He took time on Tuesday to discuss his latest views on the market with IndexUniverse.com Editor Murray Coleman. They also discussed Dent's new exchange-traded fund, the AdvisorShares Dent Tactical ETF (NYSEArca: DENT). It's scheduled to begin trading on Wednesday. Below are excerpts of that conversation.

IU.com: You’re fairly pessimistic about the market now, aren’t you?

Dent: We do think we’re at the end of this rally. This isn’t like past recessions. Consumer spending by baby boomers is peaking. It’s the end of a long surge that began in the 1980s. Clearly, baby boomers are

...

How broad of a following can a country-specific ETF garner? BGI's new EPU is about to get a $300 million shot in the arm.

 

How broad-based of an audience can an exchange-traded fund focused solely on companies based in Peru attract?

Since launching a little more than a month ago, the seemingly narrow-focused iShares MSCI All Peru Capped Index Fund (NYSEArca: EPU) has seen its assets top $33 million. That’s actually down a bit from a week ago when that number surpassed $35 million. (See related story here.)

So what’s driving such growth? Performance is one factor. In the past month, EPU’s returns have shot up by nearly 4 percentage points. More significantly to longer-term investors, the country has produced the best gross domestic product growth rate in the region—or near the top, depending on periods studied and data used—for more than a decade now.

And even more assets figure to start flowing

...

Since early last year, stock EM ETFs have nearly doubled in popularity among fund investors, says global markets researcher Brad Durham.

 

Brad Durham is co-founder and managing director at EPFR Global. The Cambridge, Mass.-based research firm tracks global fund flows, both institutional as well as retail for financial institutions. It tracks an estimated $10 trillion in sector, country and asset class flows on a daily, weekly and monthly basis for both fixed income and equities.

Before helping to start EPFR 14 years ago, Durham was editor of publications focused on the economics and politics of emerging markets. That included launching and operating several Russian financial publications, including Kommersant and a joint venture with Hearst Corp. and Izvestia. Durham has earned a doctorate from Suffolk University Law School and a master’s degree in journalism from Boston University.

On Monday, IndexUniverse.com Editor Murray Coleman caught up with the analyst for his views on changes

...

Since early 2008, assets in emerging market stock ETFs have doubled in size to represent almost a third of the total market, says analyst.

Brad Durham is co-founder and managing director at EPFR Global. The Cambridge, Mass.-based research firm tracks global fund flows, both institutional as well as retail, for financial institutions. It tracks an estimated $10 trillion in sector, country and asset class flows on a daily, weekly and monthly basis both for fixed income and equities.

Before helping to start EPFR 14 years ago, Durham was editor of publications focused on the economics and politics of emerging markets. That included launching and operating several Russian financial publications, including Kommersant and a joint venture with Hearst Corp. and Izvestia. Durham has earned a doctorate from Suffolk University Law School and a master’s degree in journalism from Boston University.

On Monday, IndexUniverse.com Editor Murray Coleman caught up with the analyst for his

...

Once seen as a fringe asset class, emerging markets today are powering economic growth and providing a critical source of returns for investor portfolios. In this one-hour webinar, IndexUniverse.com Editor and global ETF expert Matt Hougan examines the case for increasing a portfolio's baseline exposure to emerging markets, and argues that most investors systematically underweight emerging markets.

Click here for a full replay of the webinar. (Coming soon.)

Click here to view Hougan's PowerPoint presentation in PDF format. (Coming soon.)