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October 26, 2012 at 08:24 AM
New products introduced over the last week include a digital retirement center launched by BlackRock, four new core ETFs from iShares and two new SPDR Tilt ETFs from State Street Global Advisors.
In addition, RiverNorth launched a buy-write fund, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and the Options Industry Council signed a memorandum of understanding regarding joint options research and education, and Aegon launched three volatility-capped risk profile solutions.
Here are the latest developments of interest to advisors:
1) BlackRock Launches New Digital Retirement Center
BlackRock launched a new digital retirement center providing insights, resources and tools at www.blackrock.com/retirement. The Oct. 22 launch was timed to coincide with the congressionally sanctioned National Save for Retirement Week, which ran from October 21 through 27. The BlackRock Retirement Center features age-based content and insights to help individuals better prepare for retirement in what BlackRock has called a “new world of investing,” in which yields are low, markets are volatile and confidence is scarce.
The age-based content assists investors with defining needs, identifying goals and providing actionable steps when saving and investing for or during their retirement. Features and the age groups they are intended for include Just Starting Out (20s and 30s); On Your Way (40s and 50s); Nearing/At Retirement (60s and& 70s); and Enjoying Retirement (70s+). The website also features the Define Your Retirement Tool; a weekly tip subscription titled Just One Thing; and additional features.
2) iShares Launches International Equity and Fixed-Income Core ETFs
BlackRock announced Oct. 22 that its iShares ETFs business has launched four new core funds designed to meet the needs of long-term investors looking for exposure to international equities and U.S. fixed income. These new funds will complement the six existing funds in the iShares Core Series, which is designed to provide broad equity and fixed-income exposure and allow long-term investors to tailor the mix of funds in their portfolio to match their individual choice.
The funds are iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS), which tracks the MSCI ACWI ex USA Investable Market Index (IMI), with management fees of 0.16%; iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG), which tracks the MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index, with management fees of 0.18%; iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF (IEFA), which tracks the MSCI EAFE Investable Market Index, with management fees of 0.14%; and iShares Core Short-Term U.S. Bond ETF (ISTB), which tracks the Barclays U.S. 1-5 Year Government/Credit Bond Index, with management fees of 0.12%.
3) State Street Global Advisors Launches Pair of SPDR Tilt ETFs
State Street Global Advisors, the asset management business of State Street Corp., announced Thursday the launch of the SPDR S&P 1500 Value Tilt ETF (VLU) and the SPDR S&P 1500 Momentum Tilt ETF (MMTM). The new SPDR ETFs offer investors an opportunity to access potential sources of outperformance with advanced indexing methodologies that reconfigure how index components are weighted.
