S&P Launches TIPS Index

With inflation concerns looming larger, S&P Indices has launched a TIPS Index.

S&P Indices has launched the S&P/BGCantor U.S. TIPS Index, which it says is the only index in the market to use pricing exclusively from BGC Market Data LP. According to the company, the S&P/BGCantor U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Security Index is “a broad, comprehensive, market value-weighted index that seeks to measure the performance of the U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) market.”

TIPS are marketable Treasury securities whose principal is adjusted according to changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). They are designed to provide protection against inflation, with the principal of the security increasing with inflation and decreasing with deflation, as measured by the CPI. According to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), the market value for TIPS outstanding as of end of March 2011 is $640.8 billion.

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S&P Indices also announced that it is now publishing the S&P/BGCantor U.S. Treasury Bond and Treasury Bill Indices on an intraday basis. The S&P/BGCantor U.S. Treasury Index family is a market-value weighted family of indices that seeks to measure the performance of the U.S. Treasury market.

BGC Partners describes itself as a global broker servicing the wholesale financial markets, specializing in the brokering of a broad range of financial products, including fixed income securities, interest rate swaps, foreign exchange, equities, equity derivatives, credit derivatives, commodities, futures, structured products, and other instruments.

According to the announcement, index weights are based, in part, on outstanding Par Amounts for securities. BGC Market Data LP provides the inflation adjusted price of each bond in the Index. The prices used in the Index calculation add the accrued interest to the market price of each security reported by BGC Market Data LP each day.

More information about the S&P/BGCantor U.S. TIPS Index is available at http://www.fixedincomeindices.standardandpoors.com.

Advisers Move Into Equities, Away from Treasuries

Advisers will be advising clients to move into domestic equities, emerging market equities, and global developed market equities and away from Treasury bills, U.S. fixed income, and cash, according to a new survey from Aberdeen Asset Management. 

The survey of financial advisers across wirehouses, regional brokerage firms, independent wealth management shops and other investment advice providers, found 46% of advisers plan to increase the allocation of clients’ assets to U.S. equities (S&P 500 Index); 38% plan to increase the allocation to emerging markets equities; and 34% to global developed equities.  

Contrarily, 58% plan to decrease their allocations to Treasury bills; 42% plan to decrease their allocations to U.S. fixed income; and 42% plan to decrease the allocation to cash.     

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Regarding emerging market equities, 44% of advisers will recommend that clients allocate between 6-10% to those funds, while 25% of advisers polled will recommend clients allocate between 11-20% to emerging market equity funds.  As for percentages dedicated to emerging market fixed income funds, 43% of advisers will recommend clients allocate between 0-5% to emerging market fixed income funds; 35% of advisers stated they will recommend client allocate between 6-10% to emerging market fixed income funds. 

Most (60%) of the advisers prefer to invest in open-ended mutual funds when increasing allocations to international or emerging markets, while 24% stated a preference for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) when investing in international or emerging markets.  

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Aberdeen Asset Management Inc. between March 15, 2011 and March 22, 2011 among 805 investment professionals.  

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