Products October 13, 2008

NextQ Portfolio Changes Name

The PowerShares NextQ Portfolio has changed its name to the PowerShares NQX Portfolio.
Reported by

Invesco PowerShares Capital Management LLC said that the name change highlights the ticker symbol identification (ticker: PNXQ) and will “allow for synergies in positioning the fund as a complement to the PowerShares QQQ (ticker: QQQQ), which is based on the Nasdaq-100 Index.” The firm said the fund is currently known as “the PNXQ” to many market participants.

According to a press release, the PowerShares NQX Portfolio will continue to be offered on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the existing ticker symbol (PNXQ). The investment objectives and fee structure will remain unchanged.

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The PowerShares NASDAQ NextQ Portfolio, launched in April 2008 on the Nasdaq Stock Market, is based on the NASDAQ Q-50 Index (see Two New PowerShares ETFs Come Online). That index is designed to track the performance of the 50 securities that are next in line to replace the securities currently included in the NASDAQ-100 Index, according to the firm. The index reflects companies across major, non-financial industry groups including computer hardware and software, telecommunications, retail/wholesale trade and biotechnology, and is adjusted quarterly.

More information is available at www.invesco.com.

Compliance October 13, 2008

McCain, Obama Back Loosening RMD Rules

Retirees feeling hemmed in by minimum distribution requirements got some support from the two leading presidential candidates.
Reported by

On Friday, GOP presidential candidate Senator John McCain called for the suspension of the minimum distribution requirements that “mandate that investors must begin to sell off their IRAs and 401Ks when they reach age 70 and one half.”

On that point, at least, the two major presidential candidates could find common ground. That same day the Obama campaign issued a statement supporting McCain’s retirement-account proposal—with a slight twist. “Barack Obama supports allowing senior citizens to delay withdrawals from 401(k)s and believes we don’t have to wait for Congress to act to provide seniors with these protections,” said Bill Burton, Obama spokesman, according to the Wall Street Journal.

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“He’s calling on the Treasury Secretary to temporarily suspend Treasury regulations and allow seniors to delay these withdrawals,” Burton said in a press release.

According to IRS rules, IRA holders and owners of 5% or more of a business must begin taking distributions from the plan no later than April 1 of the year after they attain the age of 70 세, retired or not. Those still working do not need to take a distribution from a company plan, but will have a RMD from IRAs or previous employers’ retirement accounts under a significant simplification of the rules unveiled in 2002.


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