ETF Assets Continue Rise

Exchange-traded fund assets increased $8.8 billion (0.9%) during the month of January, to a total of approximately $1 trillion, according to State Street Global Advisors ETF Snapshot report.

As of January 31, 2011, 970 ETFs were managed by 33 ETF managers. 

ETF flows topped $9 billion — the fifth consecutive month of positive flows, the report said. Large Cap and Fixed Income have the most inflows with $6.6 billion and $2.9 billion, respectively. International-Emerging and Commodities had the most outflows, losing $4.5 billion and $2.7 billion, respectively. Small Caps had more than $1.4 billion in outflows.  

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The top three managers in the U.S. ETF marketplace were: BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard. Collectively, they account for approximately 83.4% of the U.S. listed ETF market.  

The top three ETFs in terms of dollar volume traded for the month were the SPDR S&P 500 [SPY], iShares Russell 2000 [IWM], and PowerShares QQQ [QQQQ]. The top three ETFs in terms of assets for the month were the SPDR S&P 500 [SPY], SPDR Gold Shares [GLD], and Vanguard Emerging Markets [VWO].   

According to the report, both the S&P 500 Index and MSCI EAFE Index rose 2.7%. US bonds were relatively unchanged with the Barclays U.S. Treasury Index falling 0.02% and the Barclays U.S. Aggregate Index rising 0.1%. Gold fell 5.6%, to $1,327 per ounce.   

Large Cap gains were driven mainly by inflows to the SPDR S&P 500. Losses in Emerging Markets were driven by a combination of negative performance and outflows. Commodity losses were mostly attributed to negative performance in the gold market.

Bishop Asset Management Launches Volatility Flex Fund

Bishop Asset Management is introducing the Bishop Volatility Flex Fund (VFF).

Designed to be a non-correlating compliment to any investment portfolio, this fund seeks to perform in both rising and falling market volatility environments. It is the first in a series of volatility-monetizing funds that the firm intends to bring to market.  

The fund seeks to capture both increasing and decreasing volatility trends. The firm says this agnostic approach to the direction of market volatility makes the fund a more appropriate choice for a long-term holding, serving as a diversifier in all market cycles rather than just a hedge against rising volatility.  

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The VFF is designed to capture performance through all market cycles by employing a long-short strategy — constantly holding both put and call options on the SPX. The strategy consists of forward-looking technical indicators as well as a historical statistical analysis of the trading range of the S&P 500. The model combines an exponentially weighted historical average with a tactical overlay.  

The fund offers Class A shares (BVFAX) at an annual operating expense of 1.33% and Class C shares (BVFCX) at 2.09%. 

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