Press Release iShares Offers Investors a Broader Selection of International Exchange Traded Funds
San Francisco - October 26, 2001—Barclays Global Investors (BGI) announces that the following three international regional iShares exchange traded funds (ETFs) will begin trading on the American Stock Exchange today.
With the launch of these funds, as well as the iShares MSCI EAFE Fund (ticker: EFA) that began trading in August 2001, iShares continues to be the sole provider of international ETFs for all types of investors. The new iShares will be managed by Barclays Global Fund Advisors, a subsidiary of Barclays Global Investors, N.A., and the manager of the largest selection of ETFs, known as iShares.
"The flexibility and simplicity of the iShares fund family increases with the addition of these three new funds," said Lee Kranefuss, Barclays Global Investors' CEO of the Exchange-Traded Funds Group. "Investors can make a focused investment, whether it's long or short, on regional economic behaviors. With the iShares MSCI EAFE fund and iShares' other international funds investors can invest in the world and under or overweight specific regions or countries."
Following the launch of the iShares S&P TOPIX/150 Index Fund (ticker: 1315) that trades on the Tokyo Stock Exchange*, the iShares S&P TOPIX/150 Index Fund (Amex: ITF) tracks the S&P /TOPIX 150 Index, which includes 150 highly liquid securities selected from each major sector of the Tokyo market. The index, the Japanese counterpart to the S&P 500, represents approximately 70% of the market value of the Japanese equity market. The specialist of the fund is Susquehanna Investment Group. The iShares S&P Latin America Index Fund is the first ETF to cover this region. The fund tracks the S&P Latin America 40 Index, which is part of the S&P Global 1200 Index and includes highly liquid securities from major economic sectors of Mexican and South American equity markets. Companies from Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and Chile are represented in the index. The specialist of the fund is Spear Leeds & Kellogg.
The iShares MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Index Fund tracks the MSCI Provisional Pacific Free ex-Japan Index, a leading benchmark that measures international equity performance for the developed markets in Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Singapore. As of September 30, 2001, the index contained 120 securities with a total market capitalization of over USD 388 billion. The specialist of the fund is Spear Leeds & Kellogg.
iShares are index funds that are bought and sold like common stocks on national securities exchanges as well as certain foreign exchanges. iShares are attractive to many individual and institutional investors and financial intermediaries because of their relatively low cost, tax efficiency and trading flexibility. Investors can purchase and sell shares through any brokerage firm, financial advisor, or online broker, and hold the funds in any type of brokerage account. Because iShares can be traded like stocks, they offer intraday liquidity. The liquidity of iShares is driven by the liquidity of the underlying securities, thus as long as the stocks in the portfolio can be bought and sold easily, any supply and demand requirements can be met. Similar to many index funds, iShares are designed to have relatively low portfolio turnover, which reduces transaction costs incurred by the fund and minimizes capital gains distributions to investors. For a list of available iShares, visit www.ishares.com.
Barclays Global Investors is the world's largest institutional investment manager, and the world's largest provider of structured investment strategies such as indexing, tactical asset allocation, and quantitative active strategies *. BGI managed more than $770 billion in assets as of 6/30/01, and over 1,500 funds, which track over 200 global indexes, for nearly 2,000 clients in 40 countries around the world. As the creator of the first index strategy 30 years ago, BGI is an innovator in investment management, applying science and technology to the investment process. BGI has approximately 2,000 employees worldwide and is owned by Barclays PLC, one of the UK's largest companies, and one of the world's leading global financial services providers, with operations in over 60 countries worldwide.
* Source: "Special Report: Global Leaders." Pensions & Investments,(Sept. 2000),p.15 * The iShares S&P TOPIX/150 Index Fund that trades on the Tokyo Stock Exchange is not available to U.S. investors. To determine if the fund(s) are an appropriate investment for you, carefully consider the funds' investment objectives, risk factors and charges and expenses before investing. This and other information can be found in the funds' prospectuses, which may be obtained by calling 1-800-iShares or click here to view or download a prospectus. Read the prospectus carefully before investing. There are risks involved with investing, including possible loss of principal. iShares are distributed by SEI Investments Distribution Co. (SEI). Barclays Global Fund Advisors (BGFA) serves as an advisor to iShares. Barclays Global Investors Services (BGIS) assists in the marketing of iShares. BGFA and BGIS are subsidiaries of Barclays Global Investors, N.A., none of which are affiliated with SEI. This information is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy shares of any fund described in this article, including the iShares, nor shall any such shares be offered or sold to any person in any jurisdiction in which an offer, solicitation, purchase or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. U.S. iShares may be sold throughout the day on the exchange through any brokerage account. However, iShares may only be redeemed directly from the funds by Authorized Participants, in very large creation/redemption units. With short sales, you risk paying more for a security than you received from its sale. iShares transactions will result in brokerage commissions and will generate tax consequences. Mutual funds and iShares are obliged to distribute portfolio gains to shareholders. In addition to the normal risks associated with equity investing, international investments may involve risk of capital loss from unfavorable fluctuation in currency values, from differences in generally accepted accounting principles or from economic or political instability in other nations. Securities focusing on a single country may be subject to higher volatility. MSCI, Morgan Stanley Capital International and MSCI Index are service marks of Morgan Stanley Capital International and have been licensed for use by Barclays Global Investors, N.A. iShares are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MSCI or Standard & Poor's. MSCI and Standard & Poor's nor any of their affiliates make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in iShares. MSCI or Standard & Poor's are not affiliated with SEI, BGI N.A. or its affiliates. iShares are not FDIC Insured. Have No Bank Guarantee. May Lose Value. www.ishares.com 1-800-iSHARES (1-800-474-2737) ©2001, 2004 Barclays Global Investors. All rights reserved. iShares is a registered trademark of Barclays Global Investors, N.A. All other trademarks, servicemarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. As of December 1, 2009, the former Barclays Global Investors entities referred to in this publication are owned and controlled ultimately by BlackRock Inc. and neither Barclays nor any Barclays affiliate is responsible for, or associated with, the contents of this publication. Help for Journalists iShares offers insights on ETFs and financial news topics. Journalists may request information, photos or media support by contacting the PR Group. Experts Members of the press can select from a list of investment categories to find iShares experts who can assist with stories. Please contact a member of Public Relations to speak with any of our experts. About iShares Learn more about the past, present and future of iShares. The Idea The Facts The Timeline The Growth |
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