OREANDA-NEWS. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index is heading for its longest streak of weekly gains since April, as a slew of weaker-than-expected economic data from China, Europe and US spurred speculation that the Federal Reserve would hold off raising interest rates until 2016. The probability of the Fed hiking rates at its December policy meeting has fallen to 30%, down from 70% at the start of August, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The Shanghai Composite Index registered its steepest gain in four months, buoyed by expectations China would accelerate reforms of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). SOE reform became a catalyst for the market after the government this week announced plans to reorganise the telecom industry and promote price reforms in the utilities sector. Sentiment was also boosted after data this week showed the country’s broadest measure of new credit exceeded economists’ estimates. Consumer prices also rose at a slower pace in September, suggesting the central bank has leeway to further loosen monetary policy.

Gold also staged a rebound, erasing its losses so far this year, as evidence of slower growth in economies from China to Europe and the US allayed concerns the Fed would raise rates soon. US consumer spending also cooled in September, dovetailing with signs of easing global demand, while stagnating consumer price inflation data last month and in August added to the case of a Fed hike delay, bolstering the metal’s appeal as a store of value.

The MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index captures large- and mid-cap representation from Hong Kong, Singapore, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. There are a number of Sectorial and Style Indices associated with the Index. Sectorial Indices are defined using GICS ® which is also used to categorise stocks sectors on SGX StockFacts.  

Singapore’s 10 most active Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in the October 2015 month-to-date were db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF, SPDR® Gold Shares, iShares MSCI India Index ETF, SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF , db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR), db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR), Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF, db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF, db x-trackers MSCI Thailand Index UCITS ETF (DR) and iShares Barclays Capital USD Asia High Yield Bond Index ETF.

In the month thus far, these 10 most active ETFs averaged a total return of 7.4%, taking the one-year and three-year total returns to a 2.6% decline and 6.3% respectively. All 10 ETFs posted positive gains in the month-to-date, with the three best performers in month-to-date total returns being db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR), db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) and db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF.

These 10 ETFs track a range of indices, including the price of gold, high-yield Asian bonds, stock indices of India, Singapore, China and Vietnam, in addition to a regional equity index. The above-mentioned ETFs saw a 29.5% YoY increase in turnover for the month thus far, rising from S$96.4 million in the October 2014 month-to-date to S$124.9 million in the same period this year. This brings the total 12-month turnover to S$2.2 billion.

The three most active ETFS over the first 11 sessions of October were db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF, SPDR® Gold Shares and iShares MSCI India Index ETF.

The 10 most active ETFs in the October 2015 month-to-date are detailed below and sorted by MTD Turnover.

Name Stock Code Price MTD Turnover 2015 ($) MTD Turnover 2014 ($) 12M Turnover ($)
db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF IH1 33.71 63,621,159 11,658,609 215,047,918
SPDR® Gold Shares O87 113.38 26,741,998 24,714,744 508,939,616
iShares MSCI India Index ETF I98 7.23 26,154,212 47,958,785 643,491,307
SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF ES3 3.06 14,402,352 7,392,890 388,994,533
db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG9 13.22 4,693,029 342,808 82,830,968
db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR) HD8 31.7 4,396,007 1,432,238 77,517,335
Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF G3B 3.11 3,662,245 1,718,865 64,746,075
db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF HD9 24.68 3,636,673 468,346 56,961,811
db x-trackers MSCI Thailand Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG7 17.95 1,891,861 237,521 37,011,063
iShares Barclays Capital USD Asia High Yield Bond Index ETF O9P 10.45 1,809,965 462,863 85,692,019

Source: SGX (data as of 15 October 2015)

Name Stock Code Total Return MTD (%) Total return 12M (%) 3 Year Total Return Annualized (%) 3 Year Total Return (%) 30 day Volatility (%)
db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF IH1 10.2 -3.1 2.3 6.9 23.2
SPDR® Gold Shares O87 5.3 -5.0 -12.4 -32.9 14.2
iShares MSCI India Index ETF I98 5.7 -0.8 5.0 14.9 18.8
SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF ES3 7.4 -2.2 2.3 6.5 16.2
db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG9 11.0 5.0 5.4 17.1 29.6
db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR) HD8 11.7 5.5 4.5 14.2 30.6
Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF G3B 7.6 -1.5 2.6 7.9 17.5
db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF HD9 7.4 -12.9 6.5 20.6 20.0
db x-trackers MSCI Thailand Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG7 5.6 -14.4 -2.1 -6.1 22.3
iShares Barclays Capital USD Asia High Yield Bond Index ETF O9P 2.3 3.2 4.4 13.9 12.2
Average   7.4 -2.6 1.8 6.3 20.5

ETFs are investment funds listed and traded intraday on a stock exchange. The majority aim to track the performance of an index and provide access to a wide variety of markets and asset classes, including local stocks, international securities, bonds, commodities or money markets.

Each ETF gives investors access to the performance of the asset that comprises the underlying index. Investing in the ETF is also less costly if one was to build a similar portfolio by buying the individual stocks. It also provides exposure to international markets and asset classes that may be inaccessible to individual investors.