XTF Enhances Country Rotation and Fixed Income ETF Portfolios
January 15 2008 - 7:56AM
PR Newswire (US)
Adds Seven New Countries to Rotation Portfolio, Adds Fixed Income
Asset Classes NEW YORK, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- XTF Global Asset
Management, an asset manager that builds and manages portfolios of
ETFs, today announced that it has added seven new country-focused
ETFs to its country rotation portfolio. XTF also announced that it
has enhanced its fixed-income ETF portfolio by adding several fixed
income asset classes. These product enhancements are designed to
leverage the diversity and appeal of new ETFs that came to market
in 2007. The seven new country ETFs increase XTF's Country Rotation
Portfolio's (CRP) exposure to emerging markets. New countries
include: Spain, Mexico, Sweden, South Korea, Malaysia, China and
Taiwan. The CRP now can invest in up to 20 ETFs that each track the
economies of foreign countries. Previously, CRP invested in up to
13 countries, including: The Netherlands, Germany, France,
Switzerland, Italy, United Kingdom, Belgium, Australia, Singapore,
Hong Kong, Japan, Canada and South Africa. "We've been tracking
these seven countries' financial and economic data over the past
year and determined that it is now appropriate to add them to our
portfolio," said Jeff Buetow, XTF's chief investment officer. "We
initially limited the CRP to developed markets to take advantage of
the safety of their long track records as well as the sound
structural characteristics of the corresponding ETFs. Now that
emerging market ETFs have become far more attractive from an
investment perspective, we believe it's the right time to provide
emerging market exposure as part of a well diversified portfolio."
Since its January 2007 inception, the CRP has outperformed its
benchmark index, the Country Rotation Composite Index, by nearly
200 basis points. Part of its success is due to XTF's model-driven
investment approach, which actively manages exposure to foreign
equity markets. The model tracks foreign equity market economies,
fundamentals, risk and technical factors, generating buy or sell
signals for each country. The CRP's performance to date validates
this approach. The CRP is designed to take advantage of changes in
the risk and the appreciation potential of the individual countries
it follows. XTF models each country independently, and compares its
risk/reward profile to an equivalent investment in
intermediate-term U.S. Treasuries. If the country profile is
favorable versus U.S. Treasury yields, XTF invests in the country.
Alternatively, if Treasuries are more favorable, XTF invests in the
Treasuries. Each country in the CRP is equally weighted at five
percent of the overall portfolio. XTF uses a binary investment
strategy, and makes an "all or none" decision to invest in each
country. "The Country Rotation Portfolio is designed to function as
an enhancement to investors' core portfolio. By taking a broad,
long-term view of international equities, CRP also is a strategy
that investors can deploy to mitigate against short-term volatility
in their portfolios," said Tom Scuccimarra, XTF's head of sales and
distribution. "By moving into fixed income ETFs, we can hedge
against potential downturns in the foreign equity markets,
stabilizing investor portfolios further." Below are the ETFs that
XTF has recently added to its fixed-income portfolio: TICK
DESCRIPTION SHY iShares Lehman 1-3 Yr Treasuries IEF iShares Lehman
7-10 Yr Treasuries TLT iShares Lehman 20+ Yr Treasuries CSJ iShares
Lehman 1-3 Yr Credit CIU iShares Lehman Intermediate Credit TIP
iShares Lehman US TIPS JNK iShares Lehman High Yield MBB iShares
Lehman MBS Fixed-Rate BWX iShares Lehman International Treasury PCY
PowerShares Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt About XTF Global Asset
Management XTF Global Asset Management, LLC, is dedicated to
bringing the benefits and efficiencies of exchange traded funds
(ETFs) to investors through its broad range of investment products
and services. The company, based on Wall Street and founded in
2000, builds model-driven ETF portfolios designed to consistently
produce strong risk-adjusted returns that out perform their
benchmarks. Through its proprietary quantitative investment
discipline, its in-depth ETF research, and its ability to customize
its products for the needs of clients and partners, XTF has taken
on a proven leadership role as an ETF solutions provider. XTF
firmly believes that educating investors about the potential of
ETFs and providing access to low-cost ETF-based products will
ultimately help investors define and achieve their long-term
financial goals. To this end, the company provides an ETF Rating
Service that allows advisors and individual investors alike make
more educated decisions when choosing ETFs or portfolios of ETFs
for investment. More information can be found at
http://www.xtf.com/. An investor should consider the Fund's
investment objective, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before
investing. This and other information about the Funds is contained
in the fund's prospectus, which can be obtained by calling
1-866-XTF-ETFS (983-3837). Please read the prospectus carefully
before investing. The fund is distributed by Aquarius Fund
Distributors, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Not FDIC Insured * May Lose
Value * Not Bank Guaranteed 035-AFD-1/10/2008 Contact: David
Kaiyalethe/Kristina Ferrari Dukas Public Relations (212) 704-7385
DATASOURCE: XTF Global Asset Management CONTACT: David Kaiyalethe,
, or Kristina Ferrari, , both of Dukas Public Relations for XTF
Global Asset Management, +1-212-704-7385 Web site:
http://www.xtf.com/
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