Strategic Opportunities: The Role of ETFs in European Portfolios

摘要

For the European institutional investor, exchange traded funds are no longer the obscure financial instruments they once were. Assets under management and volumes are on the rise worldwide as well as in Europe―a sure sign that ETFs are gaining ground as acceptable tools for institutional portfolios. Use by institutional investors of US-listed ETFs has risen dramatically over the past couple of years, increasing globally some 15 percent from June 2002 through June 2003, according to Debbie Fuhr, global ETF analyst at Morgan Stanley in London, For the same period, use of US ETFs by European institutions increased 20 percent. What makes these products increasingly popular? They're cheap, flexible, and easy to buy. They can be used in a vast array of strategies, including core equity holdings, sector and style plays, international exposure, and portfolio hedging. They are highly liquid, easily accessible, and trade on just about every exchange in the US, and on many exchanges in Europe and throughout the world.