CIBC Asset Management has launched a new fixed income ETF in Canada, providing actively managed exposure to a globally diversified portfolio of bonds. The CIBC Flexible Yield (CAD-Hedged) ETF (CFLX CN), which has listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, seeks a combination of high current income with the potential for long-term total return and aims to diversify its sources of yield by investing across multiple income-producing sectors. David Scandiffio, President and CEO, CIBC Asset Management, commented, “Investors are increasingly looking for active fixed income solutions to help them diversify their portfolios, and we are pleased to deliver an ETF solution to meet these needs.”

Tradeweb has reported strong net buying of ETFs across all asset classes on its European ETF marketplace in December, a month where total trading activity reached €30.7 billion. Adriano Pace, Head of Equities (Europe) at Tradeweb, commented, “December capped off a record-breaking year for European ETF trading on Tradeweb. Total notional volume executed in 2019 exceeded €360bn, up 43.5% from 2018 and 117.6% from 2017.”

Pacific Global Asset Management has unveiled its newest ETF strategy with the introduction of the Pacific Global Senior Loan ETF (FLRT US) on NYSE Arca. The actively managed fund seeks to generate high current income and preserve capital by investing in a portfolio of senior floating-rate loans. Anthony J. Dufault, MD of Pacific Global ETFs, said, “We believe that passive management is an inefficient strategy for floating-rate loan funds. Our experienced team of fixed income professionals seeks to add value by carefully selecting highly liquid, floating-rate loans of non-investment-grade companies.”

ALPS Advisors has unveiled the ALPS REIT Dividend Dogs ETF (RDOG US), a new strategy that provides exposure to high-yielding real estate investment trusts (REITs) across a variety of sectors. The fund is linked to the S-Network REIT Dividend Dogs Index which applies the well-known “Dogs of the Dow” investment theory to a universe of US-listed REITs.

By Matthew J. Bartolini, Head of SPDR Americas Research, State Street Global Advisors.

2019 was a very good year for almost everything. After a weak 2018 performance set a favorable starting point for both stocks and bonds, easing monetary policy actions helped produce the best annual returns in a decade for the standard 60/40 portfolio.

Krane Funds Advisors has launched a risk-managed fixed income ETF on NYSE Arca. The KFA Dynamic Fixed Income ETF (KDFI US) is linked to the FTSE US High-Yield/Treasury Rotation Index which tactically rotates between high yield credit and US Treasuries based on recent performance. The fund comes with an expense ratio of 0.45%.

By the ETF research team at Invesco.

AT1 contingent convertible bonds (“AT1s”) are securities issued by financial institutions that generally carry higher yields than traditional fixed income securities.

By Matthew J. Bartolini, Head of SPDR Americas Research, State Street Global Advisors. Although the traditional allocation to bonds in a moderate portfolio is 40%, fixed income ETFs represent just 20% of the overall US-listed ETF industry. Despite the smaller share, fixed income ETF assets under management have grown at a faster pace than equity ETFs, 78% versus 68% over the past three years. That growth will likely accelerate due to four factors: Cost, Choice, Client Need and Comfort.

EMEA-listed exchange-traded products providing exposure to European equities have recorded their largest monthly inflow thus far in 2019 with $4.4 billion added in October, according to BlackRock’s latest ETP Landscape report.

BlackRock appears set to be the first European ETF issuer to offer an ESG-screened bond fund targetting the USD corporate high-yield sector. The iShares USD High Yield Corp Bond ESG UCITS ETF is scheduled to make its debut next week on Euronext Amsterdam (DHYE NA) and London Stock Exchange (DHYA LN).