The Case for Timber
Timber is an essential resource and a genuine building block of human civilization. Its use in building construction and as a fuel source have made it integral to the functioning of our societies and world economy. On the flip side, our dependence on timber, combined with a lengthy regeneration time, means we are steadily using…
Energy Transition Progression in H1 2023
As we kick off the second half of 2023, we wanted to review some of the key developments from the first half of the year in the clean energy space and review the results of the S&P Global Clean Energy Index Series rebalance from April. Key Developments Government Spending in Clean Energy Space Continues in…
S&P GSCI Mid-Year Recap and Lithium Added to S&P GSCI Electric Vehicle Metals Index
Surging futures activity on CME Group’s lithium contract allowed for entry into the S&P GSCI Electric Vehicle (EV) Metals Index. This milestone reflects the changing nature of indices to maintain a representative share of the global commodities market. The largest and most recognizable benchmark for commodities, the S&P GSCI, reviews contract eligibility for existing and…
- Categories Commodities, Thematics
- Tags agriculture, Brian Luke, cattle, cobalt, cocoa, commodities, crude oil futures, energy, energy transition, iron ore, lean hogs, lithium, livestock, metals, natural gas, nickel, real assets, S&P GSCI, S&P GSCI Electric Vehicle Metals Index, sugar, sustainability, thematics
- Categories
- Commodities, Thematics
Measuring Home Prices
Compared to stock and bond markets, where prices update continuously throughout the trading day, the value of residential real estate is hard to observe; and while one buyer’s shares of stock XYZ are interchangeable with another’s, houses are not similarly fungible. Yet the value of an investor’s house is often a significant component of his…
First Islamic Indices Based on S&P/ASX Series Launched
S&P DJI is launching its first S&P/ASX Shariah Indices, which aim to track the performance of Shariah-compliant stocks in the S&P/ASX 200 and the S&P/ASX 300. This launch comes in the context of increased interest in the Muslim community for Shariah investing in Australia. The Muslim community in Australia accounts for 3.2% of the population,…
International Women’s Day Embraces Equity
March 8th marks International Women’s Day, an event that honors and celebrates women worldwide and that has been observed for over a century. This year’s theme is Embracing Equity, and it highlights the fundamental difference between equality and equity. While these words are often used interchangeably, the former means giving everyone equal opportunities, while the…
Digging Into Digital Assets
How does indexing work for cryptocurrency and digital assets? S&P DJI’s Sharon Liebowitz discusses how indices are bringing transparency to digital assets, key components of index design, and potential use cases for index-based crypto strategies.
Why Indexing Can Be Applied to Thematics
Index funds, which hardly existed 50 years ago, now play a prominent role in global financial markets. But passive investing does not dominate in every market segment. Recently, we have seen exponential growth in so-called “thematic” investing, with a proliferation of themes in areas like cybersecurity, robotics and electric vehicles. This more granular space is…
Global Islamic Indices Declined Over 20% YTD, Underperforming Conventional Benchmarks in 2022
Global equities partially recovered from the losses accumulated throughout the year by increasing 9.9% during Q4, as measured by the S&P Global BMI, ending 2022 with a loss of 18.2%. Meanwhile, Shariah-compliant benchmarks, including the S&P Global BMI Shariah and Dow Jones Islamic Market (DJIM) World Index, also increased during the quarter, but they underperformed…
- Categories Equities, Thematics
- Tags Dow Jones Islamic Market (DJIM) World Index, equities, GCC indices, global equities, islamic benchmarks, Islamic equities, Islamic indices, MENA, MENA Equities, Pan Arab, S&P Global BMI, S&P Global BMI Shariah, S&P Pan Arab Composite, shariah, shariah index performance, thematics
Measuring Megatrends with Indices
How do the S&P Kensho New Economies track long-term transformational trends? S&P DJI’s Anu Ganti and State Street Global Advisors’ Dan Braz take a closer look at how machine learning and a unique methodology may be construed as a fusion of active/passive in a rules-based framework.
- Categories Thematics
- Tags 21st Century sectors, Active vs. Passive, Anu Ganti, Dan Braz, fourth industrial revolution, indexing, long-term trends, S&P DJI, S&P Dow Jones Indices, S&P Kensho, S&P Kensho New Economies, S&P Kensho New Economy Indices, SSgA, State Street Global Advisors, transformational trends
- Categories
- Thematics
