LONDON -Friday 1 March 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]
(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI), a leading provider of indexes, portfolio analytics, and services for global investors, announced today that it will increase the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes by increasing the inclusion factor from 5% to 20% in three steps. This decision follows an extensive global consultation with a large number of international institutional investors, including asset owners, asset managers, broker/dealers and other market participants worldwide. The proposal to increase the weight of China A shares garnered overwhelming support from investors.
“Stock Connect has proven to be a robust channel to access A shares. The successful implementation of the initial 5% inclusion of China A shares has been a positive experience for international institutional investors and has fostered their appetite to increase further their exposure to the mainland China equity market,” said Remy Briand, MSCI Managing Director and Chairman of the MSCI Index Policy Committee. “The strong commitment by the Chinese regulators to continue to improve market accessibility, evidenced by, among other things, the significant reduction in trading suspensions in recent months, is another critical factor that has won the support of international institutional investors.”
The feedback gathered during the consultation indicated that international institutional investors prefer to see the weight of the China A Large Cap shares increased in three steps rather than in two steps, as originally proposed, to alleviate potential execution pressure on the implementation dates. In addition, a significant proportion of investors also highlighted that China A Mid Cap shares should be included in the MSCI Indexes jointly with the weight increase in Large Cap shares to allow for a smoother implementation. Finally, the proposal to add ChiNext to the list of eligible stock exchange segments for the MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes received wide acceptance.
Consequently, MSCI will increase the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes according to the following schedule:
Step 1: MSCI will increase the index inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 5% to 10% and add ChiNext Large Cap shares with a 10% inclusion factor coinciding with the May 2019 Semi Annual Index Review.
Step 2: MSCI will increase the inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 10% to 15% coinciding with the August 2019 Quarterly Index Review.
Step 3: MSCI will increase the inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 15% to 20% and add China A Mid Cap shares, including eligible ChiNext shares, with a 20% inclusion factor to the MSCI Indexes coinciding with the November 2019 Semi-Annual Index Review.
On completion of this three-step implementation, there will be 253 Large and 168 Mid Cap China A shares, including 27 ChiNext shares, on a pro forma basis in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, representing a weight of 3.3% in the pro forma index.
As part of this consultation, international institutional investors also stressed that a future weight increase of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes beyond 20% would require Chinese authorities to address a number of remaining market accessibility questions. MSCI is in contact with the appropriate regulatory authorities to discuss the highlighted market accessibility constraints, including restrictions on access to hedging and derivatives instruments as well as concerns regarding the short settlement cycle of China A shares, the trading holidays of Stock Connect and the availability of an Omnibus trading mechanism.
MSCI welcomes the progress Chinese authorities have made thus far to improve the accessibility of the China A shares market and their plans to actively promote the further opening and development of that market. We encourage the rapid realization of that goal, including permitting the listing of index futures and other derivatives on onshore and offshore exchanges to help address international institutional investors’ growing needs for further risk management tools, as well as making further improvements in the settlement cycle, trading holidays and omnibus account structures. These developments would be welcomed by investors ahead of any future weight increases of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes.
MSCI will continue to monitor market developments to ensure that the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes remains reflective of the improvement of market accessibility standards.
About MSCI
For more than 45 years, MSCI’s research-based indexes and analytics have helped the world’s leading investors build and manage better portfolios. Clients rely on our offerings for deeper insights into the drivers of performance and risk in their portfolios, broad asset class coverage and innovative research.
Our line of products and services includes indexes, analytical models, data, real estate benchmarks and ESG research.
For more information, visit us at www.msci.com.
This document and all of the information contained in it, including without limitation all text, data, graphs, charts (collectively, the “Information”) is the property of MSCI Inc. or its subsidiaries (collectively, “MSCI”), or MSCI’s licensors, direct or indirect suppliers or any third party involved in making or compiling any Information (collectively, with MSCI, the “Information Providers”) and is provided for informational purposes only. The Information may not be modified, reverse-engineered, reproduced or redisseminated in whole or in part without prior written permission from MSCI.
The Information may not be used to create derivative works or to verify or correct other data or information. For example (but without limitation), the Information may not be used to create indexes, databases, risk models, analytics, software, or in connection with the issuing, offering, sponsoring, managing or marketing of any securities, portfolios, financial products or other investment vehicles utilizing or based on, linked to, tracking or otherwise derived from the Information or any other MSCI data, information, products or services.
The user of the Information assumes the entire risk of any use it may make or permit to be made of the Information. NONE OF THE INFORMATION PROVIDERS MAKES ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION (OR THE RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE USE THEREOF), AND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, EACH INFORMATION PROVIDER EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ORIGINALITY, ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, NON-INFRINGEMENT, COMPLETENESS, MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE) WITH RESPECT TO ANY OF THE INFORMATION.
Without limiting any of the foregoing and to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, in no event shall any Information Provider have any liability regarding any of the Information for any direct, indirect, special, punitive, consequential (including lost profits) or any other damages even if notified of the possibility of such damages. The foregoing shall not exclude or limit any liability that may not by applicable law be excluded or limited, including without limitation (as applicable), any liability for death or personal injury to the extent that such injury results from the negligence or willful default of itself, its servants, agents or sub-contractors.
Information containing any historical information, data or analysis should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of any future performance, analysis, forecast or prediction. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
The Information should not be relied on and is not a substitute for the skill, judgment and experience of the user, its management, employees, advisors and/or clients when making investment and other business decisions. All Information is impersonal and not tailored to the needs of any person, entity or group of persons.
None of the Information constitutes an offer to sell (or a solicitation of an offer to buy), any security, financial product or other investment vehicle or any trading strategy.
It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Exposure to an asset class or trading strategy or other category represented by an index is only available through third party investable instruments (if any) based on that index. MSCI does not issue, sponsor, endorse, market, offer, review or otherwise express any opinion regarding any fund, ETF, derivative or other security, investment, financial product or trading strategy that is based on, linked to or seeks to provide an investment return related to the performance of any MSCI index (collectively, “Index Linked Investments”). MSCI makes no assurance that any Index Linked Investments will accurately track index performance or provide positive investment returns. MSCI Inc. is not an investment adviser or fiduciary and MSCI makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in any Index Linked Investments.
Index returns do not represent the results of actual trading of investible assets/securities. MSCI maintains and calculates indexes, but does not manage actual assets. Index returns do not reflect payment of any sales charges or fees an investor may pay to purchase the securities underlying the index or Index Linked Investments. The imposition of these fees and charges would cause the performance of an Index Linked Investment to be different than the MSCI index performance.
The Information may contain back tested data. Back-tested performance is not actual performance, but is hypothetical. There are frequently material differences between back tested performance results and actual results subsequently achieved by any investment strategy.
Constituents of MSCI equity indexes are listed companies, which are included in or excluded from the indexes according to the application of the relevant index methodologies. Accordingly, constituents in MSCI equity indexes may include MSCI Inc., clients of MSCI or suppliers to MSCI. Inclusion of a security within an MSCI index is not a recommendation by MSCI to buy, sell, or hold such security, nor is it considered to be investment advice.
Data and information produced by various affiliates of MSCI Inc., including MSCI ESG Research LLC and Barra LLC, may be used in calculating certain MSCI indexes. More information can be found in the relevant index methodologies on www.msci.com.
MSCI receives compensation in connection with licensing its indexes to third parties. MSCI Inc.’s revenue includes fees based on assets in Index Linked Investments. Information can be found in MSCI Inc.’s company filings on the Investor Relations section of www.msci.com.
MSCI ESG Research LLC is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and a subsidiary of MSCI Inc. Except with respect to any applicable products or services from MSCI ESG Research, neither MSCI nor any of its products or services recommends, endorses, approves or otherwise expresses any opinion regarding any issuer, securities, financial products or instruments or trading strategies and MSCI’s products or services are not intended to constitute investment advice or a recommendation to make (or refrain from making) any kind of investment decision and may not be relied on as such. Issuers mentioned or included in any MSCI ESG Research materials may include MSCI Inc., clients of MSCI or suppliers to MSCI, and may also purchase research or other products or services from MSCI ESG Research. MSCI ESG Research materials, including materials utilized in any MSCI ESG Indexes or other products, have not been submitted to, nor received approval from, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission or any other regulatory body.
Any use of or access to products, services or information of MSCI requires a license from MSCI. MSCI, Barra, RiskMetrics, IPD, and other MSCI brands and product names are the trademarks, service marks, or registered trademarks of MSCI or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions. The Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) was developed by and is the exclusive property of MSCI and Standard & Poor’s. “Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)” is a service mark of MSCI and Standard & Poor’s.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190228006090/en/
Contacts
Media Inquiries
New York
Samuel Wang + 1 212 804 5244 samuel.wang@msci.com
Melanie Blanco + 1 212 981 1049 melanie.blanco@msci.com
London
Laura Hudson + 44 207 336 9653 laura.hudson@msci.com
Calum MacDougal, MHP + 44 203 128 8745 msci@mhpc.com
Hong Kong
James Jarman, FTI Consulting + 852 (3768) 4545 ftimsci@fticonsulting.com
MSCI Global Client Service
Americas
+ 1 888 588 4567 (toll free)
+ 1 212 804 3901
Asia Pacific
+ 852 2844 9333
EMEA
+ 44 20 7618 2222
Permalink : https://www.aetoswire.com/news/msci-will-increase-the-weight-of-china-a-shares-in-msci-indexes/en
(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI), a leading provider of indexes, portfolio analytics, and services for global investors, announced today that it will increase the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes by increasing the inclusion factor from 5% to 20% in three steps. This decision follows an extensive global consultation with a large number of international institutional investors, including asset owners, asset managers, broker/dealers and other market participants worldwide. The proposal to increase the weight of China A shares garnered overwhelming support from investors.
“Stock Connect has proven to be a robust channel to access A shares. The successful implementation of the initial 5% inclusion of China A shares has been a positive experience for international institutional investors and has fostered their appetite to increase further their exposure to the mainland China equity market,” said Remy Briand, MSCI Managing Director and Chairman of the MSCI Index Policy Committee. “The strong commitment by the Chinese regulators to continue to improve market accessibility, evidenced by, among other things, the significant reduction in trading suspensions in recent months, is another critical factor that has won the support of international institutional investors.”
The feedback gathered during the consultation indicated that international institutional investors prefer to see the weight of the China A Large Cap shares increased in three steps rather than in two steps, as originally proposed, to alleviate potential execution pressure on the implementation dates. In addition, a significant proportion of investors also highlighted that China A Mid Cap shares should be included in the MSCI Indexes jointly with the weight increase in Large Cap shares to allow for a smoother implementation. Finally, the proposal to add ChiNext to the list of eligible stock exchange segments for the MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes received wide acceptance.
Consequently, MSCI will increase the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes according to the following schedule:
Step 1: MSCI will increase the index inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 5% to 10% and add ChiNext Large Cap shares with a 10% inclusion factor coinciding with the May 2019 Semi Annual Index Review.
Step 2: MSCI will increase the inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 10% to 15% coinciding with the August 2019 Quarterly Index Review.
Step 3: MSCI will increase the inclusion factor of all China A Large Cap shares in the MSCI Indexes from 15% to 20% and add China A Mid Cap shares, including eligible ChiNext shares, with a 20% inclusion factor to the MSCI Indexes coinciding with the November 2019 Semi-Annual Index Review.
On completion of this three-step implementation, there will be 253 Large and 168 Mid Cap China A shares, including 27 ChiNext shares, on a pro forma basis in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, representing a weight of 3.3% in the pro forma index.
As part of this consultation, international institutional investors also stressed that a future weight increase of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes beyond 20% would require Chinese authorities to address a number of remaining market accessibility questions. MSCI is in contact with the appropriate regulatory authorities to discuss the highlighted market accessibility constraints, including restrictions on access to hedging and derivatives instruments as well as concerns regarding the short settlement cycle of China A shares, the trading holidays of Stock Connect and the availability of an Omnibus trading mechanism.
MSCI welcomes the progress Chinese authorities have made thus far to improve the accessibility of the China A shares market and their plans to actively promote the further opening and development of that market. We encourage the rapid realization of that goal, including permitting the listing of index futures and other derivatives on onshore and offshore exchanges to help address international institutional investors’ growing needs for further risk management tools, as well as making further improvements in the settlement cycle, trading holidays and omnibus account structures. These developments would be welcomed by investors ahead of any future weight increases of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes.
MSCI will continue to monitor market developments to ensure that the weight of China A shares in the MSCI Indexes remains reflective of the improvement of market accessibility standards.
About MSCI
For more than 45 years, MSCI’s research-based indexes and analytics have helped the world’s leading investors build and manage better portfolios. Clients rely on our offerings for deeper insights into the drivers of performance and risk in their portfolios, broad asset class coverage and innovative research.
Our line of products and services includes indexes, analytical models, data, real estate benchmarks and ESG research.
For more information, visit us at www.msci.com.
This document and all of the information contained in it, including without limitation all text, data, graphs, charts (collectively, the “Information”) is the property of MSCI Inc. or its subsidiaries (collectively, “MSCI”), or MSCI’s licensors, direct or indirect suppliers or any third party involved in making or compiling any Information (collectively, with MSCI, the “Information Providers”) and is provided for informational purposes only. The Information may not be modified, reverse-engineered, reproduced or redisseminated in whole or in part without prior written permission from MSCI.
The Information may not be used to create derivative works or to verify or correct other data or information. For example (but without limitation), the Information may not be used to create indexes, databases, risk models, analytics, software, or in connection with the issuing, offering, sponsoring, managing or marketing of any securities, portfolios, financial products or other investment vehicles utilizing or based on, linked to, tracking or otherwise derived from the Information or any other MSCI data, information, products or services.
The user of the Information assumes the entire risk of any use it may make or permit to be made of the Information. NONE OF THE INFORMATION PROVIDERS MAKES ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION (OR THE RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE USE THEREOF), AND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, EACH INFORMATION PROVIDER EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ORIGINALITY, ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, NON-INFRINGEMENT, COMPLETENESS, MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE) WITH RESPECT TO ANY OF THE INFORMATION.
Without limiting any of the foregoing and to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, in no event shall any Information Provider have any liability regarding any of the Information for any direct, indirect, special, punitive, consequential (including lost profits) or any other damages even if notified of the possibility of such damages. The foregoing shall not exclude or limit any liability that may not by applicable law be excluded or limited, including without limitation (as applicable), any liability for death or personal injury to the extent that such injury results from the negligence or willful default of itself, its servants, agents or sub-contractors.
Information containing any historical information, data or analysis should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of any future performance, analysis, forecast or prediction. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
The Information should not be relied on and is not a substitute for the skill, judgment and experience of the user, its management, employees, advisors and/or clients when making investment and other business decisions. All Information is impersonal and not tailored to the needs of any person, entity or group of persons.
None of the Information constitutes an offer to sell (or a solicitation of an offer to buy), any security, financial product or other investment vehicle or any trading strategy.
It is not possible to invest directly in an index. Exposure to an asset class or trading strategy or other category represented by an index is only available through third party investable instruments (if any) based on that index. MSCI does not issue, sponsor, endorse, market, offer, review or otherwise express any opinion regarding any fund, ETF, derivative or other security, investment, financial product or trading strategy that is based on, linked to or seeks to provide an investment return related to the performance of any MSCI index (collectively, “Index Linked Investments”). MSCI makes no assurance that any Index Linked Investments will accurately track index performance or provide positive investment returns. MSCI Inc. is not an investment adviser or fiduciary and MSCI makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in any Index Linked Investments.
Index returns do not represent the results of actual trading of investible assets/securities. MSCI maintains and calculates indexes, but does not manage actual assets. Index returns do not reflect payment of any sales charges or fees an investor may pay to purchase the securities underlying the index or Index Linked Investments. The imposition of these fees and charges would cause the performance of an Index Linked Investment to be different than the MSCI index performance.
The Information may contain back tested data. Back-tested performance is not actual performance, but is hypothetical. There are frequently material differences between back tested performance results and actual results subsequently achieved by any investment strategy.
Constituents of MSCI equity indexes are listed companies, which are included in or excluded from the indexes according to the application of the relevant index methodologies. Accordingly, constituents in MSCI equity indexes may include MSCI Inc., clients of MSCI or suppliers to MSCI. Inclusion of a security within an MSCI index is not a recommendation by MSCI to buy, sell, or hold such security, nor is it considered to be investment advice.
Data and information produced by various affiliates of MSCI Inc., including MSCI ESG Research LLC and Barra LLC, may be used in calculating certain MSCI indexes. More information can be found in the relevant index methodologies on www.msci.com.
MSCI receives compensation in connection with licensing its indexes to third parties. MSCI Inc.’s revenue includes fees based on assets in Index Linked Investments. Information can be found in MSCI Inc.’s company filings on the Investor Relations section of www.msci.com.
MSCI ESG Research LLC is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and a subsidiary of MSCI Inc. Except with respect to any applicable products or services from MSCI ESG Research, neither MSCI nor any of its products or services recommends, endorses, approves or otherwise expresses any opinion regarding any issuer, securities, financial products or instruments or trading strategies and MSCI’s products or services are not intended to constitute investment advice or a recommendation to make (or refrain from making) any kind of investment decision and may not be relied on as such. Issuers mentioned or included in any MSCI ESG Research materials may include MSCI Inc., clients of MSCI or suppliers to MSCI, and may also purchase research or other products or services from MSCI ESG Research. MSCI ESG Research materials, including materials utilized in any MSCI ESG Indexes or other products, have not been submitted to, nor received approval from, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission or any other regulatory body.
Any use of or access to products, services or information of MSCI requires a license from MSCI. MSCI, Barra, RiskMetrics, IPD, and other MSCI brands and product names are the trademarks, service marks, or registered trademarks of MSCI or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions. The Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) was developed by and is the exclusive property of MSCI and Standard & Poor’s. “Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)” is a service mark of MSCI and Standard & Poor’s.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190228006090/en/
Contacts
Media Inquiries
New York
Samuel Wang + 1 212 804 5244 samuel.wang@msci.com
Melanie Blanco + 1 212 981 1049 melanie.blanco@msci.com
London
Laura Hudson + 44 207 336 9653 laura.hudson@msci.com
Calum MacDougal, MHP + 44 203 128 8745 msci@mhpc.com
Hong Kong
James Jarman, FTI Consulting + 852 (3768) 4545 ftimsci@fticonsulting.com
MSCI Global Client Service
Americas
+ 1 888 588 4567 (toll free)
+ 1 212 804 3901
Asia Pacific
+ 852 2844 9333
EMEA
+ 44 20 7618 2222
Permalink : https://www.aetoswire.com/news/msci-will-increase-the-weight-of-china-a-shares-in-msci-indexes/en