Alternative investments

Van Eck Global is stirring up another exchange-traded fund in the form of the Market Vectors Global Chemicals ET, which will bet on U.S. and non-U.S. chemical concerns.

On March 1, Bill Gross, co-founder of the Pacific Investment Management Company, officially crossed the line and fired his opening salvo in the exchange-traded fund business.

WisdomTree Investments, Inc. is visiting the NASDAQ MarketSite in Times Square on Thursday with Western Asset Management Company, a subsidiary of Legg Mason, to celebrate the launch of the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Corporate Bond Fund.

La Jolla, Calif.-based Altegris is looking to beef up its managed futures mutual fund, dubbed the Altegris Managed Futures Strategy Fund, a fund of funds, by adding two more managers to its stable.

San Francisco, Calif-based Forward Management, LLC today unveiled its latest offering, the Forward Managed Futures Strategy Fund, a systematic, trend-following vehicle that will bet long and short exposure on liquid futures contracts in commodities, equities, bonds and currencies.

La Jolla, Calif.-based Altegris, an alternative mutual fund shop, has hired Amy Bennett as its new director, sales strategy and channel marketing, reporting to Andrea Trachtenberg, chief marketing officer.

Thanks to stagnant interest rates and lingering worries over the Eurozone and other developed markets, the exchange traded fund market in February grew 3.9%, or more than $44 billion assets, over the previous month, according to a snapshot report released by State Street Global Advisors.

J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services has hired Stephanie Miller as Global Head of the Alternative Investment Services business.

It's official: BlackRock, Inc. today says it has completed its acquisition of the Toronto-based Claymore Investments, Inc.

361 Capital, a provider of alternative investment mutual funds, separate accounts, and limited partnerships to institutions, financial intermediaries, and high-net-worth investors, has entered into a strategic partnership with Lighthouse Partners, a fund-of-hedge-funds and managed account investment adviser.

The coming year is shaping up to be a fresh start for alternative mutual fund shop Pyxis Capital.

Jackson National Life Insurance Company, a purveyor of variable annuities, is looking to offer its advisors and their retail clients access to alternative investments.

A new investment management shop has opened in Palm Beach, Fla., dubbed Crest Investment Partners LLC.

Nasdaq OMX and risk analytics developer Axioma have launched a family of indexes that will give investors exposure to commodity spot prices, through the use of stocks.

A co-founder of BlackRock said Friday that money market mutual funds would survive, if their asset values would allowed to float from their a stable $1 net asset value per share.

Wells Fargo Funds Management, LLC, the investment advisor to Wells Fargo Advantage Funds, has rolled out a fund that will invest in a wide range of alternative investments.

The much-awaited opening of trading in Pacific Investment Management Co.’s Total Return ETF arrived this morning. By noon, 345,800 shares had been traded. Missing from the ringing of the bell at the New York Stock Exchange: the fund’s manager, Bill Gross.

Goldman Sachs Asset Management yesterday unveiled two funds today: a managed futures fund and a short duration income fund. These launches follow the launch of a rising dividend growth fund on Monday.

Alternative mutual fund shop Direxion has hired Greg Blue to serve as senior regional sales director, focusing on the Florida market.

Hungry for healthier returns, more mutual funds are investing in commodities, commodity futures, swaps and options.