International ETFs Assets Grow

Facing a weakening dollar, U.S. investors are increasingly using exchange traded-funds to access overseas markets, according to Dow Jones.    International equity ETFs gained $25 billion in the first half of 2007, compared to $13 billion for domestic stock funds. Compared to 2006, that is a 61% increase, from $80.8 billion to $129.8 billion for the period, according to State Street Global Advisors.   Senior Managing Director James Ross attributed the increased popularity to a weak dollar and strong international market performance.    The State Street SPDR Dow Jones Wilshire International Real Estate Fund has attracted $939 in assets between January and June. The Dow Jones Euro STOXX 50 Fund has won $191 million during the same time period. The SPDR Russell/Nomura Small Cap Japan Fund enjoyed $159 in inflows for State Street year-to-date.   The SPDR S&P BRIC 40, which invests in the biggest public companies in emerging markets including Brazil, Russia, India and China, has raised $17 million between its June 22 launch and the end of that month.   Next on the agenda for State Street are international and global bond ETFs, especially those related to government debt and international treasury-inflation-protected securities, said Ross.   The staff of Money Management Executive ("MME") has prepared these capsule summaries based on reports published by the news sources to which they are attributed. Those news sources are not associated with MME, and have not prepared, sponsored, endorsed, or approved these summaries.