Investment products

BATS Global Markets said it closed its acquisition of Chi-X Europe and now operates it as part of BATS Chi-X Europe.

Indexes have come a long way and can be effective tools for advisors, but you have to know how to use them

Three investment chiefs talk stocks, sectors and the economy.

Principal Funds has launched the Principal Global Multi-Strategy Fund, which will invest in alternative strategies through specialist sub-advisors to provide income, while combating inflation and market volatility.

NYSE Euronext, in partnership with Bloomberg New Energy Finance, is launching three "clean energy" stock indexes. The three indexes will be focused on performance of clean energy firms around the globe. The intent is to track public companies "most active in the world's historic shift to low-carbon energy."

Instinet said it is giving its institutional customers the ability to electronically cast votes on which brokers provide the best research on possible investments.

Strategic Insight parent Asset International has completed its anticipated acquisition of certain FRC products and says it will make "significant investments to strengthen, enhance and expand acquired FRC products."

The Tokyo Stock Exchange said trading in futures contracts has surged significantly since it launched a new trading platform for derivatives and extended trading hours.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange Group and the Osaka Securities Exchange said they plan to merge. The two exchange operators said their combination will “establish an unchallenged position” in domestic stocks and derivatives trading, as well as “enhance global competitiveness” of their platforms.

Direct Edge plans to launch an all-electronic platform for the trading of Brazilian equities. The exchange will be headquartered in Rio de Janeiro and launch, if all goes according to plan, by the end of 2012.

Jon B. Lovelace of The Capital Group died Wednesday at age 84. In 1951, Lovelace joined Capital Group, which his father, Jonathan Bell Lovelace, founded. His legacy was turning Capital Group into a pioneer in international and emerging market investing, a team approach to fund management and long-term investing.

NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse said they would shed overlapping European derivatives businesses and open up clearing services to derivatives rivals, in a bid to win European regulators’ approval of their $10.1 billion merger.

Corporate acquisitions using overpriced shares of stock rarely do much to cushion the decline the shares eventually suffer.

Stocks rose 2.19%, or 259.89 points, Friday on positive news out of Italy and Greece. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the week 1.42% higher.

Fidelity Investments has introduced two new emerging markets funds, the Fidelity Total Emerging Markets Fund and the Fidelity Emerging Markets Discovery Fund. The first fund invests in equities and bonds, the second in small- and mid-cap stocks.

NYSE Euronext said the volume of stock trading it handled in the United States dropped again in October, after peaking in August.

"Emerging markets are just a niche asset class” persistently remains as one of the five biggest myths about investing in emerging markets, said John Flint, chief executive officer of HSBC Global Asset Management.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 389.24 points to 11780.94 as investors grew concerned about the Euro zone. Stocks had the largest points and percentage drop in seven weeks.

A pan-African commodity and derivatives exchange said it will open in the middle of next year.

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney has three words for asset managers specializing in registered alternative investment products: Bring it on.