Investments

State Street Global Advisors has launched two equity exchange-traded funds designed to track MSCI Global Equity Indices, with one focusing on emerging markets and the other widely covering both developed and developing countries.

After a strong start in February, domestic stock mutual funds saw cash outflows of $322 million in the most recent weekly statistics.

Larry Fink wants the asset management industry and government to take the lead in propping up investors’ morale in a flagging market.

Here’s an interactive slide show detailing the best investment ideas for this election year from seven financial advisors practicing throughout the country.

Investors have not yet fully recovered their faith in long-term U.S. mutual funds, but the cash outflow in January was not nearly as bad as the previous month.

This is the week that actively managed exchange-traded funds get their biggest booster shot since they first arrived, less than five years ago.

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

Institutional investors continued the pattern established late in 2011 of reducing allocations to equities, according to results of the State Street Investor Confidence Index for February 2012.

Mutual fund firms such as Vanguard and Fidelity Investments are finding themselves at the top of the Kasina Social Media Index.

NYSE Euronext said its annual report to the SEC that it incurred $85 million of legal, banking and other expenses in 2011 from its unsuccessful plan to merge with Deutsche Boerse.

On Feb. 14, Vanguard's 64,000 Facebook fans received virtual candy hearts with the messages:

Institutional investors continued the pattern established late in 2011 of reducing allocations to equities, according to results of the State Street Investor Confidence Index for February 2012.

American Beacon Advisors has added to its offerings two growth funds, one focused on small-caps and the other mid-caps, managed by Stephens Investment Management Group.

The chief economist of The Dreyfus Corporation said Wednesday that world growth will slow down again in 2012, based on International Monetary Fund calculation methods.

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

Advisors with clients who want to move money into real estate investments known as tenant-in-common offerings under section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code need to be wary.

This is the week that actively managed exchange-traded funds get their biggest booster shot since they first arrived, less than five years ago: Bill Gross and PIMCO get into the game.

Joshua Levine, a former head of the America’s institutional sales team at The Permal Group, has joined BlackRock to lead the firm’s public and corporate pension plan effort in the East Coast.

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

There’s a new authority watching over faculty and staff on campus at Wellesley College.