Investments

Standard & Poor's has launched the MILA 40 Index, tracking the largest and most liquid stocks trading on the Mercada Integredo Latino Americano (MILA) platform, the joint venture of the Chile, Columbia and Peru stock exchanges. Stocks in the index must have market caps above U.S. $100 million.

Exchange-traded fund assets rose 0.8% in July to $1.086 trillion, up from $1.077 trillion in June, the Investment Company Institute reports. Assets rose 32% from $821 billion a year ago, July 2010.

A lot of the banks actively unloading problem loans share a telling characteristic — ownership by big private equity groups or hedge funds.

Investors relieved by the relatively minimal impact of Hurricane-turned-Tropical Storm Irene pushed stocks higher Monday as the Dow Jones Industrial average stormed up 254.71 points to close at 11,539.25.

BlackRock has filed to create proprietary indexes for its iShares exchange-traded funds. The indexes will be "transparent to the public," the exemptive order says, indicating the indexes could be for actively managed ETFs.

It may be true that past performance doesn’t guarantee future results, but a long track record may play well with investors during these tumultuous times. And that’s exactly what some prominent blended funds bring to the table.

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Touchstone Investments has launched the Touchstone Merger Arbitrage Fund, which will seek to achieve positive returns over the long-term, regardless of market conditions, by investing in companies involved in publicly announced mergers or other corporate reorganizations.

While economists have predicted U.S. GDP growth of 3.1% over the next 12 months, Mellon Capital Management foresees growth of 2.0% -- primarily due to government policy stalemates and the lingering impact of the debt crisis in Europe.

The Dow Jones Industrial average rallied up another 135 points, or 1.2%, to close at 11,284.54 Friday, closing out a week that saw gold prices swoon and some semblance of investor confidence restored.

While economists have predicted U.S. GDP growth of 3.1% over the next 12 months, Mellon Capital Management foresees growth of 2.0%—primarily due to government policy stalemates and the lingering impact of the debt crisis in Europe.

Touchstone Investments has launched the Touchstone Merger Arbitrage Fund, which will seek to achieve positive returns over the long-term, regardless of market conditions, by investing in companies involved in publicly announced mergers or other corporate reorganizations.

Columbia Management has launched the Columbia Acorn Emerging Markets Fund and the Columbia Acorn European Fund, each of which will invest in companies with market caps of less than $5 billion.

The Dow Jones Industrial average lopped off 171 points to finish at 11,149.82 while the Nasdaq composite fell 48 points, or 2%, to close at 2,149.16.

S&P equity research analysts say iconic founder Steve Jobs' resignation from an active management role at Apple isn't dissuading them from recommending the company's shares, but investors may still want to at least check their portfolios to see just how many Apple shares they actually own.

Columbia Management has launched the Columbia Acorn Emerging Markets Fund and the Columbia Acorn European Fund, each of which will invest in companies with market caps of less than $5 billion.

U.S. investors may be overly worried about the fate of the euro, and overly confident in the U.S. dollar.

Two-thirds of donors are cutting back on their charitable giving due to economic worries, a survey by non-profit consulting firm Dunham+Company found. Another 10% plan to cut back entirely until the economy gets back on track.

Slightly more than $1 billion flowed back into mutual funds that invest in U.S. stocks long-term, in the week ended Aug. 17.

Investors pushed stocks higher in afternoon trading Wednesday, propelling the Dow Jones Industrial average up 144 points, or 1.3%, to close at 11.320.71. Gold, meanwhile, lost some of its luster, shedding 5.6% of its value to close at $1,757.30, its largest one-day decline in more than three years.