Mutual funds

The Russell Frontier Index offers broad coverage of African countries, which had been previously underrepresented.

Some parts of the fixed-income market are hard to track with a traditional ETF.

TD Ameritrade is lifting the trading commissions on 101 exchange-traded funds indefinitely. Investors must hold the ETFs for at least 30 days, however; otherwise they will be charged the standard $9.99 fee.

Vanguard Group removed AllianceBernstein as manager of the Vanguard U.S. Growth Fund, replacing it with Wellington Management and Delaware Investments. William Blair will continue to run one-third of the fund.

Another $3 billion leaves equity funds.

Standard & Poor’s has announced the finalists for its inaugural U.S. Mutual Fund Excellence Awards program.There are 29 funds, from a starting pool of 19,000 mutual funds. Seventeen fund families are represented across ten categories. Gold, silver and bronze award recipients in each category will be announced during a live video broadcast in November, from S&P’s offices, the company said.

There are 29 funds, from a starting pool of 19,000 mutual funds. Seventeen fund families are represented across ten categories. Gold, silver and bronze award recipients in each category will be announced during a live video broadcast in November, from S&P’s offices, the company said.

The fund giant has cut cost in 52 funds by lowering the qualifications for Admiral Shares.

New satellite section on homepage is called J.P. Morgan On Demand.

Eaton Vance Tuesday announced the launch of the Eaton Vance Option Absolute Return Strategy Fund, a fund that aims to deliver returns independent of the stock and bond markets and that is benchmarked against short-term cash instruments.

While exchange-traded funds have been one of the biggest-selling mutual fund categories, small, niche products are finding it hard to make a go of it. Of the 129 new exchange-traded funds introduced this year, 37, or 28%, are already closed.

With investors consistently and rather alarmingly rushing to the exits of equity mutual funds ever since the May 6 Flash Crash-shareholders have yanked $72.9 billion out of stock funds-asset managers are aggressively reducing fees at an unprecedented rate.

James Lam & Associates, enterprise risk management

Loomis Sayles has launched the Loomis Sayles Multi-Asset Real Return Fund, which will invest in a variety of asset classes around the world, including derivatives, commodities and REITs, to combat all types of inflationary environments, including: inflation, debtflation, stagflation and deflation.

Latin America and Asia are now an integral part of large funds’ bond and equity strategies.

A closer examination of why (and why not) annuities belong in a 401(k) plan.

UMB Financial Corp. has added a leg to its distribution structure for health savings accounts.

Boston firm brings its institutional strategies to high-net worth individuals.

Equity funds continue to lose assets, with redemptions totaling $1.9 billion in the week ended Sept. 22.

Long-term mutual funds took in an estimated $5.75 billion in the week ended Sept. 22, the Investment Company Institute said Wednesday.