Dow Jones Indexes and the South Asian Federation of Exchanges (SAFE) launch the Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index and the Dow Jones SAFE Pakistan Index.
This is the first time indexes are created to measure the performance of blue-chip companies in five of the eight member states of SAFE. The five member states included in the Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index are: India, Bangladesh, Mauritius, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The Dow Jones SAFE Indexes are designed to underlie index-linked investment products such as funds, exchange-traded funds, structured products, futures and options. The Dow Jones SAFE Pakistan Index has been licensed to Arif Habib Investment Management Ltd., Pakistani asset management company, to serve as the basis of an index tracker fund.
The Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index measures the performance of the 50 largest Indian stocks and the 50 largest stocks trading in Bangladesh, Mauritius, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Thus, the index includes 3 Bangladeshi, 5 Mauritian, 39 Pakistani and 3 Sri Lankan stocks and was down -35.5% from its base date on 31 December 2005 as of 9 March 2009.
The Dow Jones SAFE Pakistan Index measures the performance of the Pakistani stocks in the Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index. As of 9 March 2009, the index contains 39 components. The Dow Jones SAFE Pakistan Index was, on 9 March 2009, down -46.36% from its base of 1000 on 31 December 2005 as of 9 March 2009.
The Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index is calculated in U.S. dollars. The index is weighted by float-adjusted market capitalization. The weighting of each country in the index is capped at 50%, each component is capped at 10% subsequently.
The Dow Jones SAFE Pakistan Index is calculated in Pakistan rupees. Its component weights reflect the relative float-adjusted market capitalization weights of Pakistani stocks in the Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index.
“South Asia is home to some of the most rapidly evolving financial markets worldwide. By further developing securities markets and aiming at their regional and international integration the South Asian Federation of Exchanges has been contributing significantly to these developments,” says Michael A. Petronella, president, Dow Jones Indexes.
“As a representative body of South Asian Exchanges, our effort had been to present the entire region as one investment destination and the launch of the Dow Jones SAFE 100 Index is an effort in the same direction,” says Aftab Ahmad Ch., managing director and CEO, Islamabad Stock Exchange & secretary general SAFE.
“The index showcases the region as one asset class and can thanks to its superior methodology be used as an underlying tool for investment products on national and international level alike.”
L.D.