SAN MATEO, Calif., Feb. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
Franklin Templeton Investments today announced the addition of four new passive ETFs to its Franklin LibertyShares® lineup—Franklin FTSE India ETF (FLIN), Franklin FTSE Russia ETF (FLRU), Franklin FTSE Asia ex Japan ETF (FLAX) and Franklin FTSE Switzerland ETF (FLSW)—expanding its country and regional passive ETF suite to now include 20 funds.
“Our suite of passive country- and region-specific ETFs has been well received in the marketplace, as clients look for low-cost vehicles that can be used to access different exposures for their portfolios or solutions capabilities,” said Patrick O’Connor, head of Global ETFs at Franklin Templeton Investments. “We think beta should be cheap, and these passive ETFs are priced close to—if not the—lowest in their category. These new ETFs further expand the options available to investors through Franklin LibertyShares, which now offers a total of 33 ETFs to U.S. investors, across active, smart beta and passive strategies.”
The new passive ETFs are listed on the NYSE Arca:
| Ticker | ETF Name | Expense Ratio % | |
| FLIN | Franklin FTSE India ETF | 0.19 | % |
| FLRU | Franklin FTSE Russia ETF | 0.19 | % |
| FLAX | Franklin FTSE Asia ex Japan ETF | 0.19 | % |
| FLSW | Franklin FTSE Switzerland ETF | 0.09 | % |
Dina Ting, vice president, head of Global Index Portfolio Management and senior portfolio manager, and Louis Hsu, vice president and portfolio manager, Global ETFs, manage the new ETFs as well as the firm’s full suite of passive ETFs, which includes both developed markets (Australia, Canada, Europe, Europe Hedged, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Japan Hedged, United Kingdom and South Korea) and emerging markets (Brazil, China, Mexico and Taiwan).
Like the existing passive ETFs, the new ETFs are market cap-weighted and benchmarked to country and regional indices from FTSE Russell, leveraging the global index provider’s capabilities and expertise across developed and emerging markets. FTSE Russell is one of the largest index providers in the marketplace globally, with approximately $15 trillion in assets currently benchmarked to its indexes.
Through its Franklin LibertyShares ETF platform, the firm currently offers an actively managed suite of equity and fixed income ETFs, a smart beta suite covering both U.S. and international equity markets, and a passive suite of country and region-specific ETFs. Franklin LibertyShares has over $1.4 billion in assets under management globally as of January 31, 2018. For more information, please visit https://www.libertyshares.com.
Visit Franklin LibertyShares’ Capital Markets Corner for insights on ETF investing.
Important Information about the Funds
All investments involve risks, including possible loss of principal. Special risks are associated with foreign investing, including currency fluctuations, economic instability and political developments. Investments in developing markets involve heightened risks related to the same factors, in addition to those associated with these markets’ smaller size, lesser liquidity and lack of established legal, political, business and social frameworks to support securities markets. Because the funds invest their assets primarily in companies in a specific country or region a fund may also experience greater volatility than a fund that is more broadly diversified geographically. The non-diversified funds may invest in a relatively small number of issuers and, as a result, be subject to a greater risk of loss with respect to their portfolio securities. Derivatives, including currency management strategies, involve costs and can create economic leverage in the portfolio which may result in significant volatility and cause a fund to participate in losses on an amount that exceeds the fund’s initial investment. A fund may not achieve the anticipated benefits, and may realize losses when a counterparty fails to perform as promised. These and other risk considerations are discussed in the funds’ prospectus.
ETFs trade like stocks, fluctuate in market value and may trade at prices above or below the ETF’s net asset value. Brokerage commissions and ETF expenses will reduce returns.
ETF shares may be bought or sold throughout the day at their market price, not their Net Asset Value (NAV), on the exchange on which they are listed. Shares of ETFs are tradable on secondary markets and may trade either at a premium or a discount to their NAV on the secondary market.
Investors should carefully consider a fund’s investment goals, risks, charges and expenses before investing. To obtain a summary prospectus and/or prospectus, which contains this and other information, talk to your financial advisor, call us at (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236 or visit libertyshares.com. Please carefully read a prospectus before you invest or send money.
All rights in the FTSE indices (the “Indices”) vest in FTSE International Limited (“FTSE”). “FTSE®” is a trade mark of the London Stock Exchange Group companies and is used by FTSE under license. The Franklin FTSE ETFs (the "ETFs") have been developed solely by Franklin Templeton. The Index is calculated by FTSE or its agent. FTSE and its licensors are not connected to and do not sponsor, advise, recommend, endorse or promote the ETFs and do not accept any liability whatsoever to any person arising out of (a) the use of, reliance on or any error in the Indices or (b) investment in or operation of the ETFs. FTSE makes no claim, prediction, warranty or representation either as to the results to be obtained from the ETFs or the suitability of the Index for the purpose to which it is being put by Franklin Templeton.
About Franklin Templeton Investments
The funds’ principal underwriter is Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN), a global investment management organization operating as Franklin Templeton Investments. Franklin Templeton Investments provides global and domestic investment management to retail, institutional and sovereign wealth clients in over 170 countries. Through specialized teams, the company has expertise across all asset classes – including equity, fixed income, alternative and custom solutions. The company’s more than 650 investment professionals are supported by its integrated, worldwide team of risk management professionals and global trading desk network. With offices in over 30 countries, the California-based company has 70 years of investment experience and over $753 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2017. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com.
Copyright © 2018. Franklin Templeton Investments. All rights reserved.
From: Franklin Templeton Investments
Corporate Communications: Pholida Barclay, (212) 632-3204, pholida.barclay@franklintempleton.com
Prosek Partners: Cary Ruterman, (857) 302-3712, cruterman@prosek.com
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