Products June 25, 2007

Sudan-Free ETF Launches

June 25, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Lisle, Illinois-based Claymore Securities has launched the Claymore/KLD Sudan Free Large-Cap Core ETF (ticker: KSF) on the American Stock Exchange.
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According to a press release, the Claymore/KLD Sudan Free Large-Cap Core ETF tracks the KLD Large Cap Sudan Free Social Index, the first socially responsible index tied to the issue of Sudan divestment.  

Claymore/KLD Sudan Free Large-Cap Core ETF seeks investment results that correspond generally to the performance, before the Fund’s fees and expenses, of the KLD Large Cap Sudan Free Social Index. The index is comprised of a subset of stocks in the Russell 1000 Index with market capitalizations generally greater than $1 billion and that meet KLD Research & Analytics’ screens for environmental, social, and governance factors and involvement in Sudan.

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Business involvement in Sudan for which the KLD Large Cap Sudan Free Social Index screens includes:

  • Owns or controls property or assets in Sudan
  • Has employees or facilities in Sudan
  • Provides goods or services to companies domiciled in Sudan
  • Obtains goods or services from Sudan
  • Has distribution agreements with companies domiciled in Sudan
  • Issues credits or loans to companies domiciled in Sudan
  • Purchases goods or commercial paper issued by the Government of Sudan

The Claymore/KLD Sudan Free Large-Cap Core ETF will normally invest at least 90% of its total assets in common stock and ADRs that comprise the index. The index is rebalanced annually in June in conjunction with the reconstitution schedule of the Russell 1000 Index.

Benefits June 22, 2007

Canadian Pension Coverage Virtually Flat in 2006

June 22, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.COM) - New data from Statistics Canada shows that the number of Canadian workers covered by a pension plan remained at 5.7 million as of January 1, 2006, virtually unchanged from 2005.
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A CBC news report said the annual survey found that the percentage of workers with pensions continues to edge down. Fewer than four in 10 (38.5%) workers were covered by a pension plan at the start of last year – down half a percent from the year prior.

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The data also showed that pension plans are much more common among public sector workers where 84% of the workforce are participants, according to the news report. In the private sector, 25.9% are covered by pension plans.

About 4.6 million of the 5.7 million who have pension plans at work have defined benefit plans, the data indicated. That number has risen by only 30,000 since 2000.

Meanwhile, the vast majority of the almost 900,000 who have defined contribution plans work in the private sector – up almost a percent from the year before.

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