S&P Slates Two Real-Time Currency Indexes

The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are the first in what will be a series of real-time currency indices launched by Standard & Poor’s in 2008.

“China and India are both important markets in global trade, but currently lack a liquid and accessible currency futures market,” says David Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “The launch of these two new indices will provide investors with access to the currencies of two emerging economic superpowers, China and India, while also serving as a reliable and relative benchmark for currency performance. In the S&P Chinese Renminbi Index, this represents the first instance where U.S. investors will have access to a local Chinese asset.”

The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are designed to replicate the performance of the Chinese Renminbi and the Indian Rupee versus the U.S. Dollar respectively. The indices represent the performance of a rolling investment in three-month, non-deliverable, forward currency contracts.

The S&P Chinese Renminbi Index and the S&P Indian Rupee Index are rebalanced every three months on the valuation date of the previous three-month contract. The Indices have an excess return version which reflect changes in forwards prices, as well as a total return version which adds a risk-free rate to the excess return index.

For more information on the indices, please visit www.standardandpoors.com/indices .