Modifications des indices canadiens S&P/TSX

Modifications des indices canadiens S&P/TSX
Standard & Poor's annonce des modifications à des indices canadiens S&P/TSX

TORONTO, le 8 déc. /CNW/ - Les services indiciels canadiens de Standard &
Poor's apporteront les modifications suivantes à la composition de l'indice
plafonné aurifère S&P/TSX. Ces modifications font suite à des changements
relatifs à la méthodologie liée à l'indice, lesquels étendront la portée de
l'indice pour y inclure des titres non canadiens. L'indice plafonné aurifère
S&P/TSX sera également renommé indice aurifère mondial S&P/TSX. Les ajouts,
les retraits et le changement de nom de l'indice entreront en vigueur à
l'ouverture des marchés le lundi 18 décembre 2006.

<<
Indice plafonné aurifère S&P/TSX
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
AJOUTS
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Nom de l'émission Symbole Bourse
----------------- ------- ------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aquiline Resources Inc. AQI Bourse de Toronto
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Aurizon Mines Ltd. J ARZ Bourse de Toronto
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Cumberland Resources Ltd. CLG Bourse de Toronto
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Northgate Minerals Corporation NGX Bourse de Toronto
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Rio Narcea Gold Mines Ltd. RNG Bourse de Toronto
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Silvercorp Metals Inc. SVM Bourse de Toronto
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Royal Gold Inc. RGLD NASDAQ
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DRDgold Ltd - certificats américains
d'actions étrangères parrainés DROOY NASDAQ
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Randgold Resources Ltd - certificats
américains d'actions étrangères GOLD NASDAQ
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LIHIR Gold Ltd - certificats américains
d'actions étrangères parrainés LIHR NASDAQ
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Gold Fields Ltd - nouveaux certificats
américains d'actions étrangères
parrainés GFI Bourse de New York
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Harmony Gold Mng Ltd - certificats
américains d'actions étrangères
parrainés HMY Bourse de New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anglogold Ashanti Ltd - certificats
américains d'actions étrangères
parrainés AU Bourse de New York
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Newmont Mining Corp. NEM Bourse de New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

RETRAITS

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nom de l'émission Symbole Bourse
----------------- ------- ------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Southwestern Resources Corp. SWG Bourse de Toronto
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Tanzanian Royalty Exploration Corporation TNX Bourse de Toronto
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>

L'ajout de sociétés à un indice de S&P, ou leur retrait de celui-ci, ne
reflète d'aucune façon une opinion sur le bien-fondé des placements les
concernant.
Standard & Poor's, filiale de The McGraw-Hill Companies (MHP à la Bourse
de New York), est le principal fournisseur mondial indépendant de cotes de
crédit, d'indices, d'évaluation des risques, ainsi que de recherche et de
données portant sur les placements. Standard & Poor's, qui compte quelque 6
300 employés dans 21 pays, fait partie intégrante de l'infrastructure
financière mondiale. L'entreprise joue un rôle de premier plan depuis plus de
140 ans en offrant aux investisseurs les repères indépendants nécessaires pour
prendre en toute confiance des décisions en matière de placements et de
finance. Pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements, veuillez consulter le
site Web à l'adresse www.standardandpoors.com.
Fondée en 1888, la société The McGraw-Hill Companies est un chef de file
dans la prestation de services d'information mondiaux répondant aux besoins
des marchés des services financiers, de l'éducation et des renseignements
commerciaux du monde entier, par l'intermédiaire de marques de premier plan
telles que Standard & Poor's, BusinessWeek, McGraw-Hill Education et J.D.
Power and Associates. La société compte plus de 290 bureaux répartis dans 38
pays. En 2005, son chiffre d'affaires s'est établi à 6 milliards de dollars.
Pour obtenir de plus amples renseignements, veuillez consulter le site
www.mcgraw-hill.com.




Renseignements: Tony North, (416) 507-3200,
sp_index@standardandpoors.com; Dave Guarino, (212) 438-1471,
dave_guarino@standardandpoors.com

Canadian gold stock index replaced with a global one

Et devinez quoi...une belle proportion est dévolue aux hedgées...ça ne vaut pas le HUI àmha.

Submitted by cpowell on 09:05AM ET Wednesday, December 13, 2006. Section: Daily Dispatches
Gold Index Takes Global Turn,
but Canadian Names Dominate

New S&P Vehicle More Inviting
to Investors Seeking Commodity Play

By David Parkinson
The Globe and Mail, Toronto
Wednesday, December 13, 2006

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061213.RGOLD13/TPStor...

Farewell, S&P/TSX capped gold index. Hello, world.

After the end of trading this Friday, Standard & Poor's, the Toronto Stock Exchange's index provider, will no longer publish its separate subindex of the Canadian gold mining stocks contained in the S&P/TSX composite index. In its place Monday morning will be the S&P/TSX global gold index, which will exist outside of the composite and will be made up not just of Canadian gold stocks, but of all the world's biggest publicly traded gold miners.

"It didn't really make sense to make this distinction between a Canadian gold index and a global gold index," said Steve Rive, vice-president of Canadian index services for S&P in Toronto.

"Because the gold industry is really affected by the global price of gold, and property ownership isn't really affected by where a company is based, there really wasn't a Canadian flavour to the business. It's really a global business."

That said, the new index will still be dominated by Canadian-based names, though their mining assets are spread throughout the world. Of the 30 constituent stocks in the global gold index, 22 are headquartered in Canada, including the biggest stock in the group, Barrick Gold Corp., with a 19-per-cent index weighting. (Most of the foreign companies being added to the index are South African.)

But now, investors buying the index will have a bigger, more diverse and, consequently, probably less volatile collection of stocks making up the gold sector index. The index will more than double in total market capitalization, to $158-billion from $74-billion, and its number of stocks will increase by 12 from the 18 members on the current TSX gold index. And by removing Canada-specific issues from the equation, the index should serve as a better pure gold play for investors looking to tap into a portfolio of gold equities as a proxy for bullion.

Indeed, that's the key business argument for globalizing the index: to make it more inviting to investors seeking a commodity play, something that has become increasingly in demand during the bull run for commodities. Bullion is up almost 150 percent since early 2001, and the TSX gold index is up 175 per cent.

S&P decided to make the change after consultation with clients, who felt a global index would be make for a more attractive investing vehicle for commodity players.

"We think the idea of having exposure to global gold stocks, rather than just Canadian ones, offers more value for investors," said Geri James, head of products for iShares Canada, the division of Barclays Global Investors that runs the $915-million iUnits S&P/TSX Canadian gold index fund, an exchange-traded fund that mirrors the index. The fund will continue to mirror the index when it assumes its new global look starting Monday.

She said the idea of a global gold index has been floating around for "a couple of years," as Barclays and other users of the index became concerned about the shrinking of the index as a result of merger activity that had thinned the ranks of senior Canadian gold stocks. "We thought it might be useful to have more diversification," Ms. James said. She added that Barclays discussed the issue with S&P prior to S&P's decision last May.

"The feedback we got [from clients] was certainly part of [the decision]," Mr. Rive acknowledged.

S&P indicated it has hopes that the broader, global index will generate more money for its index lucrative business, which licenses its indexes to clients who use them as the basis for investment products.

"Once launched, the index will serve as a leading global benchmark for gold portfolios, and further pave the way for the development of index-linked investment vehicles," it said in May, when it unveiled plans for a global gold index.

Coincidentally, it was also in May that gold commodity prices peaked, as booming energy prices and geopolitical concerns sent bullion above $700 (U.S.) an ounce for the first time in 25 years. While gold and gold stocks have come off their highs, the weak outlook for the U.S. dollar promises to keep the commodity propped up for some time to come, and that bodes well for the new global index. BMO Nesbitt Burns projects 2007 average gold prices at $720 an ounce, while Goldman Sachs forecasts that gold will average $700 or more for each of the next three years.

The top 10 by weighting, after Dec. 15

Barrick Gold, 19.3%
Newmont Mining, 15.4%
Goldcorp, 15.2%
AngloGold Ashanti, 10.8%
Gold Fields, 6.6%
Harmony Gold Mining, 3.9%
Agnico-Eagle Mines, 3.8%
Kinross Gold, 3.3%
Yamana Gold, 2.8%
Lihir Gold, 2.3%