The LATS index consists of a portfolio of sovereign and corporate debt securities issued by Latin American issuers and denominated in US dollar, euro and local currencies of the issuers.
As of April 30, the index included 453 constituents, had an average yield-to-worst of 7.27% with top country allocations: Brazil 36.52%, Mexico 29.03%, Colombia 12.19%, Venezuela 6.50% and Argentina 4.17%.
Van Eck Global principal Jan van Eck said that governments have limited their reliance on borrowing abroad, infrastructure projects are proliferating throughout the region, and better transparency has led to improved sovereign credit ratings.
"These factors, coupled with the relatively high yields currently offered by Latin American bonds, have served to increase foreign investment demand for the region’s sovereign and corporate debt," Van Eck said.
The fund will join Van Eck’s newly established family of international debt ETFs.
Van Eck director of marketing Ed Lopez said that the new fund, complements the Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC), allowing investors the opportunity to diversify their fixed income portfolio outside of the US.
