Developed Markets Technical Leaders [ PIZ ] Update:
This ETF gives investors exposure to the 100 “high relative strength” issues from Non-US developed economies. Traditional “Developed Market” ETFs are weighted based upon market cap or the size of the economy, while the DWA portfolio is guided by trends in relative strength instead. The ETF is re-balanced quarterly as the relative strength screen is re-applied to potential additions and deletions. The ETF remains 100% invested at all times. (Launched December 2007) ( more info )
The PIZ continues to overweight the United Kingdom, but the weighting decreased slightly to 24.99%. Singapore, Germany, and Australia all also have double digit weightings in the PIZ. Canada’s weighting decreased the most during the recent reconstitution, decreasing from 7.69% to 5.29%, and interestingly the weighting in Canada has been more than cut in half since the third quarter of 2012. The biggest beneficiary of weighting was Germany, which increased more than 1% while France, Singapore, Switzerland, and Australia all increased their weighting in the Developed Market Technical Leaders.
As we mentioned, the Technical Leaders Indexing methodology can produce country weightings that re very different to the more traditional, cap weighted indices. With that said, when compared to the MSCI EAFE Index there are notable difference with the PIZ, perhaps the most notable of all the differences being the exposure to Japan. Japan accounts for nearly 20% of the MSCI EAFE Index; however, accounts for only 3.75% of the PIZ. On the other hand, Singapore is less than 2% of the ESCI EAFE Index and 11.5% of the PIZ to take the prize as the most overweighted country in the PIZ.