BMO Financial Group Monday unveiled another significant expansion into the ETF market with the launch of nine new funds, bringing its product line to a total of 22.

“We’re very excited about this expansion to our line-up, which gives investors greater access to more specific segments of the market,” says Rajiv Silgardo, CEO and co-CIO of Jones Heward Investment Counsel Inc.

“We now have an even broader suite of products to ensure our clients have a choice of investment tools for proper diversification, liquidity, risk control and cost effectiveness.”

The new BMO ETFs compliment BMO’s current line-up and include three fixed income funds, as well as country- and industry-specific funds that provide exposure to areas such as China, India, utilities, junior gold companies and global infrastructure.

“We believe there is a need for investors to have access to certain growth areas such as China and India as well as to the technology space through the BMO Nasdaq 100 Equity Hedged to CAD Index ETF. We also believe there is a need to provide this without the risk of currency fluctuations,” says Silgardo.

“Additionally, we see great opportunity for investors in the junior gold space given historically high gold prices, as well as in the more defensive utilities sector.”

The following new BMO ETFs began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange Monday:

• BMO Mid Corporate Bond Index ETF (ZCM)
• BMO Long Corporate Bond Index ETF (ZLC)
• BMO Aggregate Bond Index ETF (ZAG)
• BMO Global Infrastructure Index ETF (ZGI)
• BMO China Equity Hedged to CAD ETF (ZCH)
• BMO India Equity Hedged to CAD ETF (ZID)
• BMO Equal Weight Utilities Index ETF (ZUT)
• BMO Nasdaq 100 Equity Hedged to CAD Index ETF (ZQQ)
• BMO Junior Gold Index ETF (ZJG)

BMO ETFs are managed and administered by Jones Heward Investment Counsel Inc., a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Bank of Montreal.

IE