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BetaPro Management has announced the launch of four new commodity-based exchange traded funds, aimed at tracking the long-term performance of the underlying resource.

These ETFs do not use leverage and do not rebalance at the end of the trading session, two strategies that have been criticized for skewing long-term performance.

“Due to advisor and investor interest, we have added commodity-based non-leveraged ETFs to our suite of investment solutions,” said Howard Atkinson, president of BetaPro Management Inc. “The roll methodology we have selected for each commodity has shown to track closer to spot prices than rolling to the nearby future.”

The new ETFs are:

• Horizons BetaPro COMEX Silver ETF, trading under the symbol “HUZ” • Horizons BetaPro COMEX Gold ETF, trading as “HUG” • Horizons BetaPro Winter-Term NYMEX Crude Oil ETF, trading as “HUC” • Horizons BetaPro Winter-Term NYMEX Natural Gas ETF, trading as “HUN”

Each HBP Single ETF is designed to provide investment results, before fees, expenses, distributions, brokerage commissions and other transaction costs, which endeavour to correspond to the performance of its specified underlying index.

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S&P adds new mining sub-index

Standard & Poor’s has announced the creation of a new market index that will provide investors with an investable index of global securities involved in the production or extraction of base metals.

The S&P/TSX Global Base Metals Index is a subset of the existing S&P/TSX Global Mining Index. In 2008, S&P introduced the Global Gold index, which reflected the global consolidation of the precious metal mining industry.

The new index includes companies engaged in the extraction of industrial metals, ranging from aluminum to zinc. Eligible securities for the S&P/TSX Global Base Metals Index are classified under two Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) sub industries: Diversified Metals and Mining and Aluminum.

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Mackenzie adjusts fund line-up

Mackenzie Financial has proposed fund mergers which would eliminate three funds from its offering lineup.

Assuming the plan is approved by unitholders, the following funds will be merged:

• Mackenzie Saxon Money Market into Mackenzie Sentinel Money Market; • Mackenzie Saxon Bond Fund into Mackenzie Sentinel Bond fund; and • Keystone Cundill International Value Class into Mackenzie Cundill International Class.

Special meetings of investors of the merging funds and of Mackenzie Cundill International Class will be held on September 21, 2009 at Mackenzie’s office in Toronto.

Mackenzie has also proposed to implement fixed rate administration fees for funds under its Saxon division.

These fees would be applied to all Investor Series and F-Series securities, as well as the Advisor Series of all Mackenzie Saxon Funds, with the exception of Mackenzie Saxon Balanced Fund. The proposal does not include the Mackenzie Saxon Bond Fund and Mackenzie Saxon Money Market Fund, or B-Series securities.

Special meetings will be held to allow investors to vote on the proposal on September 21, 2009.

(06/25/09)