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Never mind the recession, 2009 has seen a record set for total financings on the Toronto Stock Exchange. By the end of October $49.7 billion had been raised, eclipsing the previous record of $47.6 billion was set in 2007.

“Achieving record yearly financing, with two months yet to go in 2009, demonstrates both positive investor sentiment as well as issuer optimism that global economic indicators are improving,” said Tom Kloet, TMX Group CEO. “I think this dramatic surge in financing activity underscores the fact that TSX offers a very robust marketplace that helps our listed companies fuel their growth.”

The TMX Group, the parent of the Toronto Stock Exchange and the TSX Venture Exchange, has been aggressively marketing itself abroad, sending delegations to China, Israel and Australia, as well as New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix and Minneapolis.

As of October 31, 2009, U.S.-based issuers had raised $1.6 billion on TMX exchanges, marking a 68% increase over the same period in 2008.

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Claymore rolls out bond ETF

Claymore Investments has launched the Claymore Advantaged Canadian Bond ETF, which seeks to provide a low cost, tax-efficient exposure to a diversified Canadian bond portfolio.

The fund will track the DEX DLUX Capped Bond Index, which is designed to track Canadian investment grade Government and corporate bonds, with target exposure allocations of 60% and 40%, respectively.

“The fund is structured to provide tax-efficient income, making it an optimal investment for non-registered or taxable accounts and we are excited to be partnering with DEX, the leader in Canadian fixed income indexes, to bring this product to the market” said Som Seif, president and CEO of Claymore.

The ETF trades on the TSXunder the ticker symbol CAB.

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AlphaPro converts Gartman fund

Horizons AlphaPro has announced the restructuring of the Horizons AlphaPro Gartman Fund as an open-end exchange traded fund. The ETF is based on the strategies of The Gartman Letter, founded by renowned financial author Dennis Gartman.

The fund has been renamed “Horizons AlphaPro Gartman ETF” and the class E units have begun trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol HAG. Class A units of the original fund have been exchanged for ETF units on a one-to-one basis, while class F units were exchanged at a ratio of 1.0318:1.

At the same time, Horizons AlphaPro has changed the name of Horizons AlphaPro Inflation/Deflation Protection Fund to Horizons AlphaPro Income Plus Fund. The terms of the offering and the preliminary prospectus dated September 30, 2009 remain unchanged.

(11/19/09)