News & Research

Closing Europe’s infrastructure gap may require up to EUR 12 trillion, according to some forecasts, and the region’s nations are stepping up to meet the challenge. STOXX has launched the STOXX Europe Infrastructure Builders index, which underlies the new iShares Europe Infrastructure Builders UCITS ETF from BlackRock, to capture the companies set to benefit from this structural trend.

Thematic and sector ETFs are increasingly being used side by side as investors seek more precise ways to express investment views. In this special report with ETF Stream, STOXX explores the key differences between the two approaches and their evolving role in portfolio construction.

STOXX has launched the STOXX Investable Market Indices (IMI), a comprehensive global equity framework designed to capture approximately 99% of the investable universe with consistency, transparency and scalability. Built for modern portfolio construction, STOXX IMI combine broad market coverage with a flexible, modular approach that supports both standard benchmarks and tailored institutional solutions. 

Assets invested in passive ETFs tracking equity indices from all providers rose 17.7% to EUR 14.2 trillion in the three months through June, boosted by share prices and inflows. Funds tracking a STOXX or DAX index increased assets by 12.9% over the period, with thematic and factor strategies recording inflows.

The STOXX Focus indices build portfolios based on constituents’ geographic revenue sources rather than their country of domicile, providing a more accurate representation of regional risk at a time of rising geopolitical tensions and global trade frictions. An IPE webinar with speakers from STOXX and iShares recently explored the rationale and performance of the strategies.

The STOXX Thematic Framework provides a lens through which investors can understand not only what a theme is, but also where it sits in its journey from innovation to adoption. That journey helps identify the investment opportunity and determine the appropriate method of stock selection.

Most ESG strategies focus on today’s leaders. The ISS STOXX ESG Climbers indices instead target companies improving their sustainability performance over time, offering exposure to the transition — not just the outcome.

The STOXX Global Space Satellites and Drones index targets a transformative and far-reaching theme, and underlies a new ETF from BlackRock’s iShares. The sector is expected to be impacted by the listing of Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), reportedly the largest IPO in history.

In this Q&A, the academic and practitioner discusses how the recently launched iSTOXX Ang Research Enhanced indices dynamically rotate between underlying factors to tilt toward signals that appear more attractive at any given time, and how other rules ensure efficient, benchmark-aware access to sources of return.

Changes are part of the quarterly regular review of the DAX 50 ESG, DAX 50 ESG+, DAX 30 ESG, DAX ESG Target, DAX ESG Screened, MDAX ESG+ and MDAX ESG Screened.

Dynamic risk mitigation, dynamic diversification and pre-defined protection are three strategies currently in demand when it comes to portfolio downside insurance. Tom Shuttlewood, Head of Strategy & Digital Indices, Product Development at STOXX, explains how each works and why they are increasingly being integrated into index-based investment solutions.

Capturing fast evolving technologies such as AI and quantum computing requires ever more precise tools. The STOXX Thematic indices address this by translating innovation trends into investable frameworks, supported by advanced data and classification insights from EconSight.