iShares plans to extend inflation-linked bond ETF range

Expected increase in investor demand for inflation-linked bond products - as concerns over inflationary pressures continues.

iShares, the world's leading provider of ETFs, plans to extend its inflation-linked bond ETF range, at a time when rising inflation pressures continues to remain top of the agenda for the global economy. The existing iShares inflation-linked ETFs listed on the London Stock Exchange include:

iShares Euro Inflation Linked Bond
iShares £ Index-Linked Gilts
iShares $ TIPS

Commenting on the use of inflation linked bond products, Alex Claringbull, senior fixed income portfolio manager for iShares, commented: "Most investors have a desire to preserve the real value of their accumulated wealth, especially as they approach the time when that wealth is required to fund current liabilities. In this context, inflation linked bonds are the only generic asset class that offers investors a direct hedge against inflation: investors earn, with certainty, a known real rate of return over the life of the bond. As a result, they are protecting the real value of their portfolios. The global inflation linked asset class has exploded over the last 25 years from virtually zero to about 1.5 trillion dollars in insurance today, mostly driven by investor demand which shows no sign of abating.

He concluded: "In this current climate and as the ETF market continues to grow at a phenomenal rate, we expect more investors to take advantage of our iShares' inflation linked bond ETF range particularly because of the ease, cost efficiency, transparency and diversification that these products offer."