New Latin America Infrastructure Index Launched by S&P Indices

NEW YORK, Sept. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Continuing to expand its offerings in Latin America, S&P Indices announced today the launch of the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index, a benchmark index designed to measure the largest and most liquid publicly-listed Latin American infrastructure companies that meet certain investability requirements. The launch of the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index follows the introduction of the S&P MILA 40 earlier in the month. Together, these Indices are providing investors in Latin America with a means of measuring the performance of leading companies in the region.

Using companies' business descriptions and "cluster" Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®) classification techniques, the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index methodology identifies constituents belonging to the Energy, Transportation, Telecommunications and Utilities clusters. The Index uses a modified market capitalization weighting scheme with constituent weights determined by size. No single constituent with the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index can have a weight of more than 8% in the Index.

"A strong infrastructure raises the productivity and competitiveness of Latin American countries in terms of their ability to compete with other fast-growing, emerging market economies," says Alka Banerjee, Vice President at S&P Indices. "The S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index allows investors to measure the performance of those publicly traded companies that are setting the standard for developing the basic facilities, services and systems in the region."

As of August 31, 2011, the top five companies by weight in the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index represent 37.4% of the Index. The companies are: America Movil SAB de CV L ADR (Telecommunications, Mexico), Lan Airlines S.A. ADR (Transportation, Chile), Empresa Nacional de Electricidad SA (Utilities, Chile); CPFL Energia SA ADR (Utilities, Brazil), and Enersis SA ADR (Utilities, Chile).

Simultaneously, S&P Indices is offering risk control versions of the S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index, allowing investors to limit volatility by replacing equities with a cash component if volatility exceeds a specified level. The risk control versions will be for 10%, 12% 15%, and 18% volatility levels.

The S&P Latin America Infrastructure Index is a member of the S&P Thematic Indices family. This series is designed to provide exposure to various investment themes that cut across traditional industry definitions.

For the full index methodology, please visit our Web site at www.indices.standardandpoors.com.

About S&P Indices

S&P Indices, a leading brand of the McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE:MHP), maintains a wide variety of investable and benchmark indices to meet an array of investor needs. Over $1.25 trillion is directly indexed to Standard & Poor's family of indices, which includes the S&P 500, the world's most followed stock market index, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices, the S&P Global BMI, an index with approximately 11,000 constituents, the S&P GSCI, the industry's most closely watched commodities index, and the S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index, the premier investable index for U.S. municipal bonds. For more information, please visit: www.standardandpoors.com/indices.

It is not possible to invest directly in an index. S&P Indices does not sponsor, endorse, sell or promote any S&P index-based investment product. This document does not constitute an offer of services in jurisdictions where S&P Indices or its affiliates do not have the necessary licenses. Standard & Poor's receives compensation in connection with licensing its indices to third parties.

SOURCE Standard & Poor's

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