NASDAQ OMX Introduces Two Sharia-Compliant Indexes
NEW YORK and STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Jun 22, 2010 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX News Network) -- The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) announced the introduction today of two new Sharia-compliant indexes based on two of the world's most widely-followed benchmarks: The NASDAQ-100 Index(R) (Nasdaq:NDX) and the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Index (OMXSB). The new NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index(SM) (N100SI) and the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index(SM) (OMXSBSHARIA) are the first of a new family of indexes launched by NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group that are designed to serve investors who wish to develop and maintain an Islamic investment portfolio.
The NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index and the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index are designed to track the performance of securities in their underlying indexes that meet the Sharia requirements as prescribed by the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) and adopted by NASDAQ OMX with the guidance of the Sharia advisor, BMB Islamic UK Ltd.
The NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index is a modified market-capitalization weighted index designed to track the performance of the Sharia-compliant securities of the NASDAQ-100 Index. The NASDAQ-100 Index includes 100 of the largest domestic and international non-financial securities listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market(R) based on market capitalization. The index reflects companies across major industry groups including computer hardware and software, telecommunications, retail/wholesale trade and biotechnology.
The OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index is designed to track the performance of the Sharia-compliant securities in the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Index. The OMX Stockholm Benchmark Index consists of the 80 to 100 largest and most traded stocks on NASDAQ OMX Stockholm, representing all sectors.
"The NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index and the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index were developed to meet increasing demand for a wider variety of Islamic investment opportunities," said NASDAQ OMX Executive Vice President John Jacobs. "These new Sharia-compliant indexes are a continuation of NASDAQ OMX's commitment to designing and calculating world-class indexes and to providing investors with relevant, objective indexes."
According to BMB Islamic's CEO Dr. Humayon Dar, who heads the Sharia monitoring process for the indices, "The new Sharia indices by NASDAQ OMX herald a new era of Islamic investing, especially for those who are looking for sophisticated Sharia compliant solutions beyond plain vanilla Islamic equity funds."
The NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index began calculating on June 22, 2010 at a base value of 1000.00, while the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index began calculating on May 31, 2010 -- also at a base value of 1000.00.
About NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group
NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group is engaged in the design, development, calculation, licensing, and marketing of NASDAQ OMX Indexes. NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group specializes in the development of indexes focusing on NASDAQ OMX's brand themes of innovation, technology, growth, and globalization. NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group also provides custom index services and design solutions as a third-party provider to selected financial organizations. For more information about NASDAQ OMX indexes, visit www.nasdaq.com/indexes.
The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world's largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with more than 3,600 listed companies. NASDAQ OMX offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market, NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX First North, and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and exchange-traded funds. NASDAQ OMX technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit http://www.nasdaqomx.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The matters described herein may contain forward-looking statements that are made under the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about the NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index, the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index and NASDAQ OMX's other products and offerings. We caution that these statements are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond NASDAQ OMX's control. These factors include, but are not limited to, factors detailed in NASDAQ OMX's annual report on Form 10-K, and periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to release any revisions to any forward-looking statements.
The NASDAQ-100 Sharia Index and the OMX Stockholm Benchmark Sharia Index ("Indexes") are the exclusive property of The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc., and with its affiliates, is collectively "NASDAQ OMX".
NDAQG
This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com
SOURCE: The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.
CONTACT: The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. Media Contact: Wayne Lee +1.301.978.4875 Wayne.D.Lee@NASDAQOMX.Com Issuer & Investor Contact: Lisa Chaney +1.301.978.8281 Lisa.Chaney@NASDAQOMX.com
(C) Copyright 2010 GlobeNewswire, Inc. All rights reserved.
News Provided by COMTEX