ProductsFebruary 10, 2009

Select Sector SPDRs Lowers Expense Ratio

Select Sector SPDRs, a family of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), has lowered the average expense ratio for its nine sector ETFs from 0.23% to 0.21%.

Reported by Nevin E. Adams

The new expense ratio went into effect on January 31, according to a press release. Launched in 1998, the Select Sector SPDRs had more than $19.8 billion in assets as of February 6.

Select Sector SPDRs are ETFs that divide the S&P 500 into nine sector index funds:

Consumer Discretionary
Consumer Staples
Energy
Financials
Health Care
Industrials
Materials
Technology
Utilities.

“When we launched these funds more than 10 years ago, our expense ratio was 0.65%. Our Board and the Management of the Select Sector SPDR Trust made a commitment to move expenses lower as assets grew,” said Dan Dolan, director of Wealth Management Strategies, Select Sector SPDR Trust in announcing the change. “The lowering of our expense ratio by another 8.7% is made in the spirit of that commitment, and to maintaining our “investor first’ approach, making our sector ETFs accessible and affordable to as many investors as possible.”

More information is available at www.sectorspdrs.com.