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mike-orzano

Michael Orzano

Senior Director, Global Equity Indices, S&P Dow Jones Indices

Michael Orzano is Senior Director, Global Equity Indices at S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI). He is responsible for the product management of S&P DJI’s global equity, real estate, and Islamic indices including the S&P/ASX and S&P/TSX series. In this role, Mike leads S&P DJI’s efforts developing new benchmarks for international equity markets and promotes their use among global clients. He also regularly publishes research, analytical reports, and market commentary on a variety of international investment topics.
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Apr 15, 2020

Pandemic Accelerates Long-Term Shifts in Australian Equity Market: Health Care Reigns Supreme

While the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on global financial markets, it has affected Australian equity sectors quite unevenly. Energy, Financials, and Real Estate have experienced the heaviest losses, while Health Care has outperformed by a wide margin, sustaining a 10% YTD gain through April 9, 2020. In our recent paper marking the 20th Anniversary of…

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Apr 1, 2020

Pandemic Affects Canadian Sectors Differently: Evidence from the Information Technology Sector

The S&P/TSX Capped Information Technology Index gained a whopping 62% in 2019, topping all other Canadian equity sectors and beating the broad market S&P/TSX Composite by about 40%. Given the traditionally cyclical nature of the Information Technology sector and its outsized gains during the bull market, the sector might be expected to lag during the…

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Feb 25, 2020

Capture the Growth of Australia’s Technology Industry

In partnership with the ASX, we recently introduced the S&P/ASX All Technology Index, which, for the first time, brings together ASX-listed companies across a range of industries whose businesses are primarily technology focused. In a market heavily concentrated in banks and natural resource companies, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index provides access to a unique, underrepresented…

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Dec 10, 2019

Raising the Bar in Canadian Small Caps

Prior research has demonstrated that profitability matters for small-cap companies in the U.S. and in global equity markets. For example, the S&P SmallCap 600®—which includes an earnings eligibility criteria—has outperformed the broader Russell 2000 Index (with lower volatility) over its 25-year track record. Our new S&P/TSX SmallCap Select Index extends this phenomenon to Canadian equities,…

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Jul 19, 2019

Why Taking a Local Approach to Index Construction Matters in Canada

While nearly everyone in the Canadian investment community has heard of the S&P/TSX Composite, few are aware of the key methodological intricacies that distinguish it from other broad market Canadian equity benchmarks. The most notable distinction is that the S&P/TSX Composite is designed specifically for Canadians (as are all S&P/TSX Indices), while many other Canadian…

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Mar 28, 2019

Are You Ready for China A-Share Inclusion?

In case you missed our country classification announcement on Dec. 5, 2018, we will be starting the process of adding China A-shares to S&P DJI global benchmarks (including the S&P China BMI and S&P Emerging BMI) in September 2019 at a partial inclusion factor of 25%. Given the size of China’s onshore equity market, the…

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Jul 26, 2018

A Primer on Country Classification in the Context of Saudi Arabia’s Upgrade to Emerging Market Status

Given our recent announcement upgrading Saudi Arabia to emerging market status, it seemed like an apt time to delve a little deeper into the index country classification process and the criteria used to evaluate the status of markets here at S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI). At the risk of stating the obvious, country classification…

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Jul 11, 2018

S&P Dow Jones Indices Quarterly Islamic Market Review

Most S&P and Dow Jones Islamic indices have outperformed conventional benchmarks through the first half of 2018 driven by underweight to financials. Most S&P and Dow Jones Shariah compliant benchmarks outperformed their conventional counterparts through the first half of 2018 as financials – which are largely absent from Islamic indices – lagged the market by…

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Apr 12, 2018

Most S&P and Dow Jones Islamic Indices Outperformed Conventional Benchmarks in Q1 Driven by Strength in the Technology Sector

Most S&P and Dow Jones Shariah-compliant benchmarks outperformed their conventional counterparts in Q1 2018, as the information technology sector—which tends to be overweight in Islamic Indices—led the market by a wide margin, and financials—which is underrepresented in Islamic indices—matched the returns of the broad market. The Dow Jones Islamic Market World Index and S&P Global…

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Feb 26, 2018

Assessing Single-Stock Risk in South African Indices

Investing in stocks can be risky. However, investing in a single stock tends to be far riskier than investing in a diversified basket of stocks. South African investors received a jarring reminder of this in early December, when Steinhoff International Holdings dropped more than 80% in the two days following the international retailer’s disclosure of…

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