Description

The fund provides exposure to an index of investment-grade corporate bonds issued in the US. Constituents are chosen using a 4-step selection process. It begins with assigning each security to a specific bucket determined using its rating and modified duration. There will be a total of 10 rating and 11 modified duration buckets of which each bucket market weight is calculated and the number of bonds is determined in step 2. The third step involves selecting the appropriate number of debt securities based on those which have the largest amount outstanding. Finally, individual bond weights are assigned based on market cap within their respective buckets and rebalanced on a monthly basis. Also note that derivatives may also be in the mix in seeking to hedge the USD exposure of the securities to the CAD. The fund is designed for investors with a low risk appetite who are seeking low cost exposure to a diversified portfolio of corporate sovereign debts in the US.