Euronext Amsterdam mulls biannual index reshuffle
AMSTERDAM, March 4 (Reuters) - The Amsterdam Euronext exchange is considering reshuffling its indexes twice a year instead of once, to better reflect changes due to takeovers, Euronext said on Tuesday.
Euronext Amsterdam, part of transatlantic exchange NYSE Euronext (NYX.PA)(NYX.N), is asking brokers and investors for their opinions, NYSE Euronext manager Andre Went told reporters.
On Tuesday, the Amsterdam indexes for blue-chip .AEX, midcap .AMX, and small-cap .ASCX companies changed their composition as part of an annual reweighting and reshuffle.
The new AEX index includes four companies -- staffing company Vedior VDOR.AS, digital maps maker Tele Atlas TA.AS, electrical parts distributor Hagemeyer HAGN.AS, and office supplies firm Corporate Express CXP.AS -- that could soon disappear from the index if takeover bids are successful.
The annual index reshuffle in Amsterdam is the same as for Portugal's PSI20 .PSI20 blue-chip index and Belgium's Bel-20 .BFX. France's CAC-40 .CAC40 is reshuffled four times a year.
The Amsterdam exchange is also considering additional national criteria to include a company in the AEX index, as some companies have several Euronext listings in different countries, such as steel group ArcelorMittal (ISPA.AS)(MTP.PA), Went said.
The study of criteria, which look at a company's headquarters or employees in a country for instance, is part of Euronext's plan to merge the order books of companies with more than one listing at Euronext exchanges, Went said.
Talks with market participants about the possible bi-annual index reshuffle and new criteria are expected to be completed by the end of March, and the merger of order books is planned for 2009 at the earliest, he said.
NYSE Euronext operates the Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels and Lisbon bourses, the Liffe derivatives exchange in Europe, the New York Stock Exchange, and electronic exchange NYSE Arca in the United States. (Reporting by Gilbert Kreijger, editing by Will Waterman)
