S&P Dow Jones Indices has expanded its coverage of the South African equity market.

The index provider launched nine new indices covering the market.

The new series of indices will bring “greater index based measurement and transparency” to the market and investors, said Vinit Srivastava, senior director at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The S&P South Africa Composite was introduced, which measures the performance of companies actively traded and listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). It covers both foreign-domiciled and domestic-domiciled companies listed on the JSE with float-adjusted market values of $ 100m or more and annual dollar value traded of at least $50m.

The index is the basis for the eight other new indices:

• S&P South Africa Dividend Aristocrats
• S&P South Africa Low Volatility Index
• S&P South Africa Composite Capped
• S&P South Africa 50
• S&P South Africa 50 Equal Weight
• S&P South Africa Completion
• S&P South Africa Composite Shariah
• S&P South Africa Composite Shariah Capped

The firm has licensed the S&P South Africa Dividend Aristocrats and the S&P South Africa Low Volatility Index to Grindrod Bank for potential development in exchange traded funds (ETF).

Srivastava said these two indices would enable investors in the market to measure performance of long-time dividend payers and low-volatility issues for the first time.

“Grindrod Bank intends to add two new 'smart beta’ ETFs to its Gtrax suite of ETFs, both of which will be aligned to both the low volatility and dividend aristocrat themes,” said Gareth Stobie, head of capital markets at Grindrod Bank. “These themes have proven to be enormously popular with investors abroad.