State Street offers first international real estate exchange-traded fund

State Street Global Advisors, the investment management arm of State Street Corp., said today it has launched the first-ever international real estate exchange-traded fund.

The streetTRACKS DJ Wilshire International Real Estate exchange-traded fund will trade on the American Stock Exchange under the symbol RWX, the firm said.

State Street Global Advisors said streetTRACKS is the first exchange-traded fund, or ETF, to monitor performance of publicly traded real estate securities outside of the United States.

"Through the launch of this ETF, we've provided investors with simple, comprehensive exposure to the international real estate market, an exciting and otherwise difficult asset class to access," James Ross, senior managing director State Street Global Advisors, said in a statement.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)