Invesco PowerShares, a leading global provider of ETFs, has announced the anticipated listing of the PowerShares DWA SmallCap Technical Leaders ETF (DWAS) on July 19, 2012 on the NYSE Arca. The fund will be the first US small-cap ETF based on the concept of relative-strength ranking.

The PowerShares DWA SmallCap Technical Leaders Portfolio (DWAS) will be the first US small-cap ETF based on the concept of relative-strength ranking.

DWAS will be the fourth ETF that Invesco PowerShares has listed based on the DWA Technical Leaders strategy since 2007. The existing products have attracted $750 million in assets under management.

Technical Leaders are companies identified by the DWA selection methodology that possess strong relative-strength characteristics compared to their peers and industry benchmarks.

“We are pleased to once again partner with Dorsey, Wright & Associates for the PowerShares DWA SmallCap Technical Leaders Portfolio (DWAS), providing investors with a full suite of Technical Leaders ETFs based on the firm’s respected research.” said Ben Fulton, Invesco PowerShares managing director of global ETFs.  “The DWA Technical Leaders strategy, based on relative strength, is widely followed by advisors and professional asset managers.”

Relative strength is a quantitative measure of a stock’s performance in relation to the rest of the market, expressed generally in percentage form. Numerous studies have demonstrated relative strength may be a powerful tool for stock selection. A key strength of this methodology is that it’s based on unbiased, objective market data, as opposed to a more subjective forecasting and research model.

DWAS will be based on the Dorsey Wright SmallCap Technical Leaders Index and will generally invest at least 90% of its total assets in equity securities of small-capitalisation companies that comprise this index. Dorsey, Wright & Associates, the creators of the index, is an independent and privately owned US-based investment advisory firm.

The index includes approximately 200 companies pursuant to a proprietary selection methodology that is designed to identify companies that demonstrate powerful relative-strength characteristics from a small-cap universe of approximately 2,000 US-listed companies.

Other DWA Technical Leaders Strategies in the Invesco PowerShares range include the PowerShares DWA Technical Leaders ETF (PDP), providing exposure to US companies, the PowerShares DWA Emerging Markets Technical Leaders ETF (PIE), providing exposure to companies domiciled in emerging market countries, and the PowerShares DWA Developed Markets Technical Leaders ETF (PIZ), providing exposure to international developed-market companies excluding the US.