The Global Dow will track the performance of a diverse basket of stocks, including companies from emerging markets, like India, and emerging industries, like alternative energy.
Wall Street Journal editors will select the components of the Global Dow, as they now do with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which tracks thirty of the largest public companies in the United States.
"While we must reflect the global stock market as it is, we must also recognize the rapid rise of companies in countries such as India," Robert Thomson, managing editor of The Wall Street Journal said in a statement. "We have already seen great Indian companies acquiring famous brands such as Jaguar and Land Rover, but these developments are just the beginning of a long-term trend that will fundamentally change the international corporate landscape."
The new India blue-chip index, called Dow Jones India Titans, will track the performance of the thirty largest and most liquid stocks listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India. The top five companies in the index by market capitalization are Reliance Industries Ltd., Infosys Technologies Ltd., HDFC Ltd., Bharti Airtel Ltd., and Larsen & Toubro Ltd.
Financials, basic materials and oil and gas are the most prominent sectors in the index.
"We will see huge capital flows both from and to India in coming years and that is an opportunity for us as a financial information company, as well as for international investors who want to take advantage of this profound trend," Murdoch said in a statement.