Markit, the leading provider of independent data, portfolio valuations and OTC derivatives trade processing, today announced that it has acquired NTC Economics ("NTC"), a provider of global macro-economic indicators and owner of the widely-referenced Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) series.
Lance Uggla, ceo of Markit, said: "This is a strategic move for Markit as we continue to build our company around the creation and acquisition of financial market content. Up until now, we have focused our efforts on content that is quantitative in nature. The acquisition of NTC Economics is our first foray into content that lends itself to more qualitative analysis."
Niall Cameron, executive vice president and head of Equities and Indices at Markit, said: "We are delighted to bring NTC on board, a company whose unique economic indices have become critical indicators of the economic climate. This acquisition will form the cornerstone of a new research initiative at Markit, and will allow us to reinforce our presence in the foreign exchange, interest rate and commodities markets."
Mike Waterson, ceo of NTC Economics, said: "Our acquisition by Markit will ensure that the business we’ve built over the past sixteen years will continue to flourish. NTC’s benchmark products and company culture fit neatly within Markit, and we are all very excited to be part of such a fast-growing and innovative company."
NTC’s indices and surveys are the most authoritative indicators of business conditions. The PMI series has a user community of 200,000 people in 1,000 organizations including central banks that use the data to help decide economic, interest rate and foreign exchange policy.
NTC’s data covers 26 of the most important economies in the world, including BRIC economies, and is assembled by polling a panel of contacts in 14,000 companies. In addition to the 100 economic surveys that NTC produces each month, this data forms the basis for 60 monthly reports on a wide range of subjects including manufacturing, employment, construction and services.
NTC is a UK-based company that employs 40 staff. It will be headed by John Price, managing director at Markit and will form part of Markit’s Equities and Indices division led by Niall Cameron.
