Mr. Fraser Howell reports

FIRST TRUST CANADA RESPONDS TO INVESTOR INTEREST IN DIRECT U.S. DOLLAR EXPOSURE

Effective after the close of business on Jan. 30, 2015, each of the First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. sector exchange-traded funds will no longer be hedging its exposure to the United States dollar. The First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. sectors will provide the same exposure to various segments of the U.S. equity market but in a non-U.S.-currency-hedged manner. The change will impact the following exchange-traded funds:

• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Energy Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Health Care Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Industrials Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Consumer Staples Index Sector ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Financials Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Utilities Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Consumer Discretionary Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Materials Sector Index ETF;
• First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. Technology Sector Index ETF.

"Clients and potential investors seem less concerned about the Canadian dollar appreciating in value against the U.S. dollar and have requested unhedged currency exposure to our First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. sector index ETFs," said Fraser Howell, chief executive officer of First Trust Canada. "We believe the change to direct U.S. dollar exposure to the underlying indices through our TSX-listed U.S. sector ETFs not only makes for an intriguing investment product but helps to differentiate them from the other currency-hedged U.S. equity ETFs and mutual funds."

The First Trust AlphaDEX U.S. sectors follow enhanced indices, which employ First Trust's proprietary AlphaDEX stock selection methodology. The AlphaDEX methodology combines:

1. The traditional benefits of ETFs: intraday liquidity, generally lower expenses and daily transparency;
2. The added advantages of the AlphaDEX methodology: the potential to outperform a benchmark and the selection and weighting of stocks based on investment merit.