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ETFs To Play AAA Europe

Michael Johnston — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 14:00:49 +0000

As most investors are painfully aware at this point, Europe is not in the best of fiscal shape at present. The continent is in the midst of a prolonged debt crisis that is now threatening the continued existence of the euro, and has transformed the region into a form of portfolio Kryptonite; most investors won’t go anywhere near it. Much of the attention has focused on the handful of countries that maintain massive debt burdens that continue to grow, such as Ireland, Spain, and Italy. As the likelihood that these countries will be able to repay their debts deteriorates, their stocks markets have been beaten down as international investors have fled to calmer markets [see Euro Free Europe ETFdb Portfolio]. And unfortunately, the debt crisis is hardly an isolated incident; a number of European economies, including several fairly large components, are struggling mightily to stay afloat. Many European markets have [...]

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Are Gold ETFs The Best Defense Against Euro Drama?

Stoyan Bojinov — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 14:03:53 +0000

Investors’ confidence has taken a serious beating over the past few months as debt drama on both sides of the Atlantic ocean has paved the way for volatile price action across financial markets. Despite better-than-expected economic data releases on the home front, Euro zone debt woes have definitively taken center stage; sentiment on Wall Street has been largely influenced by rumors and headlines from overseas, while positive fundamental developments have been largely ignored. Amidst the ongoing uncertainty, many have turned to traditional safe haven asset classes, with gold being a popular choice [see Cheapskate Hedge Fund ETFdb Portfolio]. However, the precious yellow metal has lost a bit of its luster throughout this recent turmoil, as the hot commodity has failed to provide investors with much of a cushion. Gold is a versatile commodity, capable of serving as a hedge against inflation, while often times it is simply regarded as a [...]

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HOLDRS Conversion Begins: Investor Action Required

Michael Johnston — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 11:00:28 +0000

Van Eck has begun the process of converting six HOLDRS products offered by Merrill Lynch into traditional ETFs that will be included under the Market Vectors lineup, offering investors an opportunity to exchange their receipts in HOLDRS trusts for shares in the new ETFs. The exchange requires affirmative action on the part of investors, meaning that advisors or individuals with positions in existing HOLDRS must take action in order to receive shares in the new ETFs. The exchange offer is expected to remain open until December 20. “We have structured the offers, in our view, to be investor friendly,” said Adam Phillips, Managing Director of ETFs at Van Eck Global. “Potential benefits of participation include the opportunity for uninterrupted exposure to target industries, a partially tax-advantaged exchange, and no costs associated with the offers.” Van Eck also noted that the new structure could allow investors to achieve more complete and [...]

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Italy ETF Slaughtered: Time To Sell?

Jared Cummans — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:00:15 +0000

It’s no secret that the euro-zone has been the center of market turmoil for the past few weeks as well as a lingering issue for the past year. The thorn in investors’ side comes from a slew of fiscal issues that have already led to one unsuccessful bailout, prompting another austerity package that has yet to be put in place. At the head of it all has been Greece, who has been the guinea pig of the failing euro zone. There were once talks of nixing them from the currency bloc altogether, or that more powerful nations would flee back to their original currencies. But now that Greece is staying on the euro and is headed for a major shift in their governing members, the limelight has been turned to Italy [see also Euro Free Europe Portfolio Now Available]. The Italian Job Italy has always been a problem nation in this recent crisis, along with [...]

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Why The Fishing ETF Is Green Around The Gills

Jared Cummans — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 11:00:05 +0000

As the ETF world has rapidly developed, a number of issuers have begun to explore niche markets with hyper-targeted exposure for investors looking for unique allocations. Such innovation has brought products dedicated to smartphones, cloud computing, fertilizer, and even the fishing industry. At first, investors may write some of these newer options off as silly investments or funds that are simply looking to cash in on the recent ETF success, but some of these products offer one-of-a-kind exposure that can be found nowhere else in the space. Take the Global X Fishing Industry ETF (FISN) for example, launched earlier this year, the fund exclusively offers exposure to the global fishing industry, a very niche space in the consumer sector [see also ETF Leaders: Best Performing ETFdb Portfolios of 2011]. While fishing investing may be very specialized, no one can deny the industry’s importance to human life throughout history. Fishing has [...]

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Are Russia ETFs A Buy?

Eric Dutram — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 11:00:19 +0000

Although many emerging markets still have excellent growth prospects, they have been hammered in recent weeks thanks to a ‘risk off’ trade in equities. Broad funds targeting this space, such as VWO or EEM, have fallen sharply in this time period, declining by nearly 16.8% in the past quarter alone. While this may sound bad, it is nothing compared to the steep losses that some specific markets have been facing, especially those tied to natural resources. Russia in particular has been cast aside by many investors in this time frame, pushing shares of the economic juggernaut down by close to 25% in the past three month period. While these losses are obviously significant, one has to question whether it is worth abandoning the nation entirely due to this significant bump in the road. After all, investors must also consider Russia’s lousy demographic situation and the fact that the nation is still a one-trick [...]

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Contrarian ETF Ideas: Investing In The ETF Dogs Of 2011

Michael Johnston — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 13:45:20 +0000

With three quarters of 2011 officially in the books, it is now safe to say that the year has not played out as many investors had hoped it might. After coming flying out of the gates–most major benchmarks were solidly in positive territory after the first quarter–a perfect storm of negative developments has conspired to hammer valuations of risky assets, leaving many portfolios drenched in red ink. Most equity indexes are down considerably in 2011, with many recently testing new lows on renewed concerns about debt woes in Europe and the frustrating lack of job creation in the U.S. While the vast majority of equity ETFs are now deep in negative territory for the year, some have, of course, been hit harder than others. A handful of funds have piled up year-to-date losses that exceed 35%, with several losing almost half of their value since the start of the year. [...]

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Tuesday’s ETF To Watch: Guggenheim Airline ETF (FAA)

Eric Dutram — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 08:00:15 +0000

The new quarter started on a down note across the board, as more fears over Greece and concerns over a hard landing in China weighed on markets. The losses were pretty significant in most sectors although the worst of it was contained to the financial and basic materials corners of the market. Beyond these two sectors, one segment of the transportation industry, airlines, was also crushed on the day, this despite the continued slide in oil prices which usually benefits these crude-intensive firms. While worries over Europe and global growth certainly weighed on the airlines, yesterday’s fall was undoubtedly thanks to rumors of bankruptcy at American Airlines (AMR). Rumors of AMR’s possibly bankruptcy quickly swept through the markets in Monday’s trading session leading to a cataclysmic day for shareholders in the firm. In fact, at one point in Monday’s trading, AMR shares were down close to 40% at one point [...]

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New Zealand ETFs In Focus After Credit Downgrade

Eric Dutram — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 11:00:36 +0000

Investing in developed markets has been an extremely tough task as of late thanks to sluggish growth and debt woes in a variety of countries. In light of this, perceived ‘safe haven’ countries saw a great deal of inflows in this environment, leading to huge gains for markets such as Switzerland and other highly-rated nations. Yet, with the SNB’s historic decision to peg the franc to the euro, many investors scrambled to find new places to stash their cash in these troubled times, leading some to invest in nations such as those in the Asia Pacific or Nordic regions of the world. While this may have worked for a couple of weeks, it appears as though one of the key destinations for investors is no longer in the ranks of the safe haven club as New Zealand struggles with a downgrade to ‘AA’ by Fitch. In the move that hit the wires [...]

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Three ETFs For ‘Operation Twist’

Eric Dutram — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 13:45:50 +0000

Thanks to the poor economic situation plaguing America, a number of proposals have been released in order to try to end this malaise. Massive stimulus was thrown at the market by leaders in D.C. while the Fed sought to do its part by embarking on multiple rounds of quantitative easing. These purchases of government bonds helped to push down rates for many short-term debt securities but did little else when it came to jump-starting the economy. Yet, with political gridlock afflicting Washington, no relief seems to be on the horizon from the Federal government, leaving Bernanke and Co. as the only hope for those who are begging for more stimulative measures. Thanks to this pressure, all eyes will likely be on the Federal Reserve and its highly-anticipated FOMC meeting this week. Many will look for the group to announce further plans for easing, or at least a shift in the policy tools currently being employed. [...]

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ETF Database » News and Current Affairs

ETFs To Play AAA Europe

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Are Gold ETFs The Best Defense Against Euro Drama?

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HOLDRS Conversion Begins: Investor Action Required

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Italy ETF Slaughtered: Time To Sell?

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Why The Fishing ETF Is Green Around The Gills

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Are Russia ETFs A Buy?

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Contrarian ETF Ideas: Investing In The ETF Dogs Of 2011

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Tuesday’s ETF To Watch: Guggenheim Airline ETF (FAA)

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New Zealand ETFs In Focus After Credit Downgrade

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