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ETF Pipeline: Nigeria Fund, Cloud Computing ETF On Tap

Michael Johnston — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 11:00:28 +0000

The latest round of new product launches has pushed the total for the ETF total to 1,300, close to twice the number of products trading just a couple of years ago. But if the activity behind the scenes is any indication, the growth spurt is far from over. Multiple issuers continue to stuff the product pipeline with proposed funds, many of which represent first-to-market ideas that haven’t yet been offered up in ETF form. Nigeria ETF Van Eck’s ETF lineup already includes a number of products offering targeted exposure to smaller emerging and frontier markets, from Vietnam (VNM) to Egypt (EGPT). Joining a proposed Mongolia ETF in the product development pipeline recently was the Market Vectors Nigeria ETF, which would focus on companies listed in or operating in one of Africa’s oil-rich economies. The proposed ETF would seek to replicate the Market Vectors Nigeria Index, a modified capitalization weighted, float [...]

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Never Judge An ETF By Its Cover

Michael Johnston — Tue, 31 May 2011 11:00:27 +0000

As hundreds of billions of dollars have flowed into exchange-traded products in recent years, international equity ETFs have been a particularly popular destination. As investors have shed their “home country bias” and recognized the importance of meaningful international equity allocations, the low costs and instant diversification offered by the exchange-traded structure have understandably served as major selling points. And given the often significant volatility in some international markets, the ability to execute trades intraday also stands out as an important quality for investors [see Five Free ETF Tools]. There are dozens of country-specific ETFs, offering pure play exposure to markets that are home to some of the world’s biggest and most important economies (23 China ETFs according to the ETF screener) down to the relatively small and lesser-known (such as Egypt and Vietnam). In addition to the numerous funds focusing on specific countries, there are also several products designed to [...]

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Van Eck Slashes Fees On Five ETFs

Michael Johnston — Fri, 06 May 2011 12:30:15 +0000

Van Eck announced this week that it has reduced the expense caps for five of its exchange-traded funds, effective May first. The move represents the latest development in a string of fee reductions by ETF issuers, reflecting both increasing asset bases and economies of scale as well as efforts to lure cost-conscious investors. The ETFs affected by the latest round of fee cuts include the ultra-popular GDXJ, which currently has close to $2.5 billion in assets [see all the Gold Miner ETFs here]. The ETFs impacted by the price cuts, along with the annual savings generated based on assets at the end of April, include: Ticker ETF Old Cap New Cap Savings* AFK Market Vectors Africa Index ETF 0.83% 0.78% $57.7 BRF Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap ETF 0.65% 0.62% $296.7 GDXJ Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF 0.59% 0.56% $728.6 HAP Market Vectors RVE Hard Assets Producers ETF 0.65% 0.59% [...]

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ETFs For The “Next 11″ Economies

Stoyan Bojinov — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 15:00:28 +0000

Interest in emerging markets has grown tremendously over the past few years, as the developing world has accounted for almost all of global GDP growth while the U.S., Western Europe, and other developed countries struggle to get back on track. Many investors have embraced ETFs as a means of overweighting the emerging markets, favoring the cost efficiency, immediate diversification, and enhanced liquidity that the exchange-traded wrapper offers. While many investors expect that these funds will offer exposure to a diversified basket of rapidly-expanding economies, most emerging markets ETFs are heavily tilted towards the “big four” economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China–better known as the BRIC bloc. But as some major financial institutions have pointed out, there is a lot more to emerging markets than these four economies [see also Emerging Market ETFs: Seven Factors Every Investor Should Consider]. Goldman Sachs, the institution that first coined the term “BRIC” in [...]

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Closer Look At Frontier Market ETFs

Eric Dutram — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 15:53:25 +0000

As exchange-traded funds have grown in popularity, ETF issuers have gradually ventured into more exotic and unconventional markets in order to differentiate new products from those already on the market. Many firms have set out to offer greater levels of exposure to hard-to-reach developing economies; there are now a number of emerging markets ETFs that go beyond the BRIC, such as those focusing on Mexico or Indonesia. There are also a number of ETFs offering exposure to the world’s least developed economies, those that fall short of even “emerging” status. These markets–known as frontier markets–often come with considerable risk, but can offer attractive return potential as well. According to MSCI, 26 countries are currently classified under “frontier” status. These economies come from all corners of the globe, including several countries from Latin America, central Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Some of the better known frontier markets include Argentina, [...]

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ETFs To Invest Like Bill Gates

Michael Johnston — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:01:41 +0000

In the San Francisco Bay area during the 1970′s, a revolution was brewing. The emergence of an area dubbed “Silicon Valley” brought about a surge in technological development that changed the world forever. Two young innovators at the forefront of that revolution were Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the founders of what eventually became Microsoft. Sensing a tremendous opportunity in the computer market, Gates dropped out of Harvard to pursue his dream–no doubt a decision that changed the course of tech history. Microsoft, of course, would come to dominate the personal computer market, making its founders billions of dollars in the process. Gates is now counted as one of the wealthiest men in the world. So what does a billionaire do with the massive fortune he has accumulated? Invest it of course. Gates still remains active with his fortune, owning several investment firms as well as the being the single [...]

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Time For An Africa ETF?

Jared Cummans — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 19:06:21 +0000

For investors looking to establish emerging market exposure, the economies of the BRIC nations are generally the default option. As growth has ground to a halt in the world’s developed economies, interest in emerging markets has surged and investors have begun digging deeper to uncover promising growth opportunities in the developing world. For those with the ability to tolerate a bit of risk, Africa has emerged as an interesting opportunity for exposure to frontier markets. Africa is expected to experience tremendous economic growth over the next several decades; evidence of this boom has already materialized. Africa’s GDP grew by nearly 5% every year from 2000 to 2008. The continent’s consumer, agricultural, natural resource, and infrastructure sectors are projected to turn out revenues of $2.6 trillion a year by 2020. The continent has a bounty of natural resources that are becoming increasingly attractive to foreign investors. Oil is expected to be [...]

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World Cup Of ETFs: Plays On All 32 Countries

Michael Johnston — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 07:00:57 +0000

One of the greatest spectacles in sports kicks off in South Africa over the weekend, with 32 countries gathering to compete in the final stages of the World Cup. Even the economists of the world have taken an interest in the upcoming matches; ABN Amro recently released a note predicting that the world economy would benefit more from a German victory than if any other national team were to win. In reality, any connection between success on the soccer pitch and an economic boost would be minimal. The biggest winner over the coming month could be South Africa, which has a chance to display its infrastructure and business environment to the world. To get in the spirit as the competition begins, we run through the 32 competitors, highlighting the ETF options available for each (for more ETF insights, sign up for our free ETF newsletter): Group A France: The iShares [...]

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A Look At South Africa ETF Options

Michael Johnston — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 18:43:46 +0000

When the soccer World Cup kicks off in Johannesburg this weekend, it will mark the beginning of one of the most anticipated sporting events of all time. The month-long tournament will showcase the world’s finest athletes and most passionate fans on a global stage. But also on display over the next four weeks will be the country of South Africa, home to one of the largest non-BRIC emerging economies and an increasingly popular investment destination. In most of the world, South Africa is best known as the country that ended apartheid in the mid-1990s, electing former political prisoner Nelson Mandela as president. But South Africa is also home to one of the world’s most unique economies, with some sectors showing characteristics typically associated with developed markets and others clearly reflecting emerging status. Thanks to WTO membership and trade agreements with the U.S., China, Japan, and EU, South Africa’s export sector [...]

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This Week in ETFs: April 16th Edition

Seth Dowling — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 21:03:36 +0000

A number of winning streaks came to a halt on Friday, as a generally solid start to earnings season was overshadowed by reports of fraudulent behavior at Goldman Sachs. Financial ETFs plummeted on Friday as anxiety over the regulatory backlash sent the sector sharply lower. Markets will look to another wave or earnings reports next week, as investors continue to gauge the fallout at Goldman and determine the long-term ramifications. Below, we present our picks for the best ETF articles from around the Web over the last week: Greenwich Associates Study Shows Huge ETF Upside at IndexUniverse Could ETFs double in size over the next two years? Matt Hougan thinks such a growth rate might not be all that far-fetched. After analyzing a recent research report from Greenwich Associates, an institutional financial services consulting and research firm, Hougan notes that the usage rate of ETFs among institutions is surprisingly low. The report, which [...]

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ETF Database » AFK

ETF Pipeline: Nigeria Fund, Cloud Computing ETF On Tap

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Never Judge An ETF By Its Cover

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A Look At South Africa ETF Options

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