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ETF Insider: France Downgrade Erodes Confidence

Stoyan Bojinov — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 15:00:48 +0000

Equities inched higher throughout the week, bolstered by positive economic data release on the home front coupled with encouraging developments in the debt burdened Euro zone. Euphoria spread throughout Wall Street as investors digested better-than-expected consumer credit data along with optimistic forward looking commentary released by the Fed in the latest Beige Book report. Investors overseas were cheerful as well as borrowing costs dropped after successful Spanish and Italian debt auctions. However, much of the gains on the week evaporated on Friday as investors gave into selling pressures following the downgrade of France’s credit rating and worse-than-expected earnings results from J.P. Morgan. Actionable ETF Trade Ideas Last Week’s Actionable ETF Ideas Ticker Position Performance FXB Long -0.9% DBC Short 1.2% XLI Long 2.3% Our picks from Monday’s Insider posted a fairly strong performance this past week, with two of our recommendations turning solid gains, while our third position incurred a [...]

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ETF Insider: Beware Of Lingering Euro Fears

Stoyan Bojinov — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:17:46 +0000

Equity markets hit the ground running last week as investors came back from the holiday weekend with a fairly optimistic outlook for 2012. U.S. stocks started off the year with a solid rally as investors’ confidence was bolstered by multiple better-than-expected economic data reports; consistent improvements in the housing market coupled with a downtick in the unemployment rate were enough to reignite bullish momentum on Wall Street. Gold inched higher last week, climbing back over $1,600 an ounce, although the precious metal continues to face headwinds given the looming uncertainty stemming from the Euro zone. Weekly Outlook The coming week will be fairly busy with activity and economic data releases both at home and on the international front. Below, we highlight ETFs that may see an increase in trading activity as relevant market data is released and evaluated by investors: Van Eck Market-Vectors Chinese Renminbi/USD ETN (CNY): China’s consumer price [...]

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When Structure Matters: ETF, ETN, Or Other?

Michael Johnston — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 14:00:19 +0000

As some financial advisors are now well aware, the term “ETF” is often used rather liberally to refer to a variety of different exchange-traded products that generally function in the same manner from the perspective of an investor. More accurately, ETFs can be described as a type of exchange-traded product, or ETP, an umbrella that also covers exchange-traded commodities, exchange-traded notes, and unit investment trusts (UITs). The nuances of these various structures might not make for the most lively discussion, but it is a worthwhile task for anyone who manages money for a living, as the seemingly minor differences between these types of products can often have a meaningful impact on risk taken on and bottom line returns realized [see 25 Things Every Financial Advisor Should Know About ETFs]. Most advisors are aware of the general differences between ETNs, which are debt instruments, and true ETFs, which feature no credit [...]

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10 Strange But True Facts About The ETF Industry

Michael Johnston — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 13:00:21 +0000

As ETFs have burst on to the scene in recent years, just about every serious investor and professional money manager has taken a crash course in exchange-traded products, becoming familiar with the countless benefits and nuances of these products. Features such as enhanced transparency, upgraded tax efficiency, and low costs are generally well known at this point, as are the tickers of many of the more popular exchange-traded products [see also Bright Spots In The ETF Landscape: Five Funds Holding Their Value In A Wild 2011]. But even if you’re up to date on the latest developments in the ETF industry, odds are that there is quite a bit you don’t know about exchange-traded funds (and the various ETF cousins out there). Here are ten facts about the ETF industry that may seem a bit hard to believe: 1. Surprising Active ETF Leader As of September 30, active ETF assets [...]

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Commodity ETF With Asian Twist On Tap

Michael Johnston — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:00:26 +0000

United States Commodity Funds, the company behind the ultra-popular natural gas (UNG) and crude oil (USO) products, has laid the groundwork for another unique exchange-traded commodity product. In a recent SEC filing, USCF outlined some details for a proposed Asian Commodity Basket Fund, which would include exposure to commodities deemed to maintain “systemic importance to Asian economies, including the three major Asian economies of China, Japan, and India.” The filing noted that the proposed fund may also include futures contracts that trade on an Asian domiciled futures exchange. The construction of the underlying index of commodity futures will take into account a number of different factors, including: Percentage of global production that occurs in Asian countries Percentage of global consumption that occurs in Asian countries Tendency of the Asian economies to be either net importers or net exporters of a particular commodity Size and liquidity of the regulated futures markets based [...]

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One Year Later: USCI Remains An Intriguing Commodity ETF

Michael Johnston — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 11:00:31 +0000

Though the entire ETF industry has grown at a blistering pace, certain segments of the market have expanded much more quickly than others over the past few years. Few types of financial products have seen stronger asset growth than commodity ETPs, as investors of all sophistication levels have embraced the exchange-traded structure as the most efficient means of accessing an asset class that has become increasingly popular as a source of both diversification benefits and return enhancement. And one of the most exciting new product introductions in this corner of the market came about a year ago when United States Commodity Funds rolled out USCI, a fund dubbed by many as a “contango killer.” Billions of dollars have flowed into commodity ETPs in recent years, as nearly every type of natural resource has delivered sharp increases in price thanks to rising demand for raw materials from many of the world’s emerging markets. [...]

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Daily ETF Roundup: UNG Slumps On EIA Report, DBC Rises On Crude’s Rally

Eric Dutram — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 21:45:33 +0000

American equity markets rose again in Thursday trading as traders cheered better-than-expected economic data on the jobs front. As a result, the Dow finished ahead by 0.7% on the day while the S&P 500 rose by 1.1% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 1.4% on the day. In commodity markets, gold managed to sneak by with a two dollar an ounce gain while oil continued to surge, rising by close to two dollars in Thursday’s trade, finishing above the $98.5/bbl. mark. Other commodities also rose on the day thanks to a small decline in the U.S. dollar index as the value of the greenback fell against many of the world’s major currencies on the day, falling below the $75 mark. Among the leaders were energy commodities as heating oil and RBOB both rose by at least 4% while grains and metals also performed well, as copper gained more than 2% on [...]

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ETFdb Category Kings: Best Performers From First Half Of 2011

Michael Johnston — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 14:00:40 +0000

The first half of 2011 is officially in the books, and many investors find their portfolios in approximately the same place as they were to start the year (though a furious rally in the final week of the quarter gave a nice boost at an opportune moment). Most major equity indexes are up slightly on the year, while fixed income benchmarks have similarly hovered around breakeven. Beyond these broad generalizations, there are some significant performance discrepancies among exchange-traded products that may seem to offer up similar risk/return profiles. The following tables highlight the top performers from every ETFdb Category during the first six months of the year, shedding some light on the asset classes that have struggled and thrived so far in 2011–and reinforcing that the seemingly minor distinctions between ETPs can lead to big differences in performance [for monthly updates on the best performers, sign up for the free [...]

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Daily ETF Roundup: DBC Plunges On Surprise IEA Announcement, XHB Rises On Home Sales

Eric Dutram — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 21:45:00 +0000

Although markets plunged to start Thursday trading, thanks to a surprise report from the IEA and further weakness in the job market, investors bought up securities in the final few hours of the session on reports of a Greek bailout, pushing stocks well off their lows for the day. The Dow, which at one point was at 11,875, finished down just 60 points at the 12,050 mark while the S&P 500 lost just 0.3% on the day in comparison. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq managed to surge on the day, gaining close to 0.7% on the back of a 2.6% gain for tech giant Apple. Unfortunately, things were much worse for commodity investors as gold sank by close to 2% and oil plunged by nearly $3.6/bbl. thanks to a release of nearly 60 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves around the world. Other commodities also finished the day down although none [...]

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Commodity ETF Investing: Five Factors To Consider

Michael Johnston — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 11:00:22 +0000

Commodity ETPs can be extremely powerful tools for tapping into an asset class capable of providing both return enhancement and diversification benefits. With dozens of products available–there are more than 120 U.S.-listed commodity ETFs according to the ETF screener–picking the right fund for your investment objectives and risk tolerances can be challenging. Beyond the type of commodity included, there can be several attributes of commodity ETPs that shape the risk/return profile; below, we look at five factors to consider when trying to narrow down the universe and find the right commodity ETF (or ETN): 1. Structure: ETC vs. ETN Most investors are familiar with the various product structures that are generally lumped together under the ETF umbrella, including exchange-traded notes, HOLDRs, and UITs. While the fine print of various security types may seem like inconsequential details, the nuances can have a meaningful impact on bottom line returns–especially in the commodity [...]

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ETF Database » DBC

ETF Insider: France Downgrade Erodes Confidence

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ETF Insider: Beware Of Lingering Euro Fears

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When Structure Matters: ETF, ETN, Or Other?

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10 Strange But True Facts About The ETF Industry

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Commodity ETF With Asian Twist On Tap

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One Year Later: USCI Remains An Intriguing Commodity ETF

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Daily ETF Roundup: UNG Slumps On EIA Report, DBC Rises On Crude’s Rally

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ETFdb Category Kings: Best Performers From First Half Of 2011

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Daily ETF Roundup: DBC Plunges On Surprise IEA Announcement, XHB Rises On Home Sales

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Commodity ETF Investing: Five Factors To Consider

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