ETF Database » DGZ

Investors Flock To Inverse Gold ETFs

Michael Johnston — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 15:00:20 +0000

Precious metals have been on a tear for much of the last year, no doubt delivering huge profits to some of the hedge fund managers who began stocking up on bullion in early 2010. Physically-backed gold and silver ETFs took in close to $10 billion in inflows last year, as investors embraced the exchange-traded structure as the most efficient way to establish exposure to an asset class that has safe haven appeal and can perform relatively well in inflationary environments as well. With uncertainty over the global economic outlook swirling and concerns about an uptick in inflation lingering, gold surged to new record highs in 2010 after adding about 25%. But the yellow metal was overshadowed by silver, which gained close to 90% on the year. Forget the tiger, 2010 was the year of the precious metal. But it seems that when the calendars changed, so too did the outlook [...]

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Reviewing Three Different Types Of Leveraged ETFs

Michael Johnston — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 15:31:38 +0000

As the popularity of ETFs has surged in recent years, the manner in which investors use these vehicles has evolved as well. Originally designed with cost-conscious buy-and-holders in mind, ETFs have now been fully embraced by more active traders as well (just look at the turnover of SPY). And recent years have seen the introduction of increasingly complex and powerful exchange-traded products, including those offering exposure to investment strategies and asset classes that were previously out-of-reach for most investors. The leveraged ETF space is one example of a corner of the market that has seen tremendous growth in recent years. The basic purpose of these products is relatively straightforward; they seek to deliver results equivalent to the return on a specified index multiplied by a leverage factor (-100%, 300%, etc.) over a certain time period. For those who understand the objectives and limitations of leveraged ETPs, these securities can be [...]

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Gold ETFs: Boom Or Bust?

Jared Cummans — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 14:34:40 +0000

With the end of 2010 rapidly approaching, much of the uncertainty that investors had expected to lift this year remains firmly in place. Equity markets have staged an impressive rally in recent months, but significant hurdles remain in the form of persistently-high unemployment, regulatory uncertainty, and fiscal instability throughout much of the developed world [see Seven ETFs Peter Schiff Might Not Hate]. Likewise, bonds have endured an eventful 2010 but face an uncertain future. Despite predictions of a dismal year for fixed income, many bonds–particularly longer-dated securities–have surged this year. Yet to many, fixed income is a ticking time bomb; the next rate hike may still be some ways off, but with key benchmark rates at record lows there is nowhere to go but up. Moreover, concerns over the prospect of inflation have been revived in recent weeks, dealing another strike against bonds. Fed meetings seem likely to drive this [...]

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Five ETFs To Own During The “Great Deflation”

Michael Johnston — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 14:39:25 +0000

Last Friday, the U.S. Labor Department reported that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.2% in January and climbed by 2.6% over the past 12 months. But after stripping out volatile food and energy prices, prices actually fell by 0.1% in January, marking the first time since 1982 that “core CPI” has declined. While the absence of any signs that runaway inflation is materializing initially soothed markets, the report also signaled that another potentially tricky economic drag, deflation, is a very real concern. Investors have been bracing for a major uptick in prices in the wake of unprecedented liquidity injections to stimulate a stalling economy, so to many the news of sagging prices was a relief to many, especially in light of recent actions from the central bank. The recent Fed increase in the rate charged on emergency loans to banks had seemingly paved the way for a hike in [...]

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ETFdb Analyst Michael Johnston Discusses USD on BNN

Jimmy A — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:37:38 +0000

Michael Johnston, senior analyst for ETF Database appeared on live television earlier today to discuss the rally of the US Dollar. ADZ, DDP, DGZ, EUO, UUP, and YCS are some of the ETFs that have been affected. Watch the complete interview at BNN. Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com.Related Posts:U.S. Dollar ETF On A Roll10 Strange But True Facts About The ETF IndustryPowerShares, Deutsche Team Up On Leveraged Dollar ETNsETF Ideas For Deflation DefenseETF Insider: Take Profits In A Sideways Market

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U.S. Dollar ETF On A Roll

Michael Johnston — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:57:10 +0000

More much of the second half of 2009, one of the overarching themes has been continued weakness in the U.S. dollar, as a perfect storm of economic and political factors combined to push the greenback continually lower against major rivals. But once the calendar turned to December, the tables turned as well, and the U.S. currency took off on a furious rally that has seen it reclaim much of the ground lost over the previous months. The reasons for the dollar’s impressive rebound are as numerous as the factors that drove it lower in recent months. Weakness in the euro has boosted the dollar’s value, as signs of potentially serious trouble in Europe have emerged in recent days. Several major ratings agencies downgraded sovereign Greek debt, a reflection of the deteriorating fiscal situation in the euro zone country. “The downgrade reflects concerns over the medium-term outlook for public finances given [...]

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The Definitive Guide To Inverse Gold ETF Investing

Michael Johnston — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:36:28 +0000

Gold is often referred to as a “safe haven” investment, reflecting its tendency to rise in times of economic uncertainty. While there is no shortage of “gold bugs” that buy and hold the metal for extended periods of time, there are countless investors who trade gold quite actively. Just as signs of weakness in the global equity markets or unexpected negative developments can send gold prices climbing, good news or bullish sentiment on Wall Street can send gold prices plummeting. Fortunately for investors, just as there are a number of ETFs offering the ability to establish a long position in gold, there are several funds that offer short exposure as well. Gold Price Drivers Valuing gold is a difficult task that is perhaps more art than science. Because gold is a commodity, it doesn’t make interest or dividend payments to investors, making any sort of cash flow analysis impractical. And [...]

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The Definitive Gold ETF Guide: Gold Bullion ETFs 101

Andy H — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:11:02 +0000

The label “gold bug” may suggest a kooky old man who spends a lot of time in his basement reading conspiracy theory newsletters. The truth, however, is that there are many legitimate reasons to trade in gold and its derivatives. Gold has been proven time and time again to be an excellent “safe haven” investment, a holding that will appreciate in value during times of economic uncertainty. As such, gold may offer some valuable hedging and diversification benefits for a long-term portfolio. For this reason, gold is also an effective “dollar hedge” - it tends to rise as investors become uneasy with the idea of keeping their holdings tied up in the U.S. currency. In recent years, China has begun shifting its reserve holdings away from investments in U.S. Treasuries and towards hard currency (gold and silver). China has also encouraged its citizens to beef up their precious metals holdings, [...]

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ETF Plays For $3,000 Gold

Michael Johnston — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:00:44 +0000

The Gold Rush of 2009 likely hasn’t come as a complete surprise to too many investors. After all, gold has been proven time and time again to be a “safe haven” investment that rises during uncertain economic times (such as the last two years), and questions about the dollar’s future as the world’s reserve currency (along with other factors placing downward pressure on the greenback) have led many to reconsider their strategic holdings. But the length and degree of the run-up in gold prices certainly caught a number of investors (myself included) off guard. Brett Arends poses a question I would have laughed at two years ago, but now take quite seriously: is it realistic to think gold could really go to $3,000? Some gold bugs think it’s a distinct possibility. Bud Conrad, the chief economist at Casey Research and a noted gold bug, estimates that gold prices could quadruple [...]

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Changes Coming To Leveraged ETFs?

Michael Johnston — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 13:12:59 +0000

Direxion, the ETF sponsor responsible for many of the most heavily-traded ETFs on the market, is reportedly making some changes to its line of mutual funds that may ultimately impact the leveraged ETF industry. Many investors have the misconception that leveraged ETFs are a new invention. While their packaging into an ETF structure is a relatively new concept, the underpinnings of these securities have been around in leveraged mutual funds for quite some time. In addition to its market-leading line of 3x leveraged and 3x inverse leveraged ETFs, Direxion offers several mutual fund products covering a variety of asset classes and geographic regions. The company’s leveraged mutual funds include seek to provide amplified daily exposure to a variety of benchmarks, including the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100, and Russell 2000, in much the same manner as their leveraged ETFs. But now it seems that these leveraged mutual funds are going to [...]

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