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NYF

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 ETFdb newsletter]: [click to continue…]

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Five ETFs To Watch If Meredith Whitney Is Right

by Michael Johnston on June 29, 2011

According to the ancient Mayan calendar, the world will end in December 2012. If banking analyst Meredith Whitney is right, the beginning of the end might be around the corner. Whitney, who rose to prominence after a pessimistic report on Citigroup issued in late 2007 later proved to be painfully accurate, has been zeroed in on the municipal bond sector for some time now as the next market to enter into a freefall. She first turned heads last year when predicting that between 50 and 100 local governments could default on obligations worth hundreds of billions of dollars–a collapse that would almost certainly be felt throughout global financial markets. [click to continue…]

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Three ETFs To Protect Against Rising Taxes

by Eric Dutram on June 11, 2010

Massive budget deficits brought on by years of reckless spending and low taxes have put many cash-strapped nations such as Greece and Spain in impossible positions. These countries now find themselves searching for ways to cut fat from their bloated budgets and get their fiscal houses in order and avoid the financial devastation that comes [...]

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Muni Bond ETFs: New York vs. California

by Michael Johnston on March 26, 2010

With interest rates near record lows and expected to remain there for the foreseeable future, many investors have begun searching for alternatives to Treasuries that offer more attractive yields (see Five Bond ETFs For Yield-Hungry Investors). Junk bonds and closed-end funds have been popular choices, but some investors in higher tax brackets have embraced municipal [...]

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New York Muni Bond ETFs In Focus

by Michael Johnston on January 4, 2010

Municipal bonds have long been a favorite of those who fall into high tax brackets, as the favorable treatment of dividend and principal payments can translate into an impressive taxable equivalent yield. These debt instruments are issued by state governments and local municipalities, and are generally supported by either the taxing power of the or [...]

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