As we put the finishing touches on 2010, the year has shaped up to be one of the most eventful in recent memory for global markets as a number of important events impacted the world economy. Among the events that dominated financial headlines this year were an (ongoing) sovereign debt crisis, the flash crash, a violent volcanic eruption that grounded air traffic for some time in Europe, a major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and another wave of quantitative easing aimed to get the U.S. back on track. Equities have struggled to fall into a pattern, as the S&P 500 started the year off around 1,132, and has managed to fight through uncertainty to gain around 100 points on the year. Overall, a 100 point gain seems solid from the outside looking in, but halfway through 2010, the S&P was down 100 points from its opening level, showing how tumultuous this year has been.
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Following a year that saw some of the worst performances in recent memory, many asset classes have bounced back in 2009. But some have performed better than others, and as the year draws to a close we take a look at some of the best-performing ETFs. The year’s top gainers include a few of the […]
by Eric Dutram on November 12, 2009 | Updated November 1, 2012
While most investors are well aware of gold’s unprecedented march to $1,900/oz., far fewer are familiar with the yellow metal’s often overlooked cousin, silver. Although silver has flown under the radar, many investors consider the metal to be a sound investment due to robust industrial demand, its traditional role as a store of value, and […]
One of Europe’s most prominent ETF sponsors has jumped across the pond, making its initial foray into the U.S. markets. ETF Securities (ETFS), which has about $12 billion invested in more than 130 products worldwide, launched the ETFS Silver Trust (SIVR) on Friday. The new fund will trade on the NYSE Arca Exchange, and has […]