Health Care ETFs have outperformed the broader market over the last month. They’ve been competitive over the previous 3 months. Even though I have not been a buyer of diversified health care funds, I recognize the possibility of “value” there. Consumer Staples ETFs are another story altogether. Granted, the segment has the reputation for “Steady Eddie” [...] Continue Reading...
The population of the world may hit 10 billion by 2050. This fact alone has a number of investors eager to tap a “people explosion theme” that involves conspicuous consumption; indeed, we’ve got to feed and dress hundreds of millions more every few years. Global X, however, is traveling a different path. Specifically, the management and disposal of the earth’s [...] Continue Reading...
Riding the China equity wave since the 3rd week of February hasn’t been that difficult. There have been dozens of reasons — fundamental, technical, contrarian, historical — to revisit the mainland. (See “3 More Reasons To Rethink Your China Allocation.”) On the other hand, selecting the best exchange-traded fund for the job may not have been as [...] Continue Reading...
Some Sector ETFs remain healthy. Others, like Financials and Technology, may require resuscitation. For instance, the threat of rising interest rates as well as erratic oil trading has pressured the Financial Select SPDR (XLF) in 2011. The exchange-traded sector fund trailed the S&P 500 by 200 basis points in the first quarter alone. However, both JP Morgan and Bank of America report this [...] Continue Reading...
Although I can’t prove it, 90% of mutual fund managers interviewed on CNBC love energy and technology. They loved the same sectors last year. And who could blame them? Both sectors are tied to a global economic cycle that has been expanding. What’s more, mutual fund managers are paid to be bullish on stocks. Worse yet, I can’t [...] Continue Reading...
In Q1 alone, Canadian ETFs witnessed an 8.4% increase in assets under management. One reason? Canada is the second largest non-OPEC provider of crude. In a word, investors have been taking advantage of Canadian ETFs as a way to profit from oil’s rise to $110+ per barrel. Of course, many might argue that Canadian ETFs have been overplayed or “overbought.” In fact, some [...] Continue Reading...
Earnings Growth And ETFs, Sector ETFs, Overvalued And Undervalued ETFs, Emerging Market ETFs, Russia ETFs, Asia & Malaysia ETFs Click here to listen to the show: 4-10-11 Continue Reading...
Months ago, equity market “pros” pounded China mercilessly. China real estate was the next bubble to burst. Inflation was spiraling out of control. And commodity stockpiling was proof-positive that China was dead in the dry-bulk shipping water. Well, some folks had a far different perception. For instance, I spoke at the 4th annual Inside ETF Conference on “Accessing Asia [...] Continue Reading...
The Stock ETF rally has its supporters and its detractors. Those who have concerns point to low volume as well as the absence of a 10%+ pullback in 9 months. Yet high volume currency trading as well as bond activity may suggest a bull market breather… not a bear. One possibility is to look at regions of the world where corporations and the middle class [...] Continue Reading...
Prevailing wisdom suggests that low-volume stock rallies tend to end with a thud. So what should investors make of the fact that the S&P 500 SPDR Trust (SPY) has traded less than the average number of shares for thirteen consecutive sessions? My experience tells me that investors are merely waiting for something… anything… to happen. Perhaps its [...] Continue Reading...
