ETF Deathwatch for August 2010
The number of exchange-traded products (ETPs) on ETF Deathwatch climbed again this month to 146 (110 ETFs and 36 ETNs). This is a 9.8% increase from last month and the largest quantity since fourteen months ago when the count stood at 150. There are currently 108 products that have been granted temporary...
BRAF: An ETF Targeting Brazil’s Financial Sector
The Global X Brazil Financials ETF (BRAF) began trading yesterday (July 29, 2010). This is first ETF to target Brazil’s financial sector and the third of six planned Brazil ETFs from Global X Funds. According to the press release, the financial sector in Brazil is large and benefits from a decade...
SmartMoney Talks with Ron Rowland About ETF Industry Growth
SmartMoney interviewed me for an article dated July 16, 2010 about the growth of the ETF industry and how the competitive landscape is changing. Will Swarts’ article, “ETF Report Card: Bullishly Treading Water“, includes data from State Street Global Advisors and additional discussions...
LIT: Not a Pure Play On Lithium
Global X Lithium ETF (LIT) was listed for trading last Friday (7/23/10). The new ETF tracks the Solactive Global Lithium Index, which is designed to reflect performance of the largest and most liquid lithium battery producing and mining and refining companies in the world. It is not a pure play on...
EMLC: Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF From Market Vectors
ETF sponsors continue to impress with their ability to sniff out new market niches around which to build products. Van Eck is among the best in this regard. Last week (7/23/10) the firm introduced Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC), a fund whose name describes exactly...
Select Sector SPDR Trust Files Frivolous Suit On Invesco Over ETF Ticker Symbols
I’m not a lawyer but… This appears to me to be one of most frivolous investment-related lawsuits ever. The complaint filed Thursday (7/22/10) in U.S. District Court, Houston by the Select Sector SPDR Trust (”SPDR”) accuses Invesco PowerShares (and related companies) of trademark infringement...
AADR: Actively Managed International ETF
AdvisorShares WCM/BNY Mellon Focused Growth ADR ETF (AADR) began trading July 21, 2010. Its objective is long-term capital appreciation that beats international benchmarks by focusing on high-quality, large-cap, non-U.S. companies via American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). This is the third actively-managed...
iShares Completes Rollout of All-Country ex-US Sector Suite
Back in January, BlackRock announced four new international sector suites under the iShares brand and launched the first five ETFs within those suites. Last Friday (7/16/10), iShares completed the rollout on one of these suites, the All-Country World Index excluding US, with nine new ETFs. The underlying...
Direxion Offers 2x Retail and Natural Gas
Expansion of the leveraged ETF menu continued this week with the (7/14/2010) launch by Direxion of long and short 2x sector ETFs for the Retail and Natural Gas sectors. Direxion now offers a total of 38 leveraged ETFs, according to the firm’s press release. The new funds are: Direxion Daily...
MLPG: Riding the MLP Popularity Wave
A little more than three months ago, at the end of March, only one exchange-traded product (ETP) focused on Master Limited Partnerships, or MLPs. Now, with yesterday’s (7/14/10) introduction of UBS E-TRACS Alerian Natural Gas MLP Index ETN (MLPG), there are five such products. A 400% increase...
