New ETF Targets 5 of 10 ASEAN Countries
Global X today (2/17/11) introduced the newest member of its regional ETF offerings with the launch of Global X FTSE ASEAN 40 ETF (ASEA). There are 10 countries that currently comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), but ASEA holds the 40 largest companies from just five of them. The...
Fidelity Increases Commission-Free ETFs to 31
Consumers everywhere agree – price wars are the best wars on the planet. The ETF trading commission price war makes ETF investors happy and their wallets a little thicker. Fidelity today (2/16/11) announced the addition of five more iShares ETFs to its $0 commission lineup. This brings the total...
The Impending Collapse of the 30% Premium for EGPT
Note: The Egyptian Exchange extended the closure multiple time. Therefore, the timeline for the collapse scenario outlined below has been delayed. The premium for EGPT will disappear once share creation resumes, which is estimated to be one or two market days after the Egyptian Exchange reopens. Many...
EGPT Now 50% Cash With A Hefty Premium For That Cash
Van Eck has created a problem for itself and for shareholders of the Market Vectors Egypt ETF (EGPT) launched last February. From the prospectus (pdf): Risk of Cash Transactions: Unlike most other ETFs, the Fund expects to effect creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. Index...
Vanguard Launches Its 2nd All World Ex-US ETF
Vanguard last Friday (1/28/11) introduced the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS), which seeks to track the MSCI All Country World ex USA Investable Market Index. The VXUS expense ratio is 0.20%, making it the lowest priced offering in its category. The snapshot page does not offer much additional...
Socially Responsible Developed Markets ETF Launched
ESG Shares Pax MSCI EAFE ESG Index ETF (EAPS) began trading last Friday (1/28/11) and seeks to track a socially responsible index from MSCI. The underlying index consists of equity securities from companies that have high environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) ratings from MSCI. Like other...
HDGE: The First Actively-Managed Short Selling ETF
Retail investors seeking an actively-managed short selling solution have traditionally had very few choices. The menu expanded last Thursday (1/27/11) with the introduction of AdvisorShares Active Bear ETF (HDGE), the first actively-managed short selling fund in an ETF format. HDGE seeks capital appreciation...
3 New SPDR Equal-Weighted Industry ETFs
State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) last Thursday (1/27/11) announced the addition of three new equal-weighted industry ETFs to their lineup. The new offerings are SPDR S&P Transportation ETF (XTN), SPDR S&P Telecom ETF (XTL), and SPDR S&P Health Care Equipment ETF (XHE). This brings the...
Target Maturity Junk Bond ETFs From Guggenheim
According to Morningstar, the DWS Core Plus Income Fund (SCSBX) was introduced in April 1928 and is still here today. Bond mutual funds have been around for more than 80 years, and arguments against them have been around for nearly as long. The chief complaint – bond funds continually roll their...
Global X Introduces First Emerging Markets Growth and Value ETFs
Global X yesterday (1/25/11) launched two new ETFs targeting the growth and value segments of emerging markets: Global X Russell Emerging Markets Growth ETF (EMGX) and Global X Russell Emerging Markets Value ETF (EMVX). The underlying Russell indexes include only the largest stocks (MegaCaps) from the...
