Checking In

The vast majority of traditional long-only ETFs focus on just one specific asset class, be it bonds, commodities or stocks. However, multi-asset and asset allocation products are increasing in number and popularity with investors who want a little bit of everything, or least more than one asset...

When it comes to ETFs devoted to Germany, the Euro Zone's largest economy, there's just four on the market today, a number that some might consider to be small given the importance of this country on the global economic stage. Or it can be said that four is enough, but that the assets certainly...

Amidst yet another Europe-induced market calamity, investors are once again embracing the boring-is-beautiful propensities of dividend stocks. Think about it: How many times over the past couple of weeks have you heard someone extol the virtues of dividend stocks and ETFs? A lot. The fact that...

It should be a good thing that the U.S. is known as the Saudi Arabia of natural gas, but the downside of that abundant supply courtesy of various shale plays has been low prices for the clean-burning commodity. So low have prices for natural gas fallen that until a few days ago, futures languished...

In the BRIC acronym, India is the third letter. When it comes to number of ETFs offering exposure to each BRIC nation, India also places third. With about 110 exchange-traded products offering exposure to India, the country has more ETFs and ETNs tracking it than Russia has, but India falls just...

They may have seemed like products whose focus was too narrow and it could have been argued that their audience was also potentially too narrow. Well, volatility ETFs, particularly the "low vol" varietal have proven the naysayers. As has been previously noted, the PowerShares S&P 500 Low...

One emerging markets theme that investors have honed in on over the past few years is the suppose rise of the consumer. From Bangkok to Beijing to Moscow to Mumbai, the emerging markets consumer isn't just a group of people numbering in the billions, it's an investment thesis that is supposed to be...

Let's be honest: Even in this day and age of sexy smartphones, telecom stocks are pretty boring. Verizon (NYSE: VZ), the largest U.S. mobile phone carrier, was one of the three worst performing stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average in the first quarter. Rival AT&T (NYSE: T) has been a Dow...

"Permanent" is strong word in life and in investing. Even Warren Buffett, who has famously said multiple times that his favorite holding period for a stock is "forever," does sell some equity positions from time-to-time. Maybe nothing is forever, but it is possible for investors to own an ETF...

The first-to-market advantage is not one that should be understated or underestimated when it comes to ETFs. Countless ETFs have thrived not because they are the best funds in their particular niche, but simply because they were the first funds to offer investors exposure to a certain concept....

With the debut of the Yorkville High Income MLP ETF (NYSE: YMLP) on Tuesday, the universe of ETFs offering exposure to master limited partnerships is now up to two constituents. The Yorkville High Income MLP ETF marks the debut of the eighth MLP exchange-traded product, but as ETFdb notes, only two...

There has been some talk about ETF closures lately, but if no more ETFs were closed and no more were brought to market for the rest of 2012, by itself iShares would have introduced more new ETFs than have closed. Plenty of those new iShares ETFs could prove to be rivals to previously existing...

For nearly as long as there has been a South American investment theme, that theme has predominantly been about Brazil. Chile's status as the world's largest copper producer adds relevance to that market, but other South American nations such as Colombia and Peru are often left fighting for U.S....

Sure, it's Valentine's Day, but why not have a look an ETF that is most appropriate for St. Patrick's Day? That could only mean the iShares MSCI Ireland Capped Investable Market Index Fund (NYSE: EIRL), the lone ETF devoted to Ireland. In less than three months, the iShares MSCI Ireland Capped...

As has been noted, volatility ETFs are all the rage these days. High volatility, low volatility. There's an ETF for that. Probably more than one. There are even a couple of funds to help minimize volatility in the emerging markets. We'll check in with one today, the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets...