May 17
China and its exchange traded funds (ETFs) have stalled somewhat in the momentum built up in the second half of 2009, but don’t let that get you down. There’s still plenty happening in the economy to pique investor interest – with caution.
China’s economy is a powerhouse, no question:
- China’s GDP grew 11.9% in the first quarter.
- Inflation has remained at a low 2.2%.
- Lending has practically doubled in Beijing.
On the problematic side are three things:
- China’s many state-owned companies have long concerned investors. State investment now accounts for 95% of the country’s growth. That increased investment has led to further growth of the “state sector,” which has decreased consumption in the Chinese economy. Consumption now a
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Tags: Etfs, Etfs Caution
May 17
Silver has long lingered in gold’s more gleaming shadow, yet it’s been outperforming the yellow metal year-to-date. After the jump, find out why silver presents a more bullish case than gold and which exchange traded funds (ETFs) can help you take advantage.
J. Edwards for Minyanville gives us a few reasons why silver could re-stock your portfolio:
- The gold-to-silver ratio: The gold-to-silver ratio tells us how much silver it would take to buy one ounce of gold. Since 1840, it has ranged between 1:15 to 1:97. Right now, the ratio sits around 1:63. Many analysts believe that this ratio is currently out of whack and will return to historical levels. To
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Tags: Bullish Case, Silver
May 17
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) just got a lot more interesting. You can now buy ETFs that act like fixed income securities but still have the inherent advantage of diversification! How cool is that?
It’s actually pretty cool. The new funds, which launched in January, fall under a new family of iShares ETFs called the Muni Series. Basically, these funds are structured to track an index of AMT-free, investment grade and non-callable municipal bonds. What sets these funds apart is that they all have an end-date, upon which the fund will distribute substantially all of its net assets. []
The iShares Muni Series trade on an exchange just like other ETFs and generate monthly income on top of an end-date distribution. A
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Tags: Etfs, Etfs End