Financial, homebuilder and retail exchange traded funds (ETFs) were among the biggest winners on a day when the Dow Jones industrial average rose nearly 400 points.

Although Swiss bank UBS (UBS) and Deutsche Bank (DB) announced write-downs in the billions, UBS issued new shares to help lift their balance sheets. With that, investors seemed willing to make some bets that the worst of the damage from the credit crisis is behind them, says Joe Bel Bruno for the Associated Press.

Another boost of confidence came from the Institute for Supply Management, which said its March index of national manufacturing activity rose to 48.6. The number indicates a contraction, albeit a slower one than in February. Construction spending numbers also were better than expected.

The top unleveraged ETFs today were:

• First Trust Consumer Staples Alpha DEX Fund (FXG), up 13.2%
• PowerShares Dynamic Retail Portfolio (PMR), up 8.4%
• iShares Dow Jones U.S. Broker-Dealers (IAI), up 8.1%
• SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB), up 8%
• iShares Dow Jones U.S. Financial Services Index Fund (IYG), up 7.8%

For full disclosure, some of Tom Lydon’s clients own shares of XHB.

Tags: Consumer Staples, Dow Jones Industrial Average, Financial, Homebuilders, Real Estate, Retail