August 07, 2008 at 10:00 am by Tom Lydon
Last month, the U.S. dollar staged a rally, but foreign currency exchange traded funds (ETFs) still pulled through with some decent performance.
The top performer was the WisdomTree South African Rand (SZR), which returned 7.6% in July, reports Jesse Emspak for Investors Business Daily.
Although the dollar rose up against the British pound and yen, it fell against the rand by 5.4%.
Also ahead of the dollar were the BRIC currencies, particularly the WisdomTree Dreyfus Brazilian Real (BZF). The fund was up 3.3% for the month.
The dollar has fallen against the Mexican peso by 8.2% since the start of the year. CurrencyShares Mexican Peso Trust (FXM), up 13% year-to-date, reflects this.
Among the funds that have one-year records, the numbers are impressive:
- CurrencyShares Euro Trust (FXE) is up 18% in the last year
- CurrencyShares Australian Dollar Trust (FXA) is up 17.1% in the last year, although it has taken a hit in the last month by falling 1.3%
Some of the top-performing funds belong to currencies in emerging markets. Why? High interest rates.
Read the disclosure, as Tom Lydon is a board member of Rydex Funds.
Tags | Australia, Australian Dollar, Brazil, Brazilian Real, BZF, Emerging Markets, Euro, FXA, FXE, FXM, Latin America, Mexican Peso, Mexico, South Africa, SZR
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August 7th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
how can one short the euro ie will drop as it relates to usd thanks
August 7th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Mark,
You can go long or short on the euro with these funds:
* Market Vectors Double Short Euro (DRR)
* Market Vectors Double Long Euro (URR)