FocusShares To Shut Down Losing ETFs
October 8, 2008 – Another set of exchange traded funds (ETFs) is going to join the casualty list soon. FocusShares Trust is going to close up four of their funds as of Oct. 20, 2008. Their last day of trading... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Resilient In Face of Housing Crisis
September 26, 2008 – The housing market crisis and its continued effect on exchange traded funds (ETFs) isn’t over yet. KB Home (KBH) is one of the nation’s largest homebuilders, and it’s not immune from the troubles: its third-quarter loss... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETF And Existing Sales Begin To Wilt
September 24, 2008 – The wilting housing market is showing no signs of life, as existing home prices fall and real estate- and home construction-related exchange traded funds (ETFs) stall out. As of August, the United States suffered a record... Continue Reading »

Home Construction Report Tears Down ETFs
September 17, 2008 – Home construction exchange traded funds (ETFs) are feeling some pain today after housing construction fell to its lowest point in 17 years. The building of new homes and apartments fell by 6.2% in August, a shock... Continue Reading »

Tom Lydon Talks Dollar, Homebuilders ETFs on Fox Business
September 15, 2008 – Tom Lydon was on Fox Business earlier today and spoke with anchors David Asman and Liz Claman, as well as fellow guest Jud Pyle. The conversation centered around homebuilders exchange traded funds (ETFs) and the... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETFs Make A Comeback, If Only For An Instant
September 6, 2008 – August was an unpredictable month for exchange traded funds (ETFs), as the funds that were from last year’s weakest sectors went through a reversal. The U.S. dollar regained its strength against other major currencies, and precious... Continue Reading »

Short, Financial ETFs Stand Tall As Investors Back Away From Oil, Commodities
August 24, 2008 – The last week notwithstanding, there has been a trend away from commodities and the exchange traded funds (ETFs) that track them as the price of oil takes a step back. It’s led to a rebound for... Continue Reading »

Inflation, Housing Numbers Show ETFs, Markets Still In the Thick Of It
August 19, 2008 – Life is getting more expensive these days, and exchange traded funds (ETFs) could reflect it. Wholesale prices are shooting up at their fastest clip since 1981. Inflation surged 1.2% in July, more than twice what had... Continue Reading »

Look At Facts Before Pointing to Homebuilder ETF Rally
August 5, 2008 – Homebuilding exchange traded funds (ETFs) have been seeing a nice rally in the last month, but is it for real? One Merrill Lynch economist says there are a few factors that indicate that it probably isn’t,... Continue Reading »

Bailout Provisions Don’t Have ETFs Whooping and Cheering
July 30, 2008 – The pen might be mightier than the sword, especially if real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) have something to say about it. President Bush signed a major housing bill that is meant to provide mortgage relief... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Trade Nervously Lower Ahead of Earnings News
July 28, 2008 – Meritage Homes Corporation (MTH) is expected to deliver their second-quarter earnings numbers, but investors and exchange traded funds (ETFs) aren’t exuding positivity ahead of the news. Meritage is the 12th-largest homebuilder in the United States. If the... Continue Reading »

Existing Home Sales Take Down Real Estate ETFs
July 24, 2008 – Some stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) are trading lower today after existing home sales fell in June. The 2.6% drop was more than twice what had been expected, reports Martin Crutsinger for the Associated Press.... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Up While Housing Prices Fall
July 22, 2008 – Homebuilding exchange traded funds (ETFs) are up this morning, while the cost of buying a home in the United States have posted a record drop. Prices fell 4.8% in May from the same month in 2007,... Continue Reading »

Building Up With Materials ETFs
July 18, 2008 – When it comes to investing, exchange traded funds (ETFs) make it easy to access specific sectors. While some sectors have become beaten-down in recent months (hello, financials and homebuilders), others have been poster children for success,... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Get a Lift From Reports, But the Numbers Are Skewed
July 17, 2008 – Homebuilding exchange traded funds (ETFs) are up sharply in trading this morning after reports that single-family home construction fell while a new law in New York gave a boost to apartments buildings. Single-family homebuilding lost 5.3%... Continue Reading »

Foreclosures and Real Estate ETFs Demonstrate Inverse Relationship
July 10, 2008 – Homebuilder and real estate focused exchange traded funds (ETFs) are feeling down today after the latest round of news about foreclosure filings came in. Filings rose 53% in June from the previous year - just another... Continue Reading »

Construction Spending Slips in May, Lands on Homebuilder ETFs
July 1, 2008 – Homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs) were deflated at the news about a further slump in construction spending as the housing crisis deepened. For the month of May, it was down 0.4%, making it the 11th... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder, Financial Losses Give ETFs Mixed Results
June 27, 2008 – The woes for the financial and homebuilding sectors continued today, while related exchange traded funds (ETFs) differed in their reactions. Bank of America (BAC) announced job cuts of 7,500 upon closing its acquisition of Countrywide... Continue Reading »

Homes Sales and Prices Fall, Real Estate ETFs Head Up
June 25, 2008 – Bargain hunters once again are emerging, seeking out real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) after more bad news from the sector was released this morning. New home sales fell for the sixth time in seven... Continue Reading »

ETFs and Sectors to Watch In the Second Half of 2008
June 24, 2008 – Those who prefer investing with exchange traded funds (ETFs) may have bountiful choices to pick from, as there are several areas worth watching for the latter half of 2008. Can you believe we’re already just about halfway through... Continue Reading »

Can the Housing Slump and ETFs Rebound Like Rodman?
June 23, 2008 – A study by some at Harvard University showing that the United States has challenges when it comes to trying to reverse the housing slump is challenging exchange traded funds (ETFs) as well. The record number... Continue Reading »

Real Estate ETFs Can Forget The Granite! (And The Crown Moulding)
June 23, 2008 – Bargain hunters waiting for the bottom of the real estate market to drop out shouldn’t hold their breath, as an inventory glut, price-cutting standoffs and economic conditions continue to weigh down homeowners and exchange... Continue Reading »

In Slicing Up the Dow’s ETF Sectors, a Picture Emerges
June 17, 2008 – The past few weeks have been hard on investors and their sector-focused exchange traded funds (ETFs). But not all sectors are suffering equally. A glance at the Diamonds Trust (DIA), which tracks the Dow Jones industrial... Continue Reading »

Home Construction Falls Off and Pulls Down Related ETFs
June 2, 2008 – Homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs) found themselves scurrying from the wrecking ball in early trading when the construction spending numbers came out. The Commerce Department said that construction activity fell 0.4% in April, continuing a... Continue Reading »

Backlog of Unsold Homes Rises, Homebuilder ETFs Fall
May 23, 2008 – Real estate and homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs) are down sharply midday after reports that there are more unsold homes in the United States than there have been for 23 years. The National Association of... Continue Reading »

Prices Vex Economy and Help ETFs; Forecasts Are That Next Year May Be Better
May 19, 2008 – Another week, another round of rising prices that may affect exchange traded funds (ETFs) across the board. It’s the same-old, same-old with oil and gas prices: high, higher and highest. Americans are now paying an average... Continue Reading »

Sector ETFs Gain Financial Advisors’ Preference
May 19, 2008 – Statistics reveal that financial advisors are starting to prefer sector-focused exchange traded funds (ETFs) over individual stocks. Broad-based ETF assets are down lately due to the state of the market, reports Jesse Emspak for... Continue Reading »

Some Good News For Housing and ETFs, But It’s Still Mostly Bad
May 16, 2008 – The housing sector finally delivered some good news, but so far in trading today the exchange traded funds (ETFs) related to the sector aren’t having it. Home construction saw its biggest increase in more than... Continue Reading »

Home Foreclosures and Food Prices Up and ETFs Are Mixed
May 14, 2008 – Real estate and home builder exchange traded funds (ETFs) are mostly higher this morning, even after foreclosures shot higher in April. The number of U.S. homeowners falling behind on their mortgage payments rose 65% last... Continue Reading »

Home Sales and Retail Numbers Drop, But ETFs Trying to Keep Status Quo
May 13, 2008 – The markets and exchange traded funds (ETFs) appear to be mostly chewing on the news about retail and housing before they make any rash moves. The price of a single-family home dropped 7.7% in the first... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETFs Don’t Seem to Be Reaping Rewards of Rate Cuts
May 8, 2008 – Homebuilders stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) are going to need more than the total of 3.25% interest rate cuts if they are going to be helped. That’s according to Nicholas Yulico for The... Continue Reading »

Real Estate, Homebuilder ETFs Fall With Pending Home Sales Numbers
May 7, 2008 – Homebuilding and real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) reeled from the news that pending home sales hit a new low in March. It was the second consecutive months in which a new low was hit,... Continue Reading »

Disappointing Homebuilding Earnings Drags ETFs
May 6, 2008 – The homebuilding industry announced disappointing first-quarter earnings, dragging down related exchange traded funds (ETFs). The markets were feeling optimistic in the last few weeks because of positive earnings numbers from industries that don’t count themselves... Continue Reading »

ETFs Shrug at Record Vacant Home Highs
April 28, 2008 – Exchange traded funds (ETFs) seemed to sigh "Ho-hum" at the news that the percentage of vacant homes in the United States has reached a record high. The Census Bureau says that 2.9% of U.S. homes... Continue Reading »

Real Estate ETFs Spike Higher After Dismal Home Numbers
April 24, 2008 – Homebuilding and real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) were up by as much as 2.5% or more in midday trading, despite a dismal report saying that new home sales were perched at their lowest level... Continue Reading »

Existing Home Sales Numbers Put Damper On Housing ETFs
April 22, 2008 – The housing slump continued through March, and home-related exchange traded funds (ETFs) reflected this morning’s latest numbers. The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing single-family homes and condominiums fell by 2% in March.... Continue Reading »

Home Construction Falls Off, ETFs Shoot Up
April 16, 2008 – Are investors finding bargain opportunities with home construction exchange traded funds (ETFs)? The Commerce Department reported today that home construction dropped in March to a 17-year low, by 11.9%, reports Martin Crutsinger for the Associated... Continue Reading »

Pending Home Sales Hit Low; ETFs Aren’t Out of the Woods Yet
April 8, 2008 – Homebuilder and real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) may have been showing strong performance over the last month, but that doesn’t mean our housing problem is over. In February, pending home sales hit a new... Continue Reading »

Home Construction ETFs Appear to Be Making Amends for Last Year
April 3, 2008 – It’s down slightly today, but the home construction exchange traded fund (ETF) has been posting stellar gains so far this year. Yesterday, the iShares U.S. Home Construction (ITB) came within touching distance of its 200-day... Continue Reading »

New Quarter, New Start for Some ETFs
April 1, 2008 – 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... Continue Reading »

Homebuilding ETFs Take a Jab, But Keep On Plugging
April 1, 2008 – The Institute for Supply Management came out with February numbers that homebuilders exchange traded funds (ETFs) aren’t going to enjoy. Manufacturing contracted and construction spending fell again in February, and homebuilding fell for a... Continue Reading »

March ETF Performance Report
March 31, 2008 – The adage that March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb certainly held true for the markets this month. Several days this month saw wild movement in the markets, sometimes... Continue Reading »

New Home Sales Report Leaves Real Estate ETFs Glum
March 26, 2008 – Real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) took a hit today on the news that new home sales fell for the fourth consecutive month. The Commerce Department says that sales were down 1.8%, the slowest pace in... Continue Reading »

Commodity ETFs Shine On a Gloomy Day
March 25, 2008 – Metal and agriculture exchange traded funds (ETFs) retained their bounce today, refusing to be brought down in the wake of bad news from other sectors such as financials, consumer and housing. Last week, there was... Continue Reading »

Financial and Real Estate Numbers Keep Markets, ETFs Busy
March 25, 2008 – A flurry of activity and reports on Wall Street today sent exchange traded funds (ETFs) moving in every direction. Financials took a hit on the news that Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. (MER) had its... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETFs Stage a Turnaround
March 24, 2008 – Two exchange traded funds (ETFs) in one of last year’s weakest sectors, home construction, are beginning to show renewed vigor. In the last two weeks, both SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) and iShares Dow Jones... Continue Reading »

Prices Up, Home Construction Down, But ETFs Don’t Get the Memo
March 18, 2008 – If you were just going by the performance of certain exchange traded funds (ETFs) in intraday trading, you wouldn’t think some bad news about the housing and retail sectors had just come out. First, wholesale... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders Shares And ETFs Rally Off Fed’s New Plan
March 14, 2008 – Shares of homebuilders and related exchange traded funds (ETFs) rose on news of the government’s new plan to stop the significant mortgage foreclosures. iShares Dow Jones US Home Construction (ITB) jumped up 7% yesterday, while... Continue Reading »

Housing and Financial ETFs Take Their Lumps
March 6, 2008 – Financial stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) declined after shares of Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. (MER) fell to their lowest level in four-and-a-half years. The drop came after the bank said it was getting... Continue Reading »

Construction, Manufacturing Numbers and ETFs Head Lower
March 3, 2008 – Manufacturing and construction numbers came in, giving related exchange traded funds (ETFs) a punch to the gut in intraday trading. U.S. manufacturing activity dropped in February to its lowest point in nearly five years, reports Madlen... Continue Reading »

Housing and Consumer Reports Are Good News for Investors Who Love Bad News
February 26, 2008 – Bad news about the economy continues to flow in from all corners, but it doesn’t seem to be dragging certain exchange traded funds (ETFs) down with it at the moment. The Consumer Confidence Index fell to... Continue Reading »

If the Bottom Is In Sight, Is It Time to Snap Up ETF Bargains?
February 25, 2008 – New existing home sales numbers are in, and home construction and real estate exchange traded funds (ETFs) went higher on investors’ hopes that the slump is approaching the bottom. Martin Crutsinger for the Associated Press... Continue Reading »

Consumer, Housing Numbers Roll In, But Will ETFs Feel It?
February 20, 2008 – Worries continue to plague both the retail and housing sectors and exchange traded funds (ETFs) as more numbers are released today that show signs of creeping inflation. The Labor Department reported today that the consumer price... Continue Reading »

Bernanke’s Comments Weigh On Homebuilders And ETFs
February 19, 2008 – Ben Bernanke’s sentiment and comments toward the homebuilder sector is continuing to echo through related stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs). Shares of homebuilders were trading even lower Friday for the second session as... Continue Reading »

Denial May Make Real Estate And ETFs Miserable Longer
February 14, 2008 – It appears De Nile is not just a river in Egypt, as homeowners will not accept that their home has lost value over the past year, evidenced by the state of the market and... Continue Reading »

Some ETFs Experience a Reversal of Fortune
February 12, 2008 –   It isn’t all doom and gloom: some exchange traded funds(ETFs) are experiencing a reversal of fortune during these trying economic times. The performance for the past month of these lucky ETFs are listed: ProShares UltraShort... Continue Reading »

Some Sector ETFs’ Performance Signals Optimism
February 9, 2008 – The bear is storming through technology exchange traded funds (ETFs), a result of spillover from the subprime, financial and real estate crises. It’s not as ugly as the 2000-20002 meltdown, says Gary Gordon for ETF... Continue Reading »

Could Pending Home Sales Report Dampen Real Estate ETFs?
February 7, 2008 – Pending U.S. home sales fell 1.5% in December, proof that the housing market is even more sour than anticipated, but what could it mean for real estate-related exchange traded funds (ETFs)? The funds have... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs - More Bad News Coming or Is It Time To Bottom Fish?
January 28, 2008 – A handful of exchange traded funds (ETFs) that have been under the spotlight lately have been the real estate and homebuilder ETFs. For the past year, investors have seen the value of these ETFs... Continue Reading »

Could More Bad Housing News Carry Over to ETFs?
January 24, 2008 – Despite the fact that homebuilder and real estate-related exchange traded funds (ETFs) have been posting decent numbers over the last few days, you can’t help but wonder if the latest round of bad news... Continue Reading »

Don’t Call It a Comeback for ETFs and the Markets Yet, but It Was a Good Day
January 23, 2008 – It was like the semi-annual running of the brides at Filene’s Basement in Boston: bargain hunters entered the markets today looking for a deal, sending stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) hopping. The Dow Jones... Continue Reading »

Retail, Homebuilders ETFs See The Light
January 23, 2008 – SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) and Retail HOLDRs (RTH) are two of the few exchange traded funds (ETFs) seeing positive numbers these days. Yesterday, XHB was up 8.5% and is up over 4% at the... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETFs Gets a Lift From Report
December 31, 2007 – Home construction exchange traded funds (ETFs), which have been kicked around for much of the year, had a little more bounce in their step today after some good news. According to a report on CNNMoney,... Continue Reading »

Sharpe Ratios on ETF Returns
December 31, 2007 – As you develop your 2008 asset allocation plans, perhaps consider your exchange traded funds’ (ETFs) risk-reward characteristics over time. One way to do this is through William Sharpe’s ratio, which measures the historic risk/reward... Continue Reading »

Foreign Buyers Could Give a Lift to Real Estate ETFs
December 27, 2007 – A boost to the real estate market and its exchange traded funds (ETFs) might be coming from a place we wouldn’t have necessarily expected: overseas. Increasingly, foreign buyers are turning to the U.S. for second... Continue Reading »

Foreclosures Up, Homebuilding and Related ETFs Down
December 19, 2007 – In the face of bad housing news that could continue to effect exchange traded funds (ETFs), a few people are still managing to see the silver lining. First, Alex Veiga at the Associated Press reports... Continue Reading »

A Walk Down Misery Lane for Homebuilders ETFs
December 19, 2007 – The December reading of U.S. homebuilders’ sentiment stayed at a record low for the third consecutive month, meaning bad news for related investment vehicles, such as exchange traded funds (ETFs). The National Association of... Continue Reading »

The Housing Plan 101-Where Do ETF Investors Fit In?
December 10, 2007 – The so-called "Paulson Plan" is the federal government’s proposal to ease the pain of the mortgage meltdown, so how do exchange traded fund (ETF) investors come out ahead in this?  Mike Larson for Money... Continue Reading »

New FocusShares ETFs Really Focused
December 4, 2007 – Many of the new exchange traded funds (ETFs) are known for their focus on a particular investment area, so how about an ETF family named FocusShares? As of Friday the company launched four new... Continue Reading »

Bailout Attempts To Help Homebuyers And Related ETFs
December 4, 2007 – Housing and finance-related stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs) are downright depressing, and the talk of the "teaser freezer" isn’t shedding much light on the situation. The emerging Bush-administration-backed plan is in the works,... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Make Gains After the Fed Makes Hints
December 3, 2007 – Homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be getting a little lift from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s hints that another rate cut could be nigh. Trang Ho of Investor’s Business Daily reports that since the... Continue Reading »

Market and ETF Facts to Consider
November 30, 2007 – There’s a lot going on in the markets and exchange traded funds (ETFs).  Matt Hougan for Index Universe looks at 10 interesting market facts and we’ve added some ETF related information. The U.S. stock market... Continue Reading »

Construction News No Help for Homebuilders ETFs
November 21, 2007 – It may seem that way, but homebuilders exchange traded funds (ETFs) and related stocks haven’t hit bottom yet, with some analysts projecting that it will be the middle of next year before the market... Continue Reading »

Housing ETFs Poised For News This Week
November 19, 2007 – The days before Thanksgiving generally bring good tidings for the stock market and exchange traded funds (ETFs), and Wall Street is awaiting the upcoming housing market reports, says Madlen Read for the Associated Press.... Continue Reading »

More Bad News For Housing and Financial ETFs
November 15, 2007 – The housing market decline hasn’t quite finished and could continue to affect housing and financial exchange traded funds (ETFs).  The Wells Fargo (WFC) CEO reported that this housing market downturn is the worst decline... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Hit Hard
November 7, 2007 – The U.S. housing market bubble has been fizzling out, and it’s taking related exchange traded funds (ETFs) down with it. For much of 2007, the industry has been in crisis mode. Mortgage defaults are... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Building From the Ground Up
November 2, 2007 – It is no secret the homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs) and the sector have been battered. Could it be time for a re-model? The housing focused ETFs and REITs have had a bad year,... Continue Reading »

Financial Related ETFs Hope For Rate Cut
October 26, 2007 – Many financial sector exchange traded funds (ETFs) and Wall Street want the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates again. Learning Merrill Lynch (MER) had to write off $7.9 billion in losses tied to mortgage-related... Continue Reading »

Are Financial ETFs Diamonds or Duds?
October 25, 2007 – It seems everyone has an opinion on financial exchange traded funds (ETFs). Some say financial ETFs are likely to thrive from the rate cut, so now when they are cheap, it’s the perfect time... Continue Reading »

Is It Time to Start Bottom Fishing the Homebuilders ETF?
October 24, 2007 – The homebuilders sector and its corresponding exchange traded fund (ETF) SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) have been the worst performers so far this year, and it hasn’t even been close. Still, many speculators are sticking... Continue Reading »

ETF Investors Likely to Be Strapped for Cash
October 18, 2007 – As houses are going down in value and unemployment is rising, exchange traded fund (ETF) investors have less money to spend in other areas. In fact, unemployment stats show it has risen from 4.5%... Continue Reading »

“Stock Trader’s Almanac” Can Be a Fun Resource for ETF Investors
October 2, 2007 – While we can’t predict what exchange traded funds (ETFs) will do, it’s interesting to look at their trends. One source for this is through the "Stock Trader’s Almanac." Generally speaking, the "Stock Trader’s Almanac" says... Continue Reading »

Are Real Estate ETFs and the Sector Doomed?
September 24, 2007 – For those exchange traded fund (ETF) investors invested in real estate, the forecast for the sector, according to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), is bleak. Earlier this week, the CME extended the futures market... Continue Reading »

ETF Downswings Aren’t Always Doom and Gloom
September 15, 2007 – Is there opportunity in housing exchange traded funds (ETFs) in the current market?  After reading our post in August about housing ETFs falling on home sales news, Selena Maranjian for The Motley Fool went... Continue Reading »

ETFs Want to Know: Who Gets the Blame for the Suprime Fiasco?
September 8, 2007 – As many exchange traded funds (ETFs) have suffered from the subprime mortgage meltdown, investors are looking for whom to blame. In this case, there is no one entity; Central banks, homeowners, lenders, credit-rating agencies,... Continue Reading »

Not All ETFs Are Created Equal
September 7, 2007 – Exchange traded funds (ETFs) might all seem the same to a new investor, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. For example, an ETF in the real estate sector, such as SPDR S&P... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETF Is in the Gutters
September 6, 2007 – It seems the SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) exchange traded fund (ETF) cannot catch a break. It’s still a staggering 47.4% off its high. Every day it seems there’s a new story on the doom... Continue Reading »

Housing and Financial ETFs Could See Another Blow
August 27, 2007 – The markets and many exchange traded funds (ETFs) declined today partially in response to the news that the sales of existing homes fell in July for the fifth consecutive month. Sales of existing homes... Continue Reading »

High Foreclosures Hurt Financial and Home-related ETFs
August 21, 2007 – As record home foreclosures occur around the country, it’s no wonder financial and home-related exchange traded funds (ETFs) are suffering. Foreclosure filings rose 9% from June to July and surged 93% from the same... Continue Reading »

ETFs Put to the Test
August 20, 2007 – The recent turbulent markets have given many new exchange traded funds (ETFs) their first performance test. ETFs that track broad stock-market indexes performed as expected. Narrowly-focused ETFs and ETFs that use complex strategies to... Continue Reading »

10 ETFs That Have Dropped During the Recent Market Decline
August 17, 2007 – As of market close yesterday, the S&P was 9.1% off its recent high, but some exchange traded funds (ETFs) have given back two or three times as much. Having an exit strategy helps protect... Continue Reading »

XHB Homebuilders ETF Plummets
August 15, 2007 – The SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) exchange traded fund (ETF) declined sharply on the news that sales of existing homes dropped in 41 states during April and June. It ended the day down 4.1%. In... Continue Reading »

Homebuilding ETFs Go from Losers to Winners Overnight
August 8, 2007 – We mentioned yesterday what a coincidence it was that the exchange traded fund (ETF) iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (ITB) went up about 5% the same day the Federal Reserve report was released.... Continue Reading »

The Biggest Loser ETF Sector
July 27, 2007 – Pretty much all exchange traded fund (ETF) sectors have taken a beating recently with the market down. The Biotech HOLDRs (BBH) is the only fund up in this last week, and it was up... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETF Rumor Spreads
July 16, 2007 – Rumor has it that the SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) exchange traded fund (ETF) increased 2.5% because Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway could purchase a stake in Hovanian Enterprises Inc (HOV). HOV makes up 4.2% of XHB.... Continue Reading »

Subprime Industry’s Financial Disease Spreads to ETFs, Continues to Make Them Weaker
July 12, 2007 – Subprime industry woes have been negatively affecting various sectors and exchange traded funds (ETFs) since early this year. (Although some might argue the subprime industry slip started earlier than that.) As this industry sinks,... Continue Reading »

Ebbs and Flows for ETFs That Follow the Housing Market
July 10, 2007 – Slow job growth, tapped-out consumers and low home prices are influencing home-related exchange traded funds (ETFs). The SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) has lost 21% year-to-date. Holdings include D R Horton (DHI), Home Depot (HD),... Continue Reading »

Homebuilders ETF Not Building Up
May 18, 2007 – One of the worst performing sectors for exchange traded funds (ETFs) this year has been the homebuilders. The Department of Commerce reports construction permits fell 8.9% to a ten-year low.  This drop is also... Continue Reading »

March ETFs Out Like a Lion
March 30, 2007 – March 30th trading ended the month and quarter on a mixed note.  All-in-all, domestic and global exchange traded funds (ETFs) were up for the month. Markets rebounded from the lows hit earlier in the... Continue Reading »

Which ETFs Will The Subprime Affect
March 28, 2007 – With the recent issues in the subprime industry, it is important to keep in mind the exchange traded funds (ETFs) that could be affected.  Residential homebuilders is one area that has traded lower, SPDR... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs On The Verge
March 14, 2007 – There may be darkness for homebuilder exchange traded funds (ETFs). According to D.R. Horton (DHI) President Donald Tomnitz, the homebuilding market "is going to suck, all 12 months of the calender year". In addition,... Continue Reading »

Home Building ETFs Building Up
February 13, 2007 – Home building stocks were way down last year but exchange traded funds (ETFs) with this focus have been building themselves up. iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction Index Fund (ITB) ended 2006 down 15%... Continue Reading »

Home - Building, Depot, ETFs
January 4, 2007 – Homebuilders exchange traded funds (ETFs) won’t appreciate the latest news from Lennar (LEN). The 2007 outlook is empty, as the company is writing down the value of real estate and options on land they... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETF And Economy In A Slump
December 29, 2006 – Investors who own the SPDR Homebuilders (XHB) exchange traded fund (ETF) may be disappointed in the housing slump. In the third quarter the economy expanded a mere 2%, bogged down by the worst decline... Continue Reading »

ETFs To The Tax Rescue
December 21, 2006 – Brett Arends of TheStreet.com gives some good advice on selling a stock for a gain and keeping exposure - buy an exchange traded fund (ETF). Investors in stocks, bonds or funds are looking at... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETF May Be Excellent Short
December 14, 2006 – Will the stock market, your exchange traded funds (ETFs), and the U.S. economy be able to  weather the housing market cool off? Prices have continued to decline, variable rate mortgages are now kicking in... Continue Reading »

ETF Trends - Real Estate - Homebuilding
October 17, 2006 – With the decline in residential real estate prices hitting full stride, it might be wise holding off buying that vacation home.  The recent run up in homebuilder stocks and exchange traded funds may seem... Continue Reading »

ETFs in REITs
September 20, 2006 – Exchange traded funds that focus on real estate have been hitting new highs lately.  iShares Cohen and Steers Realty Majors (ICF) is up 25% year-to-date and iShares Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate (IYR) is... Continue Reading »

Homebuilding ETFs Hit By Oversupply Slump
August 10, 2006 – The current slump in residential construction is hitting homebuilding exchange traded funds.  The housing and homebuilding markets have helped drive the national economy during the past few years and this is the first slowdown... Continue Reading »

Homebuilder ETFs Perform
August 3, 2006 – Homebuilding exchange traded funds were the top performers for today’s trading.  The top three ETF slots were filled by iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (ITB) up 4.4%, SPDR Homebuilders (XHB) gained 4.2% and... Continue Reading »

New ETFs Launched by State Street
February 8, 2006 – State Street Global Advisors, or SSgA, just added three sector SPDRs to its lineup. The Biotech SPDR (XBI), Homebuilders SPDR (XHB ) and Semiconductor SPDR (XSD ) are trading on the American Stock Exchange. SSgA introduced the first ETF... Continue Reading »