The Global X FTSE Greece 20 ETF (NYSEArca:GREK) was the
single-best-performing ETF in the past week ended Thursday, Oct.
18, racing more than 12 percent higher as the market awaited a
European Union summit expected to address financial aid for some of
Europe's troubled regions.
Helping fuel GREK's momentum was a sharp decline in Greece's
10-year bond yields, which dropped below 17 percent to their lowest
levels yet this year, and are now nearly half what they were just
weeks ago. The gains came as the Dow Jones industrial average
rallied 1.66 percent.
Another Europe-focused ETF to post gains this week was the
iShares MSCI Spain Index Fund (NYSEArca:EWP), which rose 6.7
percent. The ETF saw nearly 3 million shares change hands in the
five-day period. Spain has yet to make an official request for a
bailout, but many see that as all but a certainty.
On the U.S. equities front, homebuilder ETFs were again major
gainers in the past week, extending their run as some of the
strongest performers in the ETF market year-to-date. The latest
shot in the arm came courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau, which
reported that home construction in the U.S. is the strongest it's
been in four years.
The latest data helped fuel what many see as the makings of a
turnaround in the U.S. housing market just a few short months after
home price indexes forged new cycle lows since peaking in 2006.
Indeed, home values across the country remain roughly a third off
their highs set just six years ago, but many are suggesting that it
seems as though the price trajectory might indeed be upward from
here.
Housing remains a key variable in the U.S. economic recovery
story, having been at the epicenter of the 2008 credit crisis.
The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction Index Fund
(NYSEArca:ITB) rose nearly 7.5 percent in the last week amid an
average daily trading volume of 2.6 million shares. ITB is now up
more than 76 percent year-to-date, a performance that has earned it
the top spot in the ranking of best-performing ETFs of 2012.
Meanwhile, the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (NYSEArca:XHB)
gained 5.8 percent in the period in a rally that came as more than
5 million shares, on average, traded hands on a daily basis. XHB
ranks now as the third best-performing ETF year-to-date with gains
of nearly 55 percent.
On the flip side, aside from a roster of volatility-focused
strategies, a few metals ETNs were some of the worst performers in
the week ended Thursday, including the Etracs CMCI Long Platinum
Total Return ETN (NYSEArca:PTM), which slipped 5.4 percent.
The United States Gasoline Fund (NYSEArca:UGA) was the
single-worst-performing fund of the week, tallying losses of 6.7
percent.
Top 10 Weekly Performers, Excluding Leverage/Inverse
Funds and 'lt;1,000 Shares Traded
| Ticker |
Name |
Weekly Performance |
Weekly Volume |
AUM ($, mm) |
| GREK |
Global X FTSE Greece 20 |
12.14% |
628,948 |
28.59 |
| BAL |
iPath Dow Jones-UBS Cotton Total Return ETN |
9.33% |
85,997 |
34.89 |
| CHII |
Global X China Industrials |
8.76% |
10,561 |
4.54 |
| PSTL |
PowerShares Global Steel |
7.68% |
1,269 |
2.06 |
| CHXX |
EGShares China Infrastructure |
7.48% |
18,281 |
11.51 |
| ITB |
iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction |
7.46% |
13,288,086 |
1,485.94 |
| EWP |
iShares MSCI Spain |
6.67% |
2,933,060 |
213.77 |
| FCA |
First Trust China AlphaDex |
6.16% |
1,428 |
2.18 |
| AXHE |
iShares MSCI ACWI ex-US Health Care |
6.09% |
2,808 |
9.88 |
| XHB |
SPDR S&P Homebuilders |
5.78% |
27,059,956 |
1,978.45 |
Bottom 10 Weekly Performers, Excluding Leverage/Inverse
Funds and 'lt;1,000 Shares Traded
| Ticker |
Name |
Weekly Performance |
Weekly Volume |
AUM ($, mm) |
| UGA |
United States Gasoline |
-6.71% |
245,957 |
62.76 |
| CVOL |
C-Tracks Exchange-Traded Notes on the Citi
Volatility |
-6.64% |
109,329 |
5.43 |
| VIIX |
VelocityShares VIX Short Term ETN |
-6.23% |
3,085,384 |
8.98 |
| VIXY |
ProShares VIX Short-Term |
-6.20% |
4,742,617 |
168.44 |
| VXX |
iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN |
-6.10% |
113,317,525 |
1,626.29 |
| PTM |
ETRACS CMCI Long Platinum Total Return ETN |
-5.41% |
358,697 |
38.84 |
| EIPO |
ETRACS Next Generation Internet ETN |
-4.81% |
7,400 |
5.47 |
| UBM |
ETRACS CMCI Industrial Metals Total Return ETN |
-4.67% |
3,580 |
5.29 |
| ZROZ |
PIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury |
-4.44% |
33,361 |
80.09 |
| VIXM |
ProShares VIX Mid-term |
-4.32% |
157,392 |
98.46 |
Disclaimer:All data as of 6 a.m. Eastern time the date the
article is published. Data is believed to be accurate; however,
transient market data is often subject to subsequent revision and
correction by the exchanges.
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