Investor Whiplash

Monday, December 31, 2018 - First and foremost, we wish everyone and their families in advance a very happy and healthy new year and all the best for 2019!

Now onto the markets - the season of jolly proved to be a roller coaster week for investors as the markets rallied immediately after Christmas Day and ended the week up on the major indexes providing long needed relief. Investor sentiment, however, remains cautious as concerns persist ranging from quickly rising interest rates, increased questioning of confidence in the current administration as the exodus of senior White House Advisors continues, credit concerns and Brexit. Trade tensions and a growing sense of a global slowdown also weigh on investors.

US indexes ended the week in positive territory - the S&P 500 closed at 2,485.74 and the broader NASDAQ Composite closed at 6,584.52 for a weekly jump of 2.86% and 3.97 %. Nevertheless, entering the last trading day of year, the indexes YTD were still down to a negative 7.03% on the S&P 500 Index and a negative 4.62% on the NASDAQ Composite.

Market volatility the past two weeks has been accentuated by tax selling and low liquidity due to the holidays and upcoming regulatory reviews on the major financial institutions to access capital haircuts.  In January we would expect to see more liquidity reentering the markets thereby reducing the move of markets on low volume.  A number of articles attracted our attention this week showing a marked change in the market’s paradigm to an over abundance of caution.

First, we noted Mohamed El-Erian’s December 30^th article in Bloomberg which sited the pullback of banks in market-making activities this month due to regulatory reviews and how market volatility could have the effect of accentuating any global economic slowdown.   See his comments at:

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2018-12-30/fed-and-ecb-get-blamed-for-stock-market-turmoil

Second, we noted a “rant” by Jeremiah Johnson on ZeroHedge titled The Calm Before the Storm.  What struck us was his list of investor concerns and tone of the article which was reminiscent of Rick Santelli’s rant on CNBC on government bailouts which proved to be the firing shot to mobilize the popular Tea Party.  This article can be found at:

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-12-27/calm-storm

Now let’s look at our ETFG Weekly Select List 

To best support the ETF selection process, The ETFG Weekly Select List highlights the 5 most highly rated ETFs per Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy as ranked by the ETFG Quant model.  We highlight a couple of ETFs that attracted our attention.

The extreme volatility the past two weeks makes us cautious but we these funds had significant jumps: SPHD went jumped 4 ratings to 1 for those looking for a high dividend play. Likewise, ITEQ, a Middle East play jumped 3 ratings to 2 as did NFRA, a natural resources play. It jumped 4 no doubt as a play on the beaten-up oil and natural resources sectors.

We suggest keeping a mindful eye on tools like our Select List and Risk and Reward Ratings that can be used to evaluate the vast set of opportunities in the ETF marketplace. Today’s market realities require a new approach to macro investing, one in which individual investors now have access to tools via ETPs to customize risk and return profiles in their portfolios. Use our Scanner to find those funds.

Thanks for reading ETF Global Perspectives!

ETFG 21 Day Free Trial:  https://www.etfg.com/signup/quick

_____________________________________________________________

Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.  In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.

Christmas in the Red

Monday, December 24, 2018 – As families gather to celebrate the holidays, investors seem conflicted as to whether the glass is half full or half empty in regards to the markets. Looking back, we reminisce about headlines touting “all-time highs” and up until a few weeks ago, investors appeared confident. It would seem the Fed agrees with the notion of half full with last week's decision to raise short-term interest rates for a fourth time this year. The Federal Reserve tried to strike a balance between these steep market fluctuations and its optimistic assessment of a strong economy. Conversely, the market began this week with a trio of worries, including trade disruptions, geopolitical concerns and the compounding specter of further Fed rate hikes. Not to mention, the threat of a governmental shutdown drove an additional bout of volatility in Friday's trading.

All major benchmarks slid to their lowest levels in well over a year. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (Fidelity NASDAQ Composite Index Tracking Stock (ONEQ)) fared worst and joined the small-cap Russell 2000 Index (iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM)) in bear market territory, down more than 20% from its all-time highs in August. The S&P MidCap 400 Index (SPDR S&P Midcap 400 ETF Trust (MDY)) also moved into bear market terrain on Friday morning. The pullback was especially dramatic in the energy sector as oil prices plunged to the lowest levels in over a year.

Speaking of volatility, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) saw major highs, levels last seen in February. As a matter of fact, a few of the volatility linked ETFs did quite well in 2018. Over the past year, the iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXXB), VelocityShares VIX Short-Term ETN (VIIX) and iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN Class A (VXX) all surged over 50% year-to-date.

ETFG Weekly Quant Movers – In the ETFG Quant Movers, we saw some interesting movements with S&P linked funds. Honorable mentions in the “Weekly Gainers’ category, iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC) and Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 ETF (VIOO) saw an increase of 28.27%, 25.61% and 22.17% to their overall Quant Score.

Weekly ETFG Quant losers included, Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF (SPLV), Hull Tactical US ETF (HTUS) and Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF (ISMD) all three funds saw a decrease of 22.31%, 21.75% and 21.45% respectively to their overall scores.

ETFG Weekly Select List - the 5 most highly rated ETFs per Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy as ranked by the ETFG Quant model.

As expected, we saw major turnover in both the Natural Resources and Financial categories of the Sector portion of the ETFG Weekly Select List. We would like to highlight these sectors due to the surprising correlation to last week’s analysis. In the Natural Resources portion, Invesco Global Agriculture ETF (PAGG) jumped from 5^th to 1^st while newcomers SPDR S&P North American Natural Resources ETF (NANR) and First Trust Indxx Global Agriculture ETF (FTAG). In Financials, after the Fed’s rate increase Invesco KBW Regional Banking ETF (KBWR) moved up two spots to claim 1^st place this week while SPDR S&P Insurance ETF (KIE) and Invesco KBW Bank ETF (KBWB) were awarded 2^nd and 3^rd place respectively.

Merry Christmas and thanks for reading ETF Global Perspectives!

ETFG 21 Day Free Trial:  https://www.etfg.com/signup/quick

_____________________________________________________________

Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, 
INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.

In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.

Winners Announced - Fall 2018 ETF Global® Portfolio Challenge!

Tuesday, December 18, 2018 - After 10 weeks of intense competition, characterized by constant change atop the leaderboard and double digit returns among the top ten finishers, the Fall 2018 ETF Global® Portfolio Challenge has come to a close. Our seventh edition of the Portfolio Challenge brought a new wave of talented college students from a diverse array of universities and academic backgrounds. Drawing students from 253 schools, 41 countries on 5 continents, this semester’s competition helped enlarge the portfolio challenge’s already broad global footprint and create highly competitive playing conditions.

Our contestants all began the semester with a virtual balance of $100,000 and with the task of constructing the best performing portfolio of ETFs. Students were afforded weekly rebalance opportunities and to invest in a minimum of 4 and maximum of 10 ETFs at a time. Despite facing heavy competition all semester, these 5 select students below were able to separate themselves from the rest of the field.

Please join us in congratulating the top 5 winners of the Fall 2018 ETF Global® Portfolio Challenge!

Name	School	Portfolio Return
Rongbai Xue	Tulane University	52.09%
Ronika Choudhury	Birkbeck, University of London	37.19%
Brennan Siemens	University of Manitoba	22.96%
Binru Wu	Tulane University	22.64%
Ha Nguyen	Keuka College	21.96%

Our winners hailed from four different schools in three different countries. Our first place winner, Rongbai Xue, rode the unpredictable volatility of the markets this fall. Investing heavily in VelocityShares VIX Short Term ETN and iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures Rongbai was able to produce returns in excess of 50%. Both Ronika and Brennan invested mainly in Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3X and Direxion Shares Exchange Traded Fund Trust helping them to earn returns of 37.19% and 22.96% respectively. Binru was able to achieve 22.64% returns through investing in a mix of Trust backed ETFs and Short-Term Treasury Bond ETNs. Finally, our fifth place finisher Ha focused on energy themed ETFs and had a portfolio heavily weighted in Oil & Gas products.

As the Top 5 Winners of this semester’s challenge, these students will be featured and recognized during the ETF Global® Portfolio Challenge Awards Ceremony at the upcoming Spring 2019 ETP Forum (www.etpforum.org) on Tuesday, April 30^th at the New York Athletic Club.

Please see below for the students that rounded out our Top 25 participants:

Name	School	Portfolio Return
Thomas Duvalleroy	SKEMA Business School	20.04%
Dwayne Safer	Messiah College	18.08%
Brahim Mokrane	ESCP Europe	16.87%
Shang Wang	Rutgers University	15.23%
Meng Jia	Rutgers University	14.00%
Rocio Anahi Cejas	Oxford Brookes University	13.66%
Arnas Leika	Birkbeck, University of London	9.14%
Matthew Vangalen	University of Detroit Mercy	7.75%
Spiro Pliakos	University of Detroit Mercy	7.70%
Alexa Yonan	University of Detroit Mercy	6.99%
Benjamin Wilson	Messiah College	6.91%
Yili Zhao	St. John’s University	4.80%
Michael Conceison	University of Maine	4.28%
Shweta Desai	University of Maine	4.18%
Yael Borovich	University of Manitoba	3.36%
Claire Bradley	University of Tampa	2.72%
Darshan Patel	University of Tampa	2.31%
Jaime Garcia-Yanes	University of Tampa	1.38%
John Polchow	St. John’s University	1.16%
Alex Roszkowski	St. John’s University	1.12%

Since its inception in the Fall 2015, the ETF Global® Portfolio Challenge has attracted students from 6 continents and 450 schools. As Millennials continue to increase their usage of ETFs, we encourage all college students to take advantage of this opportunity and learn about this fast-growing investment vehicle before they enter the marketplace.

Registration for the Spring 2018 competition will open at the end of January.  For more information and to sign-up for the Challenge, please visit: www.etfportfoliochallenge.com.

Thank you for reading ETF Global Perspectives!

ETFG 21 Day Free Trial:  https://www.etfg.com/signup/quick

_____________________________________________________________

Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.  In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.

Seasonal Deal of the Day?

Monday, December 17, 2018 – This time of year, most people are regularly reminded about the "deal of the day." However, the markets continue to be jolted by the "worry of the day." Both may capture your short-term headlines and while best deals are usually gone in a flash, many of the worries are part of bigger themes that could continue to keep markets volatile. Investors are constantly reminded by signs of slower economic global growth, trade conflicts and concerns about the pace of Federal Reserve interest rate increases.

Next week, the main focus will be on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decision on Wednesday, where the Fed is generally expected to raise rates by 25 bps. Other important economics include releasing housing and building stats on Tuesday, along with consumer confidence on Friday. Typically, stocks have risen along with the underlying fundamentals of economic and earnings growth, which has a strong chance of remaining positive – making long-term picks the "deal of the day.”

Most major benchmarks ended lower for the week. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (Fidelity NASDAQ Composite Index Tracking Stock (ONEQ)) held up best and ending the week in positive territory for the year-to-date period. Smaller-Cap shares performed worst, with both the S&P MidCap 400 Index (SPDR S&P Midcap 400 ETF Trust (MDY)) and the Russell 2000 Index (iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM)) hitting new 52-week lows. Within the S&P 500 Index, Utilities shares performed best (Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU)), while Financial shares (Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF)) were notably weak due to concerns over tighter lending margins due to declines in longer-term Treasury yields.

ETFG Weekly Quant Movers – In the ETFG Quant Movers, we saw both Sector and Factor oriented ETFs gain the most percentage points to their overall scores. To highlight a few, Invesco Global Agriculture ETF (PAGG) and WisdomTree International Dividend Ex-Financials Fund (DOO) saw a 18.02% and 17.50% gain respectively. While USAA MSCI International Value Momentum Blend Index ETF (UIVM) and iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV) had a 21.73% and 18.92% respective gain to their Quant Total Score.

Honorable mentions in the loser’s column, we saw a blend of ETPs dropping some percentage points to their overall score. The iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (ITOT), Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Value ETF (SCHV) and Oppenheimer Russell 2000 Dynamic Multifactor ETF (OMFS) lost 22.46%, 20.84% and 19.74% to their overall scores respectively.

ETFG Weekly Select List - the 5 most highly rated ETFs per Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy as ranked by the ETFG Quant model.

Since we’ve seen some major volatility within the financial sector the last week, we’d like to highlight some substantial movement when comparing this week’s Select List to last. The top three spots have completely changed hands. In order from 1^st to 3^rd, added to the list were First Trust Nasdaq Bank ETF (FTXO), Invesco KBW High Dividend Yield Financial ETF (KBWD) and Fidelity MSCI Financials Index ETF (FNCL). Also, notable movement was seen in the Technology sector where First Trust Nasdaq Semiconductor ETF (FTXL) moved to the 1^st position and SPDR NYSE Technology ETF (XNTK) claimed 3^rd, moving from second and fourth spots respectively.

Thanks for reading ETF Global Perspectives!

ETFG 21 Day Free Trial:  https://www.etfg.com/signup/quick

_____________________________________________________________

Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.  In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.

Weekly Whipsaw?

Monday, December 10, 2018 - It was a tough week for the US markets as trade war issues continued to weigh down on stocks. The week capped off with all 3 major US indices down substantial percentages. For the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gave up almost all the ground it gained last week losing over 1,100 points or 4.5% to 24,388.  The S&P 500 fell 4.6% to 2,633 and The Nasdaq Composite lost 4.9% to 6,969.

In ETFs, even with the downward pressure on major indices, the world’s largest fund saw inflows in the first 5 trading days of December. SPY, took in more than 2.7B while iShares Emerging Markets ETF IEMG, also saw net flows taking in over $2.5B. In outflows, we saw fixed income ETFs losing some ground. iShares iBoxx Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD), iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) and SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF (JNK) saw net outflows of $1.59B, $1.14B and $1.04B respectively.

In the ETFG Quant Movers, we saw sector based ETPs gain the most percentage points to their overall scores. The iShares U.S. Oil Equipment & Services ETF (IEZ) and ProShares S&P Ex-Technology ETF (SPXT) added 9.82% and 7.99% to their overall Quant scores respectively.

In the loser’s column, we saw small cap ETPs dropping some percentage points to their overall score. The SPDR Portfolio Small Cap ETF (SPSM) and the IQ Chaikin U.S. Small Cap ETF (FFSG) lost 12.39% and 9.42% to their overall scores respectively.

ETFG Weekly Select List - the 5 most highly rated ETFs per Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy as ranked by the ETFG Quant model.

Because of the sector’s success in the major indexes this week, we’d like to highlight some substantial movement in the Basic Materials portion when comparing this week’s Select List to last. The iShares MSCI Global Silver Miners ETF (SLVP) jumped up one spot to the first overall position to be the top ranked fund in the sector. It took over for the Global X Silver Miners ETF (SIL) which got knocked out of the top 5 this week by the iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF (RING) which is now in the 2^nd ranked spot. The SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) jumped up one spot to the 3^rd overall position. Rounding out the bottom of the top 5 were two VanEck funds, GDX and GDXJ which are their gold miners and junior gold miners ETF. They finished 4^th and 5^th respectively.

Thanks for reading ETF Global Perspectives!

ETFG 21 Day Free Trial:  https://www.etfg.com/signup/quick

_____________________________________________________________

Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.  In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.

ETF Global Launches Data and Metrics Focused on ESG Sustainability

Friday, December 7, 2018 - Please see yesterday's Press Release below regarding our new ESG offering that we previewed for all in attendance at last week's Fall 2018 ETP Forum (www.etpforum.org). The new data will highlight factors that affect a company's ESG impact and market performance.

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NEW YORK, Dec. 6. 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ETF Global announces new datasets dedicated to environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors.

"The tremendous growth within ESG, combined with a proven partner in Confluence Analytics, will allow us to add value to our customers in the ESG space. It has become an important part of how investors make decisions and Confluence's predictive metrics only underscore that importance," said Matthew Litchfield, CFA and Senior Research Analyst at ETF Global.

ETF Global's offering includes traditional impact-oriented metrics that assess corporate sustainability, as well as, cutting-edge data focusing on how and when ESG factors affect stock performance. This data specifically targets which factors matter most to returns and delivers predictive forecasts at both the constituent and fund levels.

Conor Platt, CEO of Confluence Analytics, added, "We've worked in ESG investing for years and have always known these factors mattered to performance.  We can see exactly which ESG factors are the most material, as well as, when and to what extent they matter.  We're excited to bring this very useful information to investors and to partner with ETF Global."

For more information on the ETF Global new ESG offering, please visit ETF Global - ESG Brochure, email ESG@etfg.com or call (212) 223-3834.

About ETF Global

ETF Global® (ETFG®) is a leading, independent provider of data, research, investment decision support applications, proprietary risk analytics and educational offerings for Exchange-Traded-Products.  The ETFG research platform, which is driven by the ETFG Multi-Factor, Quantitative Model (ETFG Quant), supports the overall investment process with a variety of strategies and applications to pursue return, manage risk, utilize investment analysis and generate investment ideas. 

Founded in 2011, the firm is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in New York, Pittsburgh, Toronto and London.  More information about ETF Global and our services, applications and products is available throughout our site at www.etfg.com.

ETF Global Media Contact

James Pacetti

Director of Marketing

(212) 223-3834

ESG@etfg.com

About Confluence Analytics

Confluence Capital Analytics is a data analysis and investment strategy firm specializing in the burgeoning area of environmental / social / governance ("ESG") sustainability. It blends fundamental, technical, and quantitative analysis into one streamlined, systematic process that generates predictive performance metrics – along with other valuable, more material insights.  To learn more, please visit www.ConfluenceCapital.com

Thank you for reading ETF Global Perspectives

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Assumptions, opinions and estimates constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice.  ETF Global LLC (“ETFG”) and its affiliates and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents (collectively ETFG Parties) do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or timeliness of any information, including ratings and rankings and are not responsible for errors and omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information and ETFG Parties shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein, regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such information. ETFG PARTIES DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SUITABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE.  In no event shall ETFG Parties be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including, without limitation, lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the information contained in this document even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

ETFG ratings and rankings are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions. ETFG ratings and rankings should not be relied on when making any investment or other business decision.  ETFG’s opinions and analyses do not address the suitability of any security.  ETFG does not act as a fiduciary or an investment advisor.  While ETFG has obtained information from sources they believe to be reliable, ETFG does not perform an audit or undertake any duty of due diligence or independent verification of any information it receives.

This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.  Any opinions expressed herein are given in good faith, are subject to change without notice, and are only correct as of the stated date of their issue.  Prices, values, or income from any securities or investments mentioned in this report may fall against the interests of the investor and the investor may get back less than the amount invested.  Where an investment is described as being likely to yield income, please note that the amount of income that the investor will receive from such an investment may fluctuate.  Where an investment or security is denominated in a different currency to the investor's currency of reference, changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value, price or income of or from that investment to the investor.