Monday, June 29, 2020

Markets Reprice Equities for a Prolonged Economic Recovery

Monday, June 29, 2020 - US Investors enter the week cautiously after a roller-coaster ride last week. After a seemingly positive opening early in the week with banks stocks soaring and investors anticipating good news on the vaccine front, markets took a surprise dive on Wednesday and Friday as it became clear that efforts to contain the Coronavirus had failed in the Sunbelt States threatening to extend regional lockdowns or worse. Investors increasingly hope for local officials to enforce social distancing and the use of face masks which would significantly move forward the reopening recovery. Face masks oddly have become a political football debate for state and local politicians. Will the battery powered toothbrush be the next health tool to enter the debate?

US markets closed down last week with the S&P 500 finishing down 2.86% and the Nasdaq Composite 1.90%. The broad market as measured by the S&P 500 closed the week at 3009.05. The NASDAQ Composite closed at 9757.22. As of early Monday morning, overseas markets are mixed with the S&P 500 futures appearing to stabilize as we enter a short trading week. Energy and Bank stocks took the brunt of the hit as investors anticipated the potential for lower demand for energy and the possibly of bank earnings suffering due to bad loans and with that dividend cuts. The announcement by regulators to end bank share buybacks and scrutinize dividend payouts on a quarterly basis took its toll as well on investor sentiment.

Investors are increasingly wondering if the aid from Washington will be sufficient enough to support the real economy. In the meantime, the trillions of dollars sitting in bank checking accounts and showing up in the latest M1 money supply measurement indicates that there is plenty of cash ready to jump into the stock market on the dips.

The continued tension between expectations for a quick V Shaped Recovery and a longer drawn out recovery has been leading to risk on and off days with “Recovery Stocks” being Risk On and “Stay at Home” Covid-19 Stocks being Risk-Off. For investors who want to hedge in the volatile months that usually characterize late summer, one may want to consider building a “barbell” portfolio; one end of the barbell consisting of ETFs that would move up should a vaccine suddenly be discovered which would lead to a rapid upsurge in asset prices and on the other hand have a Covid-19 portfolio consisting of defensive ETFs that support a continuing recessionary environment. Investors should consult our weekly Select List to research the appropriate ETFs.

Other investor concerns include increasing trade and geopolitical tensions with China, dropping oil prices and upcoming US elections in November. This week investors will be focused on Thursday’s Jobs Report. While these numbers have stabilized to some extent, economists expect increases in layoffs by state and local governments to start showing up as the Coronavirus takes its toll on tax revenues. Since late March, none of these concerns have been able to stop an apparent roaring early stage bull market complete with IPOs and significant debt underwriting.

All these issues got us thinking about what effects the Coronavirus will have on big cities and the political, social and economic environments to follow. Cities face 4 challenges:  density in population aids the spread of the virus, social unrest and how to efficiently travel efficiently in tall buildings and what to do with un-needed office space as a significant number of workers permanently work from home.  All of this will affect the tax base. The Black Lives Matter protests are likely to intensify as we close in on the November elections. This social movement is likely to morph into a broader socio-economic protest focused on affordable housing and the wealth gap.  Expect none of these issues to be dealt with by Washington until 2021 or later. The abundance of office and retail space in big cities would call for caution when investing in Real Estate ETFs or REITs. These challenges will likely force a serious “rethinking” on how to resolve these issues bordering on a “New Deal” type infrastructure program to put people to work rather than pay them to stay home. Unoccupied office space can be converted into housing stock. Many changes may lie ahead…

Traders and active investors can use ETFs to take advantage of real-time market volatility – both up and down!

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 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.

Thank you for reading the 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.

Monday, June 22, 2020

Spikes and Gains...

Monday, June 22, 2020 - Though numbers of coronavirus cases continued to rise last week, the US marketplace showed its resilience with all major indices finishing in the green.  For the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained roughly 200 points closing at 25,807. The S&P 500 rose 50 points to 3,097.54 while the Nasdaq Composite rose roughly 400 points to 9,942.63. It will be interesting to see if the money that the Fed is pumping into the market will continue to help hold strong as economic uncertainty continues to grow with coronavirus cases now topping 9M worldwide.

ETFG Fund Flow Summary - in ETFs, we saw outflows from some of the largest fixed income ETFs. JNK, the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF, lost over $750M in assets during this week. That was followed by SPIB, the SPDR Portfolio Intermediate Term Corporate Bond ETF, which shed about $325M in assets. In inflows, we saw investors move their assets to some of the largest Vanguard Funds in the market. VOO, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, gained over $6.3B in AUM. That was followed by VTI, the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF, which gained over $2.5B in assets.

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

Because of this strategy’s success, we’d like to highlight some substantial movement in the Financials portion of this week’s Select List to last. The Invesco KBW Regional Banking ETF, KBWR, held steady at the top spot on the list. Following that was BIZD, the VanEck Vectors BDC Income ETF, which jumped up two spots this week. A new comer this week, XLF, the Financial Select Sector SPDR fund, finished in the 3rd overall position. Rounding out the list this week was KIE, the SPDR S&P Insurance ETF and KBWD, the Invesco KBW High Dividend Yield Financial ETF, which finished 4th and 5th on the list respectively.

This is a very big week for the ETF Industry. The Russell Rebalance will be taking place on Friday and many believe that it will be one of the biggest market events of the year. We will be sure to watch the rebalance and days leading up to it closely. To check out some more on what our research team is anticipating, check out a recent piece published by them here: ETFG Research on Upcoming Russell Rebalance.

Thanks 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.

Monday, June 15, 2020

Two Steps Forward, One Step Backward...

Monday, June 15, 2020 - The US markets continued to seesaw this week as fears of new coronavirus cases in the United States jittered investors. Several States reported upticks in new cases and hospitalizations showing the country is not out of the woods yet with this virus.

For the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1,721 points closing at 25,605.54. The S&P 500 fell 167 points to 3040.31 while the Nasdaq Composite fell 248 points to 9,588.81. The sell-off this week mostly took place on Thursday, the worst day for the market since March, when the news was confirmed about the new cases and hospitalizations.

ETFG Fund Flow Summary - In ETFs, we saw outflows from some of the large geographic-focused ETFs. BBEU, the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Europe ETF, lost over $1.4B in assets during this week. That was followed by BBJP, the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Japan ETF, which shed about $1B in assets. In inflows, we saw investors move their assets to Sector based ETFs. XLF, the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF, saw some of the greatest inflows for the week, gaining over $3.5B in AUM. That was followed by XLV, the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF, which gained over $2.25B in assets.

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

Because of this strategy’s success, we highlight some substantial movement in the Health Care portion of this week’s Select List to last. The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF, XBI, held steady at the top spot on the list. Following that was FHLC, the Fidelity MSCI Health Care Index ETF and JHMH, the John Hancock Multifactor Healthcare ETF, which moved up one spot from last week. Rounding out the list this week was BBH, VanEck Vectors Biotech ETF and PPH, VanEck Vectors Pharmaceutical ETF, which finished 4th and 5th on the list respectively.

We will continue to pay close attention to the new data coming out this week on new coronavirus cases. Though many government leaders were urging not to panic over the numbers, the thought of diving fully back into stay-at-home orders will be enough to keep volatility churning in the marketplace.

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.

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Our New ETF Research Service on Seeking Alpha Marketplace

Tuesday, June 9, 2020 - We are very excited to announce our exclusive new subscription service entitled "Granular Perspectives" on the Seeking Alpha Marketplace. This expanded research coverage offers proprietary ETF Research & Analysis that you won’t find anywhere else, as well as, the opportunity to connect one-on-one with our team of research experts. For a limited time, you can become a subscriber for about $1 per day!

Understand More, Invest Better
The biggest players in ETF investing have come to rely on us to stay ahead of the market, recognize trends and capitalize on opportunities. Now through Seeking Alpha's Marketplace, the rest of the investment community can get that same advantage. Our new subscription service makes ETPs more transparent and accessible to investors of all sizes. Here’s what you can expect when you subscribe:

·     One-on-One Research Analyst Access: All new subscribers can speak with our team of researcher experts to discuss ETFs, market trends and how ETF data can work for you.

·     Research Analysis & Commentary (Timing Varies): Research and analysis on ETFs derived from our data, as market conditions change and we develop new insights.

·     ETF Global Select List (Weekly): The ETFs rated most highly for the week by our proprietary ETFG Quant Model, segmented by Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy.

·     Liquidation Watch List (Monthly): Tracks the ETFs in danger of liquidation, as determined by our model’s three-factor analysis, which considers an ETF’s assets under management, age, and fund performance.

·     ETF Global Dynamic Model Portfolio Rebalance Commentary (Quarterly): Each ETFG Dynamic Model Portfolio is composed of the top ETFs as ranked by the ETF Global Quant model. The universe of U.S.-listed equity ETFs is reviewed by the ETFG Quant model daily and represents the broadest range of industry groups, sectors and geographic regions.

In addition, we plan to expand our offerings on the Seeking Alpha Marketplace to incorporate more data and analysis in the future, so be sure to check back regularly.


Access to ETF Global’s Seeking Alpha Marketplace costs $50 per month -- but if you act quickly, you can save 33% off of the cost. You’ll save $100 if you sign up for a full year’s worth of service, which costs $500, instead of the usual $600 for 12 months at the $50 per month rate.

And to celebrate the grand opening of ETF Global’s service on Seeking Alpha Marketplace, we’re knocking another $100 off the annual cost, bringing it down to $400 -- just a little more than $1 per day. But that offer only stands until June 22, so act quickly!


Thanks for reading ETF Global Perspectives!
_______________________________________________________
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

Monday, June 8, 2020

Despite Unrest

Monday, June 8, 2020 - In yet another defying week for the stock market (aided by a very generous jobs report on Friday), the US economy is suggesting a reopening way ahead of schedule. Early in the week, we saw investor optimism on an economic reopen, with the Coronavirus seemingly being put in the rearview mirror. On Friday, this rally was amplified by a stunning jobs report, which showed the US was able to add 2.5 million jobs in the month of May. This is a key indicator for bullish investors that believe a full US economic reopening could be within a couple of months. The Dow Jones is edging closer and closer to its February 2020 all-time high of 29,551.42, as it closed this week at 27,110.98 (a far cry from its March 23rd low of 18,591.93).

For the week, the Dow Jones was up 6.81%, the S&P 500 up 4.91%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 3.42%. Despite tumultuous times on so many fronts, investors appear still in belief that the economic downturn of 2020 will be remembered as a short one, with a sharp, and equally fast recovery.

ETFG Quant Movers - We highlight those ETFs with the largest movement in our ETFG Quant Score.

ETFG Quant Winners:  this week’s top % Gainers were IMLP, LDRS, FLEH, SPFF, and CIZ, with % gains of 41.42%, 38.65%, 24.26%, 21.31%, and 20.98% respectively. This is the second week in a row that LDRS showed up on our % Gainers, and second week in a row it was our #2 gainer. This reflects the strong couple of weeks that the US has seen in its economy.

ETFG Quant Losers:  those products with the largest reductions in their respective ETFG Quant scores were FPE, XLG, FNDE, EEH, and FSZ, with respective drops of -26.66%, -25.91%, -25.66%, -25.47%, and -22.80%. Interesting to note is two of these ETFs, XLG and EEH, are related to the S&P 500 index, which, despite its positive performance as of late, could suggest that a correction of some sort could happen in the near future.

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

This week we highlight the ‘Geography’ category, pointing out the biggest movers from the previous week to this week.

·       FAUS (First Trust Australia AlphaDEX Fund) moved from 3rd place to 1st this week in the ‘Asia-Pacific’ Region and ‘Broad Equity’ Focus.
·       EIRL (iShares MSCI Ireland ETF) moved from 4th place to 1st place this week in the ‘Europe’ Region and ‘Broad Equity’ Focus.
·       AMLP (Alerian MLP ETF), which was previously unranked, moved to the 1st place spot this week within the ‘North American’ Region and ‘Energy’ Focus.

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.

Monday, June 1, 2020

Re-Opening on the Horizon

Monday, June 1, 2020 - After another mixed week in the market, we are starting to see more and more investor optimism over a potential re-opening of the US economy. We saw 3.75% gain this week for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, 3.01% gain for the S&P 500, and a 1.77% gain for the Nasdaq Composite. On a 4-day week in the market, Tuesday and Wednesday opened with high gains on news of a potential reopening of the US economy coming soon, aided by positive reports on Covid-19 vaccine/prevention programs. The large gains from these two days were pulled back on Thursday after news of President Trump announcing a response to the escalating US-China tensions after China put stricter security laws into Hong Kong. Friday, President Trump did not mention anything about trade sanctions between the two countries, which ended the week’s close on a stronger note. Overall, the markets approach their highs before the Coronavirus impacted the US economy; edging closer to a potential re-opening can only provide more optimism for investors.

ETFG Quant Movers - We highlight those ETFs with the largest movement in our ETFG Quant Score.

ETFG Quant Winners: The ETFs with the biggest percentage increase in their ETFG Quant Score this week were PNQI, LDRS, JKD, JPLS, and SKYY with 35.71%, 31.29%, 29.12%, 28.52%, and 27.16% gains respectively. What’s worthy to note is that 2nd and 3rd place % Gainers, LDRS and JKD, are two ETFs that seek to track the overall US markets and the largest US Companies, and this may coincide with the overall positive week the US market had.

ETFG Quant Losers: The ETFs with the biggest percentage decrease in their ETFG Quant Score this week were FNDE, PWV, EDIV, QDEF and FDG, with % losses of -25.99%, -20.44%, -20.02%, -19.82%, and -19.80% respectively. The 1st and 3rd biggest losers, FNDE and EDIV, are both emerging markets ETFs, which can be attributed to the tumultuous weeks that emerging markets such as China and Brazil faced.

Lastly, we’ll look at the ETFG Weekly Select List and compare this week’s list to the previous week.

ETFG Weekly Select List - The five most highly rated ETFs per Sector, Geographic Region and Strategy as ranked by the ETFG Quant model.  We highlight the ‘Sector’ Category where we see some of the biggest movers this week include:

· CIBR (First Trust Nasdaq Cybersecurity ETF), which moved from 3rd place to 1st place this week in the ‘Technology’ sub-focus.
· XLF (Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund), which went from unranked the previous week to 1st place this week in the ‘Financials’ sub-focus.
· FXG (First Trust Consumer Staples AlphaDEX Fund), which went from unranked the previous week to 2nd place this week in the ‘Consumer Staples’ sub-focus.

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.