Winners & Losers

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This Week's ETF Winners & Losers

Robert Holmes

Bundled securities tracking semiconductors were among the best performers of a holiday-shortened week, as names like Intel (INTC), KLA-Tencor (KLAC) and Texas Instruments (TXN) rose.

The Ultra Semiconductor ProShares (USD) ETF added 4.4% to $80.04. The SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) ETF rose 3% to $52.78, and the iShares Goldman Sachs Semiconductor (IGW) ETF climbed 2.4% to $65.09. The Semiconductor HOLDRs (SMH) finished 2% higher at $36.98.

ETFs tracking silver were also among the week's winners, as silver futures jumped 5.7% to close Friday at $13.74 an ounce. The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) climbed 5.9% to $136.34. The PowerShares DB Silver (DBS) ETF added 5.5% to $26.92.

Gold-related ETFs also rose over the four sessions. Futures ended higher by 2.4% at $671.20 an ounce. The Market Vectors Gold Miners (GDX) ETF advanced 4.7% to $40.07. The iShares Comex Gold Trust (IAU) closed higher by 2.4% to $66.56, and the streetTRACKS Gold Shares (GLD) ETF gained 2.3% to end at $66.44.

Securities tracking crude oil also rose, even after the front-month July contract had a rough start to the week. Crude oil dropped more than $2 on Tuesday, and finished the week with a loss of 12 cents at $65.08 a barrel.

The Ultra Oil & Gas ProShares (DIG) added 3.5% to $97.24. The SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production (XOP) ETF ended the week up 2.8% to $47.01. The SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services (XES) ETF gained 2% to $36.15.

Housing ETFs suffered many pitfalls during the week, including Friday's weak report on pending home sales, as well as a disappointing fiscal second-quarter earnings report from Hovnanian (HOV) on Thursday.

For the week, the iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (ITB) ETF fell 1.7% to finish at $36.70. The SPDR Homebuilders (XHB) ETF shed 0.8% to $35.25.