Tuesday's ETF Winners & Losers

Exchange-traded funds tracking homebuilders were among the biggest decliners of a losing session Tuesday, after D.R. Horton (DHI) said that market conditions declined during its fiscal third quarter.

D.R. Horton said that third-quarter home orders tumbled 40%, and it forecast a loss for the period. The company's stock fell about 3%. Other homebuilders, including Lennar (LEN), Meritage Homes (MTH), and KB Home (KBH), fell by much more.

The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (ITB) ETF was falling by 79 cents, or 2.5%, to $30.27. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) was lower by 63 cents, or 2.1%, to $29.76.

Meanwhile, earnings warnings from retailers were pressuring ETFs tracking the sector. Home Depot (HD) lowered its earnings targets for the second half, saying that the weak housing market continues to hurt its results. Sears Holdings(SHLD) also warned of weak second-quarter results, noting a soft performance in June.

The PowerShares Dynamic Retail (PMR) was losing 33 cents, or 1.6%, to $19.76. The SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) was down 63 cents, or 1.4%, to $43.39. The Retail HOLDRs (RTH) was lower by $1.15, or 1.1%, to $105.93.

Few bundled securities were on the winning side. Among those trading higher were commodity-related ETFs, as prices for crude, natural gas, gold and silver were on the rise.

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up $2.14, or 1.7%, to $128.94. The United States Natural Gas (UNG) was adding $1.03, or 2.5%, to $42.27. The United States Oil (USO) ETF rose by 49 cents, or 0.9%, to $54.84. The iShares Comex Gold Trust (IAU) was higher by 28 cents, or 0.4%, to $65.73.

ETFs tracking U.S. Treasury Notes were also moving higher, as bond prices jumped ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech on inflation before the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Mass. The 10-year note was up 16/32 in price to yield 5.08%, while the 30-year bond was adding 30/32 and yielding 5.17%

The iShares Lehman 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) was adding 76 cents, or 0.9%, to $84.54. The Vanguard Long-Term Bond (BLV) was higher by 55 cents, or 0.8%, to $72.70. The iShares Lehman 10-20 Year Treasury Bond (TLH) ETF was up 75 cents, or 0.8%, to $97.21.

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