Dion's Thursday ETF Winners and Losers

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Welcome to Don Dion's "Daily ETF Winners and Losers." Be sure to stop by each day to find out which ETFs are gaining or losing.

Winners

iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures ETN (VXX) 9.1%

The markets are struggling to follow through on Wednesday's gains, but they are weighed down by weak jobless claims data and broad market jitters.

This scenario bodes well for ETNs that follow the fear-tracking VIX. VXX is witnessing its third day of upward action and is currently trading at June highs. iPath S&P 500 VIX Mid Term Futures ETN (VXZ) is gaining ground as well. The fund's jump is helping it test its 50-day moving average once again.

iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond Fund (TLT) 2.0%

Long-term U.S. treasuries have seen a steep climb over the past week as the market's shaky action drives investors into defensive assets. With these gains, the fund is nearing 2010 highs.

Not surprisingly, the inverse-tracking ProShares UltraShort 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TBT) is tumbling, suffering its eighth consecutive day of losses.

PowerShares DB U.S. Dollar Index Bullish Portfolio (UUP) 1.4%

In the same fashion as the TLT, the U.S. dollar is benefiting as investors steer clear of risky asset classes in an effort to seek shelter from the market's downward action. UUP's gains have pushed the fund back to its 50-day moving average.

Despite investor desire for protection, gold is seeing relatively unchanged action. Meanwhile, silver, palladium and platinum are seeing pronounced losses.

Losers

Global X Norway ETF (NORW) -8.1%

The economic issues facing Europe have once again fallen into focus leading a number of ETFs lower. Some of the funds leading the retreat include NORW, iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index Fund (TUR) and iShares MSCI Sweden Index Fund (EWD).

This region of the globe must be approached with extreme caution.

First Trust NYSE Arca Biotech Index Fund (FBT) -7.6%

News of weak sales for its prostate cancer drug, Provenge, sent shares of closely watched biotechnology player Dendreon (DNDN) spiraling, dropping over 65%. This tumble is weighing heavily across the biotech sector, leading ETFs like FBT and iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund (IBB) to suffer heavy losses.

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