Except for a pair of commodity-related categories, all the equity groupings of exchange-traded funds lost ground during the first quarter of the year.
On the other hand, eight of the 10 fixed-income ETF classifications in the accompanying summary table of ETF investment objectives produced positive returns.
The only ETF investment objective to score a double-digit gain during the year's first quarter was precious metals. On the opposite end of the array, three equity categories -- financial services, health/biotechnology and global equity -- endured setbacks of more than 10%.
An exception to the success of the fixed-income group was the national municipal bond fund category. These funds slipped, on average, by 2.76% during the first three months of the year. The group was hurt by uncertainty as to whether bond insurance firms such as Ambac Financial(ABK Quote) and MBIA(MBI Quote) could maintain their triple-A credit ratings. ...
Recent Comments
| Dow Jones | S&P 500 | NASDAQ | 10-Year Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,452.68 | 1,109.24 | 2,185.03 | 33.23 |
Oil *
77.73
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DOWN
18.90
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UP
0.38
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UP
9.22
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UP
0.48
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10 Yr
3.32%
SPDR Gold
119.18
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|
-0.18%
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+0.03%
|
+0.42%
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+1.47%
|
Data delayed 20 minutes |
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