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5 Best-Performing ETFs of Last Week

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Wall Street was mixed last week with the S&P 500 (up 0.32%), the Dow Jones (down 1.4%), the Nasdaq Composite (up 1.24%) and the Russell 2000 (down 2.85%) displaying a mixed performance. While new COVID-19 restrictions overseas weighed on the broader market at the end of the week, solid retail earnings, monthly retail sales data and investors’ love for technology amid the renewed lockdown fears boosted the Nasdaq meaningfully.

The Nasdaq Composite reported the 46th record close of 2021 on Nov 19. By now we all know that Internet and tech stocks are pandemic winners as these have less to do with human contact. The coronavirus scare favored the online retailing industry as any kind of lockdown and self-imposed quarantine give a boost to the demand for online shopping and other kinds of Internet activities.

Against this backdrop, below we highlight best-performing inverse/leveraged ETF areas of last week that include Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF (BDRY - Free Report) , Simplify Volt Robocar Disruption and Tech ETF (VCAR - Free Report) , Victoryshares Thb Mid Cap ESG ETF (MDCP - Free Report) , iPatha.B Coffee Subindex TR ETN and iPath.B Natural Gas Subindex ETN .

ETFs in Focus

Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF – Up 9.5%

The underlying Capesize 5TC Index, Panamax 4TC Index & Supramax 6TC Index measure rates for shipping dry bulk freight. Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF’s expense ratio is 3.47%.

The ongoing supply chain issues have kept the demand for shipping at pretty high levels, which is leading to higher freight rates. The rate for a single shipping container has shot up materially over the last 18 months as the pandemic disrupted supply chains and trade channels (read: 3 Top Areas of Q3 & Their Top ETFs).

Simplify Volt Robocar Disruption and Tech ETF – Up 7.9%

Simplify Volt Robocar Disruption and Tech ETF is active and seeks to concentrate in those few disruptive companies poised to dominate autonomous driving and then enhance the concentrated exposure with options. It charges 95 bps in fees.

Last week was great for the electric vehicle space as it saw the bumper success of the Rivian (RIVN) IPO. Tesla’s shares also rebounded last week after being smashed in the recent past. Global awareness for cleaner energy and Biden administration’s backing to the electric vehicle space have made VCAR a winner.

Victoryshares Thb Mid Cap ESG ETF (MDCP - Free Report) – Up 4.5%

This ETF is active and invests in mid-cap companies. Victoryshares Thb Mid Cap ESG ETF, which charges 55 bps in fees, holds about 30 holdings primarily in the consumer, healthcare, industrials and information technology sectors.

The euphoria for ESG investing has lately been sky-high. U.S. President Joe Biden is known to be promoting clean energy. Biden wants the United States to achieve a 100% clean energy economy and net-zero emissions, no later than 2050. Emerging countries’ pledge for being carbon-neutral in the COP-26 Glasgow is another positive for the space (read: Inside the New S&P 500 ESG ETF (RSPE) Launched by Invesco).        

iPatha.B Coffee Subindex TR ETN – Up 4.4%

The underlying Bloomberg Coffee Subindex Total Return reflects the returns that are potentially available through an unleveraged investment in the futures contracts on coffee.iPatha.B Coffee Subindex TR ETN charges 45 bps in fees.

Coffee prices are super-hot lately as a supply crunch from Brazil to Vietnam pushed coffee prices to a seven-year high. Inclement weather, shipping disruptions and rising fertilizer costs are weighing on supplies (read: 4 Agriculture ETF Areas At a One-Year High: Here's Why).

The latest rally came after a decline in certified stockpiles and a firmer Brazilian currency that cut incentives to sell commodities priced in greenbacks. In addition, early projections for the country’s 2022 crop indicate that yields will trail the nation’s last high-yielding cycle in 2020-21. That will prevent the rebuilding of stockpiles needed to weather the natural dip in the following harvest’s output.

iPath.B Natural Gas Subindex ETN – Up 4.2%

The underlying Bloomberg Natural Gas Subindex Total Return reflects the returns that are potentially available through an unleveraged investment in the futures contracts, comprising the index plus the rate of interest that could be earned on cash collateral invested in specified Treasury Bills.The iPath.B Natural Gas Subindex ETN charges 45 bps in fees.

Natural gas prices continue to soar. The price of gas next month in the Netherlands, which is considered to be a benchmark for Europe, jumped materially last week after a delay in the approval process for a major new pipeline from Russia worsened the gas crisis in the continent especially ahead of winter. The likelihood of colder weather and more aggressive storage withdrawals have pushed the prices further up.  

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