The S&P 500 hit a record close last week thanks to the Santa Clause rally. Wall Street was charged-up with the S&P 500 (up 1.22%), the Dow Jones (up 0.15%), the Nasdaq Composite (up 3.12%) and the Russell 2000 (up 4.1%) gaining handsomely on optimism that the Omicron variant of COVID won’t mess up with global economic recovery.      

Physical Palladium ETF (PALL Quick QuotePALL - Free Report) (up 13.1%), Jacob Funds Inc Jacob Forward ETF (up 10.5%), Sonicshares Airlines Hotels Cruise Lines ETF (up 10.4%), Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF (BDRY Quick QuoteBDRY - Free Report) (up 10.3%) and Defiance Hotel Airline and Cruise ETF (up 9.9%) were the winners last week.

Investors gained optimism from some of President Joe Biden’s encouraging announcements. Biden has mentioned that booster shots are providing strong protection against COVID-19. He has also mentioned that the United States will not slip into the intense pandemic conditions faced during March 2020.

Updating about his preparations for the healthcare infrastructure and arrangements, Biden mentioned that the White House is buying 500 million at-home COVID-19 tests that will be available at free of cost for Americans from 2022. Biden has also mentioned that 1000 medical personnel will be allocated from the military to assist hospitals if the situation gets severe in January and February.

The Food and Drug Administration also granted approval to Pfizer Inc's (PFE) oral antiviral COVID-19 pill for at-risk people aged 12 and above. This makes it the first at-home treatment for the coronavirus and a potentially important tool in the fight against the fast-spreading Omicron variant.

As a result, the reopening plays in sectors like airlines, cruise lines and entertainment recorded a bounce. Against this backdrop, below we highlight the ETF winners in detail.  

ETFs in Focus

Physical Palladium ETF (PALL Quick QuotePALL - Free Report)

Palladium jumped to a record in May before slumping and becoming the worst-performing major commodity of 2021. This has corrected the metal’s sky-high valuation. The metal, 85% of which is used in pollution-reducing catalytic converters in gasoline engines, witnessed the slump this year due to the global chip shortage that curtailed consumption of it in the auto industry (per a minning.com article). However, industry players are expecting a rally in the metal in 2022 thanks to lower valuation and gradually-easing chip crunch situation.

Jacob Funds Inc Jacob Forward ETF

The Jacob Forward ETF, which is active in nature, provides above-average investment returns from a broad group of companies, including many in their early stages of development. Information technology (39.4%), Healthcare (36.7%) and Communication services (12.1%) take the top three spots in Jacob Funds Inc Jacob Forward ETF.

Sonicshares Airlines Hotels Cruise Lines ETF

The underlying Solactive Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Lines Index is a rules-based index that seeks to provide exposure to a global portfolio of companies identified as being in the airline industry, hotel industry and the cruise line industry. This is a beneficiary of the rebound in the reopening-friendly sectors.  

Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF (BDRY Quick QuoteBDRY - Free Report)

The underlying Capesize 5TC Index, Panamax 4TC Index & Supramax 6TC Index measure rates for shipping dry bulk freight. The spectacular rally has been driven by the ongoing supply chain issues around the world caused by the pandemic. This has bolstered the demand for dry bulk shipping, pushing the rates higher (read: 5 ETF Areas Up At Least 70% in 2021).

Defiance Hotel Airline and Cruise ETF

The underlying BlueStar Global Hotels, Airlines, and Cruises Index is a rules-based index that consists of globally-listed stocks of companies that derive at least 50% of their revenues from the passenger airline, hotel and resort, or cruise industries.