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5 Best Leveraged ETF Areas of Last Week

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Wall Street delivered a moderate performance last week with the S&P 500 nudging up 0.4%, the Dow Jones adding about 0.3%, the Nasdaq Composite edging up only 0.1% and the Russell 2000 adding about 1.9%, respectively.

Tables Turned for Small-Caps

Small-cap stocks have lagged its large-cap cousins so far this year. However, since June, the Russell 2000 index that predominantly tracks U.S. small-cap stocks is up for a catch-up rally with the large-caps (read: Are the Tables Turning for Small-Cap ETFs?).

Investors have begun pouring money into small-cap stocks as they are confident about the present state of the economy, and are to a great extent looking beyond the big-tech boom. Since small-cap stocks’ larger portion of revenues is tied to the domestic economy, these gained strength after a much stronger-than-anticipated increase in May’s nonfarm payroll (read: 4 Sector ETFs & Stocks to Bet on Superb May Jobs Data).

Crypto Market in Jeopardy

The crypto market was on roller-coaster ride last week despite legal headwinds faced by prominent crypto platforms such as Binance and Coinbase. In fact, investors dismissed these concerns and the crypto market capitalization climbed to an impressive $1.17 trillion. This put focus on ETFs like Global X Blockchain ETF (BKCH - Free Report) , Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI) and Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF (BITQ) (read: Time to Buy the Dip in Crypto ETFs?).

S&P 500 Enters New Bull Market

The S&P 500 has entered a new bull market, and the indicators seem to support its continuity. From chances of easing interest rate hikes to increasing corporate earnings and a historical pattern favoring the bulls and the positive momentum appears set to stay. IPOs too are leading the markets higher silently.

Saudi Pledges Extra Oil Output Cuts

Saudi Arabia, the leading oil exporter, announced a voluntary production cut of one million barrels per day. During an OPEC+ meeting, the group decided to maintain planned production cuts for the rest of the year. OPEC+ supplies approximately 40% of global crude oil and extended earlier supply cuts by an additional 1.4 million barrels per day until the end of 2024. However, Saudi Arabia's decision to reduce its output from 10 million to 9 million barrels per day had a significant impact on global markets, leading to an increase in oil prices.

Japan Investing Stayed Strong

A slew of robust corporate earnings, foreign buying, steady BOJ policy, a weaker yen and increased buybacks boosted investors’ sentiment in Japan’s stocks, with most analysts turning bullish on the world’s third-largest economy. U.S. debt-ceiling deal and higher-than-expected GDP growth have added to the strength. WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity ETF (DXJ - Free Report) added decent gains of 2.1% last week.

Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few top-performing leveraged ETF areas of last week.

ETFs in Focus

Daily Tesla Bull 1.5X ETF Direxion (TSLL - Free Report) ) – Up 21.7%

A volley of good news for Tesla and the return of bullish market sentiment have put the stock on pace to more than double this year. Led by Elon Musk, the electric vehicle company has gained over $194 billion in market valuation during an 11-day winning streak, matching its longest ever. This milestone has been accomplished only once before in Tesla's history.

Retail Bull 3X Direxion (RETL - Free Report) ) – Up 9.4%

Upbeat retail sales and consumer sentiments amid a steady jobs market led to a rally in this ETF. U.S. retail sales increased 0.4% mom in April of 2023, rebounding from two consecutive months of declines, but well below market forecasts of a 0.8% increase.

Microsectors Travel 3X ETN (FLYU - Free Report) ) – Up 8.8%

Memorial Day air travel demonstrated the resilience of consumer spending on trips, surpassing pre-Covid levels despite ongoing inflation concerns. Per CNBC, the Transportation Security Administration reported screening 9.79 million individuals from Friday to Monday – the Memorial Day Holiday Weekend.  This marked a slight increase compared to the 2019 holiday weekend. This boosted travel ETFs (read: Time for Travel ETFs As Summer Travel Season Kicks Off?).

Regional Banks Bull 3X Direxion (DPST - Free Report) ) – Up 8.0%

As the chaos related to the regional banking failures settled down, these stocks bounced back with an immense force, due to investors’ considerably high risk-on sentiment. These stocks are now trading at a six-week high. Financial institutions such as PacWest and Western Alliance, which previously found themselves in troubled waters, have made a moderate comeback after a significant dip during the peak of the crisis. Regional deposits and loans also rose in recent weeks (read: U.S. Regional Bank ETFs at a Six-Week High: Here's Why).

Homebuilders & Suppliers Bull 3X Direxion (NAIL - Free Report) ) – Up 7.3%

Homebuilder sentiment has improved considerably. A dearth of existing homes for sale is propelling homebuilders into the limelight despite prevailing market challenges. This trend, as NAHB’s chief economist Robert Dietz suggests, is likely to persist as potential buyers continue to scout for new construction due to limited available housing inventory. New home listing also marked a significant rise from the 12.7% average recorded between 2000-2019. Plus, chances of low-to-no rate hikes by the Fed in future should also bode well for the sector.

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