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The cost to stabilize the U.S. economy during the COVID-19 pandemic is going to be enormous. The current fiscal package signed by President Donald Trump carries a price tag of $2.2 trillion but there is already talk of follow-up programs.


Estimates now indicate that the U.S....

The United States has been the world’s leading economy for many decades.


Despite the rapid progression of the Chinese economy and challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, we think U.S. companies will continue to offer ETF investors unparalleled opportunities.


VANGUARD U.S....

Public trading in the $6 trillion world of global ETFs has generally worked well during the extreme turmoil seen in markets during February and March.


However, not all ETFs continued to trade as investors would have hoped. Numerous inverse or leveraged funds experienced severe price declines, which resulted in their liquidation....

Below, we continue our look at industries and sectors that tend to reward investors in bear markets. That includes utilities, communications services, and healthcare ETFs. While those funds are generally less exposed to the ups and downs of the economic cycle, they also tend to do reasonably well in upward-trending markets....

This issue of Best ETFs for Canadian Investors pinpoints high-quality funds suitable for new buying despite the COVID-19 downturn.


And while the markets will continue to face fallout from the pandemic, I believe the bulk of the damage may already be behind us.


Still, now more than ever, it’s essential that you focus on quality stocks and ETFs....

Traditionally, the price of most stocks, and the ETFs that hold them, drop during bear markets such as the one we’re now in. However, certain segments generally perform better than the overall market during extended downturns, including the 2000-2002 and 2008-2009 bear markets....

VANECK VECTORS VIETNAM ETF, $10.33, is a buy for aggressive investors. The emerging market ETF (New York symbol VNM) lets you tap Vietnamese companies and foreign firms that get a significant share of their revenue from the Southeast Asian nation.


Your top holdings through the ETF are Vingroup (conglomerate), 8.4%; Vietnam Dairy, 7.6%; Vinhomes (real estate), 7.3%; No Va Land Investment, 6.9%; Mani (Japanese medical instrument maker with a Vietnam factory), 6.8%; and the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, 6.3%....

All of the major Canadian and U.S. stock markets are down in the wake of the spread of the COVID-19 virus. But we think the worst is over for many stocks, and one way to profit, while at the same time cutting risk, is to invest in ETFs.


The best of these offer a diversified group of stocks while charging you low management fees....

ISHARES S&P/TSX REIT INDEX ETF, $13.33, is a hold. The ETF (Toronto symbol XRE; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) lets you tap all 19 Canadian real estate investment trusts in the S&P/TSX REIT Index.


Investors pay a reasonable MER of 0.61%, and the REIT fund gives you a high 7.1% yield.
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Spurred by the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on the economy, the Bank of Canada has now cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.25% from 1.25%. Whether it continues to hold that rate steady, or cut it further, depends on the country’s economic growth and unemployment levels.


Meanwhile, even for our conservative investors, we caution against investing in bonds....