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Massive growth in the export of cheap manufactured goods has driven China’s economic success over the past two decades....

Investors holding energy and information technology ETFs have so far done well this year. Some of the top-performing ETFs for 2018 hold direct exposure to oil, such as the United States Oil Fund (New York symbol USO). It has gained 25.4%. Unfortunately, Canadian producers have lagged as low bitumen prices depressed sales for producers in the oil sands.


Information Technology also performed well for the first half of 2018....

We take a look at two brand-new ETFs launched by high profile personalities. One is investing in e-commerce stocks after they may have already peaked; the other aims to use artificial intelligence to predict the future. It’s unclear whether either approach will succeed in the long term.


O’SHARES GLOBAL INTERNET GIANTS ETF $25 (New York symbol OGIG; Market cap: $52.0 million) is a new fund: it was launched on June 5, 2018, by the firm O’Shares Investments, owned by Shark Tank and television personality Kevin O’Leary....

Massive growth in the export of cheap manufactured goods has driven China’s economic success over the past two decades. However, developed countries—and especially the U.S., given newly imposed tariffs—are increasingly reluctant to buy more Chinese goods. As a result, China will need to find other sources of growth.


Here is one ETF that provides exposure to the country’s top publicly listed companies.


ISHARES MSCI CHINA ETF $65 (Nasdaq symbol MCHI; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $3.5 billion) tracks the performance of the largest publicly listed Chinese companies.


Technology stocks account for 29% of its assets, while Financial Services (22%), Consumer cyclical (19%), Real estate (5%), Industrials (5%), Energy (4%) and Communication Services (4%) are other key segments.


The ETF holds a large portfolio of 287 stocks, although the top 10 make up a high 53% of its assets....

With $6.3 trillion in total assets under management on March 31, 2018, BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world. The firm started its operations in 1988 with eight employees, and listed on the New York stock exchange in 1999 with assets under management of $400 billion.


In June 2009, in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, BlackRock bought Barclays Global Investors for $13.5 billion....

For most investors, we still think large-cap companies, or the ETFs that hold them, should form the core of their stock portfolios. However, while a lot of investors look to add a few small companies with high growth potential, many overlook medium-sized companies, or “mid caps"—regardless of their profitability and prospects....

INVESCO SOLAR ETF $23 (New York symbol TAN; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $363.0 million) has a limited focus, investing in companies in the solar energy industry. Most are in the U.S. and China.


Among renewable energy sources, solar is forecast to expand the fastest over the next two decades....

Demand for renewable energy continues to grow, supported by government incentives and technological advances that lower costs. Still, the broad increase in power needs worldwide—along with relatively cheap oil and natural gas prices—should keep fossil fuels as the primary energy source for years to come.


There is, however, room for both renewable and fossil fuel providers to operate profitably.


Here are two ETFs that aim to benefit from growing investor interest in renewable energy (see the supplement on page 80 for more information).


INVESCO GLOBAL CLEAN ENERGY ETF $12 (New York symbol PBD; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $54.1 million) tracks the WilderHill New Energy Global Innovation Index....

The six ETFs we update below mainly hold high-quality stocks that are widely traded on Canadian and U.S. exchanges. Each fund tracks the performance of a major stock market index. That’s different from ETFs focused on narrower indexes or themes such as cryptocurrencies or biotechnology.


Of course, you pay brokerage commissions to buy and sell these investments....

Many emerging markets have dropped lately. That’s because a growing U.S. economy and rising interest rates have pushed up the U.S. dollar. That typically results in capital flowing to the U.S. from emerging markets and pushing down investment in those economies....