2019 gave you double-digit gains

Article Excerpt

ETFs that lost value during 2019 were hugely outnumbered by those that gained in value. Indeed, low interest rates, plus receding fears of recession, supported gains. Stocks, in particular, had an outstanding year, with the U.S. market leading the way. At the broad market level, the Vanguard Total World Stocks ETF (VT) gained 24.1%, the Vanguard S&P 500 (VOO) gained 29.1% and the iShares MSCI Canada Equity ETF (EWC) 24.4%. Among the smaller markets, iShares MSCI Russia ETF (ERUS) added 39.3% and Global X MSCI Greece (GREK) rose 48.1%. The broad-based iShares Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) also gained 15.1%. At the industry level, solar energy (Invesco Solar ETF, TAN) jumped 66.4%, and U.S. technology (SPDR Tech Select, XLK) helped investors to a 48.3% gain. On the other end of the spectrum, there were poor performances from Chilean equities and marijuana stocks. The iShares Chile ETF (ECH) was down by 19.2% as street demonstrations unnerved investors. Poor financial results and a weak outlook from weed producers caused substantial price declines among the marijuana stocks. Investors in the Horizons Marijuana…