ETF Performance: China rises

Article Excerpt

After a rough final quarter for 2018, most asset classes saw significant gains in early January 2019. They now continue that recovery but at a much slower pace. Investors are seemingly less concerned about stock valuations, while the U.S. Federal Reserve continuesd to play down the need to raise interest rates any time soon. Initial progress on the U.S.-China trade negotiations and a delay in implementing higher tariffs on Chinese imports, boosted Chinese stocks. Canadian ETFs also continued their recovery: the iShares MSCI Canada Equity ETF (EWC) is now up 15.0% since the start of 2019. Chinese funds were among February’s top performers, with the Xtrackers Hvst CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF (ASHR.K) up 16.5%. Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences ETF (HMMJ) added 6.6% in February for a 27.5% gain over 3 months. Global Copper Miners (COPX.K) rose 7.0% and Global Base Metal Producers (XBM.TO) added 6.4%—reflecting the more positive sentiment on Chinese manufacturing. manufacturing. …