REITs are bouncing back from COVID

Article Excerpt

Investors who owned marijuana or energy stocks in the first quarter of 2021 saw considerable gains for these investments. Other big winners in the first quarter were U.S. homebuilders, value stocks, financials, agricultural equities, and mid- and small-cap stocks. Stocks had another good quarter. At the broad market level, the Vanguard Total World Stocks ETF (VT) gained 5.0% for the quarter. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) gained 6.1%, and the iShares MSCI Canada Equity ETF (EWC), 9.2%. The iShares Core EAFE ETF (IEFA), which excludes the U.S. and Canada, gained 3.9%. Emerging markets underperformed developed markets in the first quarter. The iShares Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) gained just 3.2%, bringing its gains over the past year to 59.1%. Russian, Indian, and Chilean shares did very well among the emerging markets. Fixed income provided stability during the upheavals in the early part of 2020, but bonds moved down sharply during the first quarter of 2021 as inflation risks hurt investor demand. The Vanguard International Bond ETF (BNDX) lost 2.4% while Canadian bonds—as represented by the iShares…