ETFs

Exchange traded funds trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks. Investors can buy them on margin, or sell them short. The best exchange-traded funds offer well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios with exceptionally low management ETF fees. They are also very liquid.

Investors use ETFs in a variety of ways, and some investors work only with ETFs and no other type of investment in portfolio creation.

An amazing aspect of ETFs is their diversity. Some investors may create an entire portfolio solely from a few well-diversified ETFs.

ETFs trade on stock exchanges, just like stocks. That’s different from mutual funds, which you can only buy at the end of the day at a price that reflects the fund’s value at the close of trading.

Prices of ETFs are quoted in newspaper stock tables and online. You pay brokerage commissions to buy and sell them, but their low management fees give them a cost advantage over most mutual funds.

As well, shares are only added or removed when the underlying index changes. As a result of this low turnover, you won’t incur the regular capital gains taxes generated by the yearly distributions most conventional mutual funds pay out to unitholders.

ETFs have a place in every investor’s portfolio, at TSI Network we also recommend using our three-part Successful Investor strategy:

  1. Invest mainly in well-established companies;
  2. Spread your money out across most if not all of the five main economic sectors (Manufacturing & Industry; Resources & Commodities; the Consumer sector; Finance; Utilities);
  3. Downplay or avoid stocks in the broker/media limelight.

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ETFs Library Archives
Europe is home to many high-quality companies that are among the global leaders in their respective fields of operation. Still, as a group, these companies have underperformed their U.S. peers by a wide margin over the past two decades—lacklustre European economic growth and bureaucratic burdens have contributed to the mediocre performance.


However, the macro conditions may be changing—European interest rates are moving lower and governments are waking up to the need to make their business environment attractive for companies to invest....
This month, we highlight an actively managed ETF from RBC that invests globally in equities, and a new cryptocurrency ETF from CI Galaxy.


RBC Global Large-Cap Equity ETF $21.84 CBOE symbol RGLE) invests in equities listed on global markets....
Mexico’s ties with the U.S. are very important for the country—and here are two critical aspects of that relationship.


First, Mexico exports over $500 billion worth of goods every year to the U.S. That is more than 80% of the country’s total exports and the equivalent of 28% of its gross domestic product (GDP)....
Mexico’s relationship with the U.S. is extremely important for the country’s economy. More than 80% of Mexican exports, including manufactured goods and food, go to the U.S. In addition, 38 million Mexicans who live and work in the U.S. send large amounts of money back to their country of origin.


On the trade tariff front, the new U.S....
The long-term push to sharply cut oil and gas use—including through renewable power generation and electric vehicles (EVs)—will continue. But at the same time, it’s clear that there will be a continuingly prominent role for oil and gas for some time. That means top oil and gas firms will keep profiting—and paying high dividends.


Here are three ETFs that focus on the traditional sources of energy....
Tesla Yield Shares Purpose ETF $17.40 (CBOE symbol YTSL) invests in Tesla shares, sells call options against the investment, and employs debt to further boost returns. Foreign currency exposure is hedged back to the Canadian dollar.


The ETF launched in December 2022, holds $152.4 million of assets, and charges a very high MER of 1.81%.


The ETF combines a covered call strategy (covering around 50% of its Tesla holdings) with leverage (debt) to generate monthly income, while aiming to preserve some of the growth potential of the underlying stocks.


Since its inception, the ETF’s unit price has declined by 1.6%; however, as the fund paid large dividends derived from its covered call income, the total return was 58.2%....

Over the past decade, European companies have lagged well behind the top U.S. companies. Stagnating economies and a heavy regulatory burden on companies contributed to the weak stock market returns. But, Europe remains home to a number of global leaders in their respective fields—with many trading at discounted valuations compared to their U.S....
We think foreign stocks can safely make up 10% of a conservative investor’s portfolio. One way is through exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with an overseas focus. The best of those ETFs charge you very low management fees yet offer you well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of high-quality stocks.


Here’s a look at four international ETFs we see as suitable for new buying and two others we feel you should continue to hold.


ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS ETF, $43.76, is a buy for aggressive investors. The fund (New York symbol EEM; buy or sell through brokers) is designed to track the MSCI Emerging Markets Index; it gives you access to some of the world’s fastest growing markets.


The ETF’s geographic breakdown is as follows: China, 29.9%; India, 19.0%; Taiwan, 16.7%; South Korea, 9.3%; Brazil, 4.6%; Saudi Arabia, 4.0%; South Africa, 3.2%; Mexico, 2.1%; the UAE, 1.4%; Malaysia, 1.4%; Indonesia, 1.2%; and Thailand, 1.2%.


Your biggest stock exposure through the fund is Taiwan Semiconductor (computer chips) at 8.6% of assets; Tencent Holdings (China: Internet), 5.1%; Alibaba Group (China: e-commerce), 3.1%; Samsung Electronics (South Korea), 2.4%; HDFC Bank (India: finance), 1.6%; Xioami Corporation (China: technology), 1.3%; Reliance Industries (India: conglomerate), 1.2%; and ICICI Bank (India: finance), 1.1%.


iShares launched the ETF on April 7, 2003....
ISHARES MSCI JAPAN INDEX FUND, $71.43, is a buy. The ETF (New York symbol EWJ; buy or sell through brokers; us.ishares.com) aims to mirror the return of the Morgan Stanley Capital International Japan Index.


Top holdings are Toyota, 4.8%; Sony Corp., 3.9%; Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, 3.7%; Hitachi (conglomerate), 3.1%; Nintendo (video games), 2.3%; Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, 2.3%; Keyence (sensors), 2.1%; and Recruit Holdings (human resources), 1.9%....

You Can See Our Exchange-Traded Funds Portfolio For May 2025 Here.


ETFs in brief

Exchange-traded funds are set up to mirror the performance of a stock-market index or sub-index....