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
High-quality companies generally perform well during good times and decline less during market upheavals—this is a combination that keep benefiting top stocks in 2022.


TSI Network has developed a 10-point checklist of factors that define high-quality, attractive companies....
To help you decide if certain ETFs are suitable for your portfolio and investment temperament, we classify them into three easy-to-understand categories: Conservative, Aggressive and Income. To determine how an ETF fits into one of those three classifications, we examine a number of factors....
This month we look at two recently listed Canadian ETFs. One aims to capture its gains from the “metaverse” and the other from sports and entertainment.


EVOLVE METAVERSE ETF $9.27 (Toronto symbol MESH) invests mainly in North American companies involved in the development of the “metaverse.” The metaverse is a term coined to describe an immersive 3-dimensional version of the Internet, powered by virtual reality technology....
China hosts some of the largest stock markets in the world with Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Shenzhen ranked among the global top 10 markets. Although rules governing access for foreign investors have continued to relax over the past decade, access remains somewhat complicated with a multitude of share categories subject to different rules.


The majority of Chinese stocks are listed on the Shanghai and the Shenzhen stock exchanges—they are generally categorized as A shares and are quoted in the local currency, the yuan.


Chinese investors, as well as qualified foreign institutional investors, can trade directly on these markets....
The Chinese economy offers investors considerable long-term promise—although it faces challenges in the near term. Foremost among them is that economic activity could slow this year as the Omicron variant forces entire cities to lock down under China’s zero-COVID policy....
In addition to the top picks for 2022 and beyond that we feature this issue (including our #1 pick), we recommend the following three ETFs. All are poised to move up this year and to help you tap key market segments. For myriad reasons (see the Supplement on pages 19 and 20), each of the funds could significantly add to your 2022 returns.


First, we still feel that virtually all Canadians should have, say, 20% to 30% of their portfolio in U.S....
What is an ETF? An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a pooled investment vehicle that trades like a common stock on the market. Investors own a portion of all the assets held by the ETF.


What assets do ETFs hold? They let you own publicly traded equities, bonds, commodities, currencies, stock options and futures.


What are the associated costs of investing in ETFs? Direct costs for investors are broker trading fees to buy and sell ETF units on the stock exchange....
ISHARES CANADIAN SELECT DIVIDEND INDEX ETF $31.65 (Toronto symbol XDV) lets you hold 30 of the highest-yielding Canadian stocks. The ETF also considers dividend growth and payout ratios to make its selections.


The weight of any one stock holding is limited to 10% of the fund’s assets....
We still recommend that most Canadians hold the bulk of their portfolios in dividend-paying Canadian stocks, or ETFs that hold those stocks. (And that includes our #1 ETF pick for 2022, see column at right.)


Meanwhile, though, investors could also hold stocks or ETFs in other market segments to add growth and diversification to their portfolios....
ISHARES MSCI TAIWAN INDEX FUND, $66.96, is a buy for aggressive investors. The ETF (New York symbol EWT; buy or sell through brokers) gives you direct exposure to some of the top public companies of this East Asian powerhouse economy.


The fund’s largest holding is Taiwan Semiconductor at 22.5% of assets....