Word: etfs
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...ETFs are stock funds that trade on an exchange like common shares of IBM or Coca-Cola. The first ones were launched in 1993. Amid heavy marketing by key players, including Barclays Global Investors and Merrill Lynch, asset growth has taken off in recent years, swelling nearly ninefold since 1998 to $88 billion in the U.S. etf inflows this year have already doubled the total from all of last year. ETFs have proved so popular that Barclays extended its line in July to include bonds, the first ETFs of that type. It's now possible to build a well-diversified...
Here's how they work: an etf share represents a basket of stocks or bonds typically pegged to a major index such as the S&P 500 or Morgan Stanley Capital International's benchmark foreign index, eafe (Europe, Asia, Far East). There are now 102 such ETFs in the U.S., including some that target specific industries and countries. They can be bought and sold through any broker and can be traded through...
...ETFs have distinct advantages over open-end stock funds. They tend to be widely diversified, and investors can get a daily view of what's in the fund. The annual management fee is low, and ETFs are tax efficient because the stocks within them seldom change and their unusual structure ensures that holders rarely if ever get socked with a capital-gains distribution. You can even sell an etf short (bet on the price to fall). There are disadvantages, like trading commissions that can quickly erode the benefits of ETFs, which for that reason make no sense for investors...
...past year, a new breed of ETF, called iShares, has taken wing. Formerly known as WEBs and primarily built around foreign stock indexes, it was dusted off by Barclays Global Investors this year, renamed and expanded to include specific U.S. sectors such as health care, energy and real estate...