ETFs are passively managed investment funds traded publicly on stock exchanges in the same manner as traditional Stocks. An increasingly popular product, ETFs combine the benefits and ease of investing in stocks with the advantages of mutual fund investing and ready-made diversification of index tracking.
Each ETF tracks an index or benchmark, meaning the objective for an ETF is to replicate the performance of the index or benchmark that it is tracking. ETFs track specific Stock, Bond, commodity or currency indices, some of which have a regional focus, while others have a sector focus, thus making them ideal for diversifying portfolios.
Versatile, low-cost trading with ETFs
Some ETFs, called Inverse ETFs or Short ETFs, replicate the inverse performance of the index or benchmark, offering investors the chance to benefit from falling prices. Meanwhile Leveraged ETFs offer a fixed amount of leverage on the performance of an index, usually around 2:1 or 3:1.
The passive management of ETFs typically results in a low-cost structure relative to traditional funds. This benefit combined with the availability of leveraged or inverse tracking of specific indices or benchmarks, makes ETFs ideal for creating well-diversified portfolios. The trader can express individual views and preferences, and gain efficient exposure to specific sectors, regions or indices.
Trade ETFs from the worlds largest Tier 1 fund managers
Saxo Capital Markets offers access to a wide range of Exchange Traded Funds from various Tier one providers such as iShares, Powershares, Rydex, StreetTRACKS, SGAM ETFs, Lyxor ETFs and many more.
Exchange Traded Commodities (ETCs) are similar to ETFs, except they track the performance of an underlying commodity or commodity index rather than a stock market index.
ETCs are also traded in the same manner as Stocks but provide exposure to a range of commodities and commodity indices, which include energy, agriculturals, metals and softs. ETCs are open-ended securities like ETFs and are asset backed by physical bullion or commodity (Futures) contracts.
Our online ETC range
Saxo Capital Markets provides access to ETCs that cover the following categories of commodities: Diversified Broad, Agriculture, Energy, Industrial Metals, Livestock and Precious Metals. The ETCs offered are tradable on London Stock Exchange and Euronext Paris.