Exchange-Traded Funds News

* Why ETFs Could Overtake Old-School Mutual Funds
... the radar with only 1 in 20 mutual fund dollars, ETFs have now woken up the major players by taking often ... There are tremendous obstacles still in the way of ETFs getting into some of the biggest (retirement) asset pools, but ... year-over-year, the taxable money is increasingly going into ETFs, and there's now universal recognition, at least, of ETFs by financial advisors ...

* ETFs Dead? Not So Fast
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) have seen growth slow over the past three months... While there have been a number of ETF closings in 2008, primarily because of slow asset growth, ETFs are not dead ... ETF providers certainly don't seem to be bearish on their industry... 7, there were nearly 550 ETFs and exchange traded notes (ETNs) in registration.

* Checking In With The ETF Industry’s Growth, With Help From The SEC
The exchange traded fund (ETF) growth scope has widened due to a streamlined global ... support for a proposal to ease the way for new exchange traded fund (ETF) launches... Does a double inverse exchange traded fund (ETF) give clues to which direction the market sentiment will ... 2008 – As time flies on, so does the number of exchange traded funds (ETFs) being introduced to the industry.

* Actively Managed ETF Education is Key
The exchange traded fund (ETF) world became more exciting with the recent introduction of actively managed ETFs this year ... we can contribute to the education of investors, explain how ETFs work, and spread information showing that ETFs are a better alternative to mutual fund investment, ETFs will thrive in the investment world ...

* Three 'ex-ETF' Ideas
Given some of the ETFs that have been discontinued, and others with low assets, it will take some innovative and useful new ETF products to prosper ... Some proposed ETF ideas of my own, that I am surprised have not ... products similar to the idea behind Vanguard's Extended Market Index ETF ( VXF ), but applied globally to international ETFs.

Mutual Funds News Roundup

* Are Mutual Funds a Good Way to Invest for Your Future?
... of investing, there is a lot of wonder circulating around mutual funds. Certain questions such as, “What are the risks associated with mutual funds... is good to ask these questions because asking questions about mutual funds shows that a person means serious business when it comes ... Mutual funds have helped put money in people’s pockets, so mutual funds can be a great way to invest for your future ...

* Time To Put Your Mutual Fund Choices To The Test
It's the same in mutual funds, where investors should go back to school to review their own holdings ... The first thing savvy investors do upon selecting a mutual fund is to write down the reasons for their decision... Chuck Jaffe Time To Put Your Mutual Fund Choices To The Test.

* Charles Jaffe: Give yourself a quiz on your mutual funds
Students are going back to school, and mutual-fund investors should, too, to study their holdings as the calendar year ... The first thing savvy fund investors do upon selecting a mutual fund is write down the reasons for their decision... Charles Jaffe: Give yourself a quiz on your mutual funds.

* Tips to help you pick the right MF- Financial Times-Features-The Economic Times
The net asset values (NAV) of equity mutual funds across the board have taken a beating this year - especially the mid-cap and small-cap focused mutual funds which have a higher co-relation with the market ... Investors who invested in the wrong mutual funds are stuck with them... market conditions, many investors are pulling out investments in equity mutual funds and investing in debt funds and instruments - liquid funds, bank ...

* ETFs a threat to mutual funds, Cerulli says
Despite what mutual fund insiders have been saying for years, exchange traded funds are indeed a threat to mutual funds, according to a report released today from research firm Cerulli ... One way mutual fund managers can combat this threat is to assemble portfolios that ... ETFs a threat to mutual funds, Cerulli says.

* Misbehaving Mutual Funds Give ETFs a Leg Up
... exchange traded funds (ETFs) continues to expand, problems with the mutual fund market contributed greatly to this growth. Chuck Jaffe for the Boston Herald examines the mutual fund world and how five years ago, it was plagued by ... These problems related to mutual fund investing truly reveal the strengths in ETFs.

* Mutual fund assets dip nearly 1 percent in July
WASHINGTON - Total assets in the nation's mutual funds fell by nearly 1 percent last month, dropping by about $91.56 billion, the Investment Company Institute said Thursday... Mutual fund assets dip nearly 1 percent in July.

* The Market's 10 Best Funds ... Revealed
A record $883 billion was added to mutual funds during 2007, and you were likely one of the contributors ... facts are so important that they bear repeating: The best mutual funds of the past 10 years had long-tenured managers who ... Even better, seven of the 10 best mutual funds of the past decade did not charge loads -- the onerous ...

* 2008 Mutual Fund Survey
Our mutual funds report will not only help you identify funds likely to ... Wherever you find Forbes discussing mutual funds, you are likely to see a serious discussion of costs ... Forbes also stands apart from other mutual fund rating services in that we create separate grades for bull ... From several decades of experience tracking mutual funds, it is clear to us that funds that excel in ...

* Target-date Mutual Funds Are Big Draw For New Investment Dollars
Another example, let's say a mutual fund or stock has a beta of 1.5 relative to the ... NEW YORK -- Mutual funds that provide a one-stop offering for investors saving for ... as lifecycle funds, gathered 28% of net money flowing into mutual funds in the first half of the year, according to data ...

* Fund Fundamentals
... or for a nominal cost, there are several reasons why mutual funds are still so popular... explanation: If you have a small sum to invest, a mutual fund can, theoretically, give you broader exposure to more stocks and ... investors who have only a small amount to put into mutual funds.

* Planning Ahead: An Inflection Point For ETFs?
... ago, I was in the cafeteria of a well-known mutual fund company chatting with one of the portfolio managers of a ... Today, I'm sure portfolio managers in mutual fund complexes across the globe are echoing similar sentiments after hearing ... Very few other mutual fund families could attempt this sort of bold action.

Personal Finance Update

* Personal Finance: Surviving the Market Whirlwind
Gail MarksJarvis is a personal finance columnist for the Chicago Tribune... Jonathan Tannenwald Personal Finance: Surviving the Market Whirlwind.

* Spending plan provides blueprint to avoid 'drift'
Questions about personal finance and investments may be sent by e-mail to scott@scottburns.com or by fax to 505-424-0938. The Web site is http://www.scottburns.com to comment on articles, find referenced Web links or discuss personal finance topics. Questions of general interest will be answered in future columns and on the Web site.

* Personal finance: More Americans attempting to pay down debt, poll shows
There are many available on the Web, including one at the Rutgers University personal-finance site at njaes.rutgers.edu/money... Personal finance: More Americans attempting to pay down debt, poll shows.

* The week's 10 best Personal Finance stories: Aug. 25-29
In case you missed them, here are the top 10 Personal Finance stories from MarketWatch for the week of Aug... The week's 10 best Personal Finance stories: Aug.

* Personal finance advice, ideas, tips and financial planning - Money Magazine on CNNMoney.com
Personal finance advice, ideas, tips and financial planning - Money Magazine on CNNMoney.com.

* 10 Tough Ways to Boost Your Bottom Line
When people talk about getting their personal finances in order, they usually try to find the easy way to reduce debt and increase savings... Jeffrey Strain has been a freelance personal finance writer for the past 10 years helping people save money and get their finances in order. He currently owns and runs SavingAdvice.com.

* Personal finance during the crunch
Personal finance during the crunch.

Index Funds News and Views

* Index Funds That Can Beat the S&P 500
Investors in S&P 500 index funds have faced discouraging times... As evidence, the doubters point to a variety of index funds that have outpaced the S&P 500 in recent years ... But there are a handful of index funds that seem likely to outdo the S&P over the ...

* Indexing Is Great, But Don't Forget to Diversify Your Holdings
A diversified portfolio, which, in addition to US stocks, includes bonds , REITs , international stocks , commodities and other asset classes would have done better. Putting equal monthly amounts into index funds tracking the S&P 500, bonds, international stocks, and REITs would garner an annualized return of around 4. Certainly, 4% is nothing to brag about.

* Simplify Your Life (SmartMoney Magazine Cover Story) at SmartMoney.com
... can meet their goals with just three funds: one domestic stock fund, one international stock fund and one bond fund. It also helps to stick with low-priced index funds, since high fees can hurt your returns. Other tips: * Some retirement plans offer "auto-escalation," which automatically increases the rate at which you're saving by, say, 1 percent a year.

* If You Can't Beat the Indexes, Join Them
... invest in a wide variety of different types of assets, index funds have efficiently given many investors ways to get into investments ... can put together an entire diversified portfolio composed solely of index funds... are easily intimidated by investing, few things are simpler than index funds... If you choose never to buy anything but index funds, then you're already managing your finances better than many people ...

* When Buying an Index Fund Is Stupid
For many investors, it's hard to beat a broad-market index fund... think you can beat the market (and thus broad-based index funds, as well) via some carefully chosen managed mutual funds... in addition to such funds, or simply instead of them, index funds offer compelling performance for minimal effort.

ETFs News Update

* Why ETFs Will Overtake Traditional Mutual Funds
... been a small but vocal contingent of people in the ETF business that have been saying for years that ETFs would eventually make huge inroads into market share in the ... year over year, the taxable money is increasingly going into ETFs, and there's now universal recognition, at least, of ETFs by financial advisors ...

* Mutual Funds Aren’t Putting Up the Numbers, So Why Aren’t You In ETFs?
As the exchange traded fund (ETF) industry continues to grow, the question arises as to ... front when it comes to the battle between actively managed exchange traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds... mutual fund industry's tough decade has paved the way for exchange traded funds (ETFs... short duration funds being a recent trend in fixed-income exchange traded funds (ETFs), few of these ETFs actually invest like a real ...

* Signs of an ETF Backlash
Then, ETFs became a fad, the butt of Wall Street jokes as ETF after ETF sliced and diced the stock market in ridiculously specific ways ... ETF providers pull together a basket of equities that purport to benefit from some trend, then create an ETF based on those stocks ... Apparently investors decided they could live without an ophthalmology ETF; a “dermatology and wound care” ETF; or an ETF focused on orthopedic repair ...

* Inverse ETFs on Market's Good Side
Inverse ETFs have been in existence for about two years, yet the ... These were the first ETFs that allowed investors the ability to gain short exposure to ... The idea for this family of ETFs dates to 1997, when ProFunds launched bear market index funds ... The ProShares family of ETFs, which also includes ETFs that are designed to provide magnified exposure to underlying indices ...

* Investor-Friendly Website AboutETFs.com Finds Best ETF Resources; AboutETFs.com launches a carefully-selected list of resources, sites, reviews and portfolio tools for ETF investors. There is no subscription fee and the newsletter strives to remain unbiased.
Investor-Friendly Website AboutETFs.com Finds Best ETF Resources; AboutETFs.com launches a carefully-selected list of resources, sites, reviews and portfolio tools for ETF investors ... ETF Investors will particularly benefit from the "FIVE BEST LIST" website ... winners compete for top kudos in categories such as BEST ETF BOOKS, BEST ETF TOOLS and BEST ETF LISTS.