Skip to main content

noninstitutional

10 Sep: WTI Weekly

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is a light, sweet crude oil that serves as one of the main global oil benchmarks. It is sourced primarily from inland Texas and is one of the highest quality oils in the world, which is easy to refine. WTI is the underlying commodity for the NYMEX’s oil futures contract. WTI is known as a light sweet oil because it contains around 0.34% sulfur, making it “sweet,” and has a low density (specific gravity), making it “light.”1

10 Sep: WTI/DXY Ratio

WTI:DXY comparison chart is one of my favorite macro crude oil charts to look at because it provides a true GLOBAL price of oil adjusted to an entire basket of currencies, not just USD itself.  Once we take a look at the chart above we see just how RARE this drop is on a relative basis.  To put it in perspective, the WTI during $147 peak was 205% the DXY, and now it is just 12%!! (8% at the lows if you count that)…. needless to say this is a generational low.  the bigger issue is its running out of downside room so the bottom is approaching soon…

10 Sep: XLC

The XLC ETF is State Street’s Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLC) is one of the newest additions to State Street’s popular legacy lineup of sector ETFs. It including many of the major communications, advertising & social media companies in its index. Given its heavy bias towards social media mega-cap stocks (which are often mistaken for Tech) this ETF has a heavy bias towards mega cap growth.

10 Sep: XLB

XLB U.S. materials sector provides indirect exposure to commodity prices through the stocks of companies engaged in the extraction or production of natural resources. Because the materials sector often accounts for a small portion of broad-based benchmarks, XLB may be a useful tool for long-term investors looking for more balanced exposure to the U.S. equity market. It can also be handy for those looking to implement a shorter-term tilt towards the materials sector. Like most Sector SPDRs, XLB’s appeal lies in its cost efficiency and liquidity; it is among the cheapest funds in the Materials

10 Sep: XHB

This ETF is focused on the U.S. homebuilding industry, and as such offers exposure to a corner of the domestic economy that tends to be cyclical in nature. In addition to pure play homebuilders, this fund includes companies related generally to the homebuilding industry, such as Pier One. For investors seeking exposure to the homebuilding industry–or the closest thing to it available in an ETF wrapper–we think XHB is the best option out there. This fund is more cost efficient than other options such as PKB or ITB, and the equal weighting methodology ensures exposure is spread evenly across component companies.

10 Sep: IBB Weekly

IBB biotech sub-sector of the health care industry, serving up access to a group IBB is primarily focused on U.S. stocks, though a smattering of international firms adds some degree of international diversification. This biotech ETF casts a considerably wider net that the other ETF options for exposure to the space, investing in more than 100 stocks. That feature can be particularly important in the biotech space, where company-specific developments can send a single stock soaring. IBB is somewhat top-heavy, but generally