So far, 2019 has been pretty rosy for investors. The markets are up since Jan. 1, and Corporate America is closing out an impressive earnings season that boasted the fifth-straight quarter of double-digit earnings growth.
At the same time, there are signs that U.S. economic growth is flagging — including the lowest reading for Bloomberg's GDP tracker since the 2009 financial crisis. That echoes concerns from earlier this year voiced by the World Bank, which predicted U.S. growth to slow to 2.5% this year and as little as 1.7% next year.
There are drawbacks to this method. Tech and healthcare are long-term drivers of outperformance, so you could be left behind in a rally. And a screen for holdings with low trailing 12-month volatility could fail to account for future hiccups. But all told, this Invesco ETF is a simple and affordable way to get defensive without abandoning equities — and based on recent inflows, is among the most popular ETFs off 2019 as a result.
As is typical, this Vanguard offering sports a rock-bottom cost structure with expenses of just 0.07% annually.Getting a bit more sophisticated, the FlexShares Quality Dividend Defensive Index Fund QDEF, +0.17% offers a stock-focused approach that could appeal to many low-risk investors given both its defensive bent and a focus on long-term income potential.
For starters, Canada is a developed market that doesn't carry the volatility of many regions across Latin America or Asia. While many investors may think energy and mining stocks dominate the Canadian exchange, in fact it’s a vibrant financial sector that makes up the bulk of the Toronto stock exchange — and, at 40% of total assets, the bulk of this ETFs portfolio as well.
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Source: MarketWatch - 🏆 3. / 97 Read more »