OREANDA-NEWS. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index is set for its longest streak of gains since April after erasing losses earlier this week, led by advances in Japanese stocks, amidst speculation the country’s weak exports might prompt its central bank to further loosen monetary policy next week. September trade data, released earlier this week, is one key economic indicator that might influence the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy decision on 30 Oct.

Sentiment was also bolstered after the European Central Bank signaled overnight it would consider adding to its bond-buying program before year-end to support the economy.

China stocks have rebounded about 10% so far in October, heading for the sharpest monthly rise in six months, amid hopes the government will further boost stimulus and unveil more reforms of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) ahead of a high-level Communist Party meeting starting Monday.

South Korean shares and the won were buoyed by a net inflow of foreign funds this month after emerging-market assets staged a rally on speculation the Federal Reserve is unlikely to raise borrowing costs this year. Taiwan equities also recorded foreign portfolio investment inflows of US$1.62 billion in the month-to-date, second-highest after Japan in the region, according to data tracked by Bloomberg.

Gold is set for its first weekly decline since the start of the month, ahead of next week’s Fed meeting, which may offer clues on when the US will hike rates. The Federal Open Market Committee meeting on 27-28 October is the central bank’s penultimate for the year. Higher rates reduce the attractiveness of gold as an investment as it doesn’t pay interest like bonds.

Singapore’s 10 most active Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in the October 2015 month-to-date were db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia ex-Japan Index UCITS ETF, SPDR® Gold Shares, iShares MSCI India Index ETF, SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF, db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR), db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR), db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF, db x-trackers MSCI Korea UCITS Index ETF (DR), db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) and Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF.

In the month thus far, these 10 most active ETFs averaged a total return of 7.8%, taking the one-year and three-year total returns to a 4.3% decline and 6.4% respectively. All 10 ETFs posted positive gains in the month thus far, with the three best performers in month-to-date total returns being db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR), db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) and db x-trackers MSCI Korea UCITS Index ETF (DR).

These 10 ETFs track a range of indices, including the price of gold, stock indices of India, Korea, China and Taiwan, in addition to a regional equity index. The above-mentioned ETFs saw a 82.0% YoY increase in turnover for the month thus far, rising from S$114.5 million in the October 2014 month-to-date to S$208.5 million in the same period this year. This brings the total 12-month turnover to S$2.1 billion.

The three most active ETFs over the first 16 sessions of October were db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF, SPDR® Gold Shares and iShares MSCI India Index ETF.

The 10 most active ETFs in the October 2015 month-to-date are detailed below and sorted by MTD turnover.

Name Stock Code Price MTD Turnover 2015 MTD Turnover 2014 12M Turnover
db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF IH1 33.44 93,165,710.90 16,150,724.70 240,100,354.63
SPDR® Gold Shares O87 111.70 38,412,423.85 27,695,077.93  517,629,708.14
iShares MSCI India Index ETF I98 7.20 27,997,378.70 52,926,156.57 640,367,102.07
SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF ES3 3.08 17,881,354.00 10,709,070.00 389,157,355.00
db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG9 13.19 6,219,693.41 581,816.34  84,118,624.15
db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR) HD8 31.67 5,533,343.63 1,897,320.62 78,189,588.52
db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF HD9 24.03 5,019,334.56 1,843,844.24 56,968,974.54
db x-trackers MSCI Korea UCITS Index ETF (DR) IH2 53.67 4,965,691.99 651,092.01 16,532,267.98
db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) HD7 20.04 4,678,543.66 78,841.74 15,934,326.87
Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF G3B 3.13 4,643,377.00 2,007,450.00  65,438,622.00

 

Name Stock Code Total Return MTD (%) Total return 12M (%) 3 Year Total Return Annualized (%) 3 Year Total Return (%) 30 day Volatility (%)
db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan Index UCITS ETF IH1 9.3 -4.9 2.1 6.6 19.4
SPDR® Gold Shares O87 3.7 -6.3 -12.6 -33.0 14.4
iShares MSCI India Index ETF I98 5.3 -3.2 5.1 16.9 16.4
SPDR® Straits Times Index ETF ES3 8.1 -3.0 2.7 7.9 14.9
db x-trackers MSCI China Index UCITS ETF (DR) LG9 10.7 3.0 4.6 14.0 23.9
db x-trackers FTSE China 50 UCITS ETF (DR) HD8 11.6 3.1 3.9 11.4 24.5
db x-trackers FTSE Vietnam UCITS ETF HD9 4.5 -16.5 6.1 19.6 19.5
db x-trackers MSCI Korea UCITS Index ETF (DR) IH2 9.4 -6.3 -1.7 -4.8 26.8
db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) HD7 6.6 -5.9 4.7 16.6 25.2
Nikko AM Singapore STI ETF G3B 8.3 -3.0 2.9 8.6 16.1
Average   7.8 -4.3 1.8 6.4 20.1

ETFs are investment funds listed and traded intraday on a stock exchange. The majority aim to track the performance of an index and provide access to a wide variety of markets and asset classes, including local stocks, international securities, bonds, commodities or money markets.

Each ETF gives investors access to the performance of the asset that comprises the underlying index. Investing in the ETF is also less costly if one was to build a similar portfolio by buying the individual stocks. It also provides exposure to international markets and asset classes that may be inaccessible to individual investors.