Adding ETFs to your investment portfolio

What is ETF investing?

An ETF is an Exchange Traded Fund.  They are a unique pooled investment vehicle that lets the investor express a view on a basket of products or asset group.

This could be an index, such as the actively traded SPDR S&P 500 ETF that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 index or perhaps the ETF Gold Trust, the Aberdeen Standard Physical Gold Shares.

Perhaps you are looking at getting exposure to Telecommunications. The iShares Global Telecom ETF looks to track an index of equities in the communication sector.

Why trade ETFs

You invest in an ETF the same way that you invest in shares or stocks. They are quoted with an offer and bid price allowing you to buy and sell with ease.

The real beauty of an ETF is being able to gain exposure to a sector with limited funds. Taking our iShares Global Telecom ETF as an example, the ETF has a balanced holding in 73 different products. You would need a lot of separate trades to gain this exposure.  

It is also professionally run and monitored with a fund manager keeping track of market trends and monitoring asset valuation and allocations.

Can I trade ETFs through Pepperstone?

At Pepperstone there are more than 100 ETFs to choose from. The sectors include:

• Asia Pacific
• UK, Europe and the Middle East
• North America
• South America and Africa
• Banks and Financials
• Bonds
• Emerging Markets
• Energy and Industrial
• Indices
• Mining and Commodities

Trading ETF CFDs through Pepperstone means that you trade on the underlying exchange price. You are expressing a view on the ETF without any physical ownerships. There are some key advantages and risks. For more key information about trading ETFs please click here.