It's no secret that ETFs are rapidly attracting investor dollars away from traditional mutual funds and other investment vehicles. Coupled with the rise of the ETF industry as a whole, an extended period of extreme financial turmoil has made gold ETFs one of the most popular investments in today's environment. To meet the demand, a number of gold ETFs have popped up. But buyer beware - not all gold funds are the same.

Here's a look at seven of the largest gold ETFs on the market today, along with their objectives and methodologies.

The month of April brought seven new ETFs and one new ETN to market. Additionally, three ETNs left the scene while all ETFs remained active.

With all changes netted out, there were a total of 844 (759 ETFs and 85 ETNs) exchange traded products listed at the end of April. This is a net increase of five for the month, while the year-to-date count is down by one.

Three exchange traded notes (ETNs) from Credit Suisse were delisted from the New York Stock Exchange last Friday (April 3, 2009) and began trading over-the-counter rather than on a securities exchange.

Back on March 10, Credit Suisse (CS) announced its intent to delist, but not close, three of its ETNs that are marketed under the Elements brand. No new shares are being created, and without this arbitrage mechanism the market price no longer tracks the actual value of the shares.

In severely challenged markets, we’ve seen a number changes in the ETF business. This week, a few more shifts are being made.

Three of the Elements exchange traded notes (ETNs) announced that they’ll be taken off the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on April 3. Credit Suisse credited “insufficient” trading volumes for the decision. At the same time, Credit Suisse didn’t rule out letting the trio of ETNs trade over the counter.

Credit Suisse Securities, the issuer of four Elements-branded exchange-traded notes, confirmed on Friday that it was pulling three of those funds off the New York Stock Exchange.

Set to end trading on the NYSE by April 3 are:

Credit Suisse (CS) announced its intent to delist three of its ELEMENTS brand ETN products. The last day of trading is expected to be “on or about” April 3, 2009.

The affected securities are:

Over the past several weeks, I was able to enjoy an 80% return on the Leveraged 3X short Financials ETF FAZ. As my trading account was becoming too top-heavy (short-heavy really), I sold into strength as the ETF rocketed over $100 per share as rumors of nationalization were rampant and the Dow hit levels not seen since 1996. I didn't sell out completely though and still hold shares which are now moving in the opposite direction. However, last weekend, I tweeted about the potential for banking shares to double given the upcoming House Financial Services meeting which may bode well if Mark to Market accounting rules are altered. So, Monday I changed my game plan.

Was This a Bottom?

Anyone who owns Elements MLCX Gold ETN (GOE) needs to be aware that the price is likely to drop more than 90% very suddenly.

The one thing that separates ETFs (and ETNs) from closed-end funds is the ability to keep price and “indicative value” closely aligned through a creation/redemption process. ETFs have “authorized participants” with the ability to exchange shares of the underlying asset for shares of the ETF (when the ETF is trading at a premium) and vice-versa. This arbitrage mechanism is lacking for closed-end funds, so they are always trading at a premium or discount.

The chart above shows a 3 year weekly chart of Gold continuous contract. Since gold price peaked in March 08 all new consecutive highs are always lower. The same is valid for new lows. This shows a short term bearish pattern.

The number of ETFs on Deathwatch continues to grow as we enter 2009. My current list contains 139 names: 97 ETFs and 42 ETNs. The list includes any ETF/ETN that is at least six months old and had an Average Daily Value Traded of less than $100,000 in December.

Exchange Trade Notes are suffering from concerns of default risk. The Lehman Brothers (LEHMQ.PK) bankruptcy, which resulted in the demise of three ETNs, is causing investors to hesitate before throwing money into these products. Unless ETN sponsors to take steps to calm investor fears, their representation on the list is likely to grow in the coming months.

The following is a revised version of an article that was published on November 27, 2008.

By Brad Zigler

Many of our readers at AboutETFs.com enjoyed our earlier article The Complete List of Currency ETFs and have been requesting a similar list for commodities. So, once again, by popular demand, here is our newest list, The Complete List of Commodity ETFs and ETNs, as of October 20, 2008.

COMMODITY BASKETS (All Commodities)

By Julian Murdoch

In times of economic crisis - such as the plummeting stock market of fall 2008 - the idea of holding gold is attractive. But the status of the market also opens up opportunities for investment in the pick-and-shovel enterprises that bring us that gold.

Broad Based Commodity ETFs and ETNs
E-TRACS UBS Bloomberg CMCI Index ETN (UCI)
GreenHaven Continuous Commodity Index (GCC)
GS Connect S&P GSCI Enhanced Commodity Total Return Strategy Index ETN (GSC)
iShares GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust ETF (GSG)
iPath Dow Jones-AIG Commodity Index Total Return ETN (DJP)
iPath S&P GSCI Total Return Index ETN (GSP)
PowerShares DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund ETF (DBC)
Opta Lehman Brothers Commodity Index Pure Beta Total Return ETN (RAW)

NEW LISTINGS

U.S. Heating Oil Fund Launches

For anyone looking for another way to access oil markets, Victoria Bay Asset Management is marketing a fund that offers access to a specific segment.

By Heather Bell

April has been a busy month for the ELEMENTS platform. Within the first two weeks it has seen the launch of four new exchange-traded notes, all issued by Credit Suisse (CS) (rated AA-/Aa1). Three cover sections of the commodities market, while the third offers exposure to the industry that has arisen around efforts to combat and deal with global warming.