Canadian Oil ETFs

Oil ETFs Canada

First Published Date: January 13, 2013 AdawnJournal.com

The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently predicted that during 2013 the total consumption of crude could reach 90.5 million barrels a day and by 2016 it could reach 95.3 million a day. In the next two decades, China and India’s oil consumption will grow at 7.5 percent and 5.5 percent annually to meet their high demand for energy.

Although Canada holds the world’s second largest oil reserve (as confirmed by the statistical wing of the U.S. Department of Energy), if you are in search for oil ETFs on the Toronto Stock Exchange, you will have difficulty finding a handful of them. Most of the ETFs I have come across are oil company ETFs, rather than crude oil future ETFs tracking crude oil performance. Today, I will discuss some oil ETFs I have found that I like trading on TSX. For more information on ETFs, please visit A Dawn Journal ETF Section.

Horizons BetaPro NYMEX® Crude Oil ETF (TSX: HOU, HOD) – HOU uses Light Sweet Crude Oil Futures contracts and rolls over its contracts to the next month mechanically before they expire into subsequent future contracts – so it does not have to take delivery of physical oil. HOU and HOD are denominated in Canadian dollars and the US dollar exposure is hedged daily.

Horizons Crude Oil Yield ETF (TSX: HOY) – This is an ETF that provides exposure to crude oil futures and uses covered call option writing strategy to generate monthly income. Before considering this ETF, do understand how covered call works and the risks associated with it.

BMO S&P/TSX Equal Weight Oil & Gas Index ETF (TSX: ZEO) – This ETF tracks the S&P/TSX Equal Weight Oil & Gas Index. Nexen, Husky, TransCanada, Talisman, Canadian Oil Sands are some of its top holdings.

BMO Energy Commodities Index ETF (TSX: ZCE) – This ETF tracks the S&P GSCI Energy Enhanced Capped Commodity Index. As of this writing, WTI Crude Future, Gas Oil Future (ICE), and Brent Crude Future are its top three holdings.

BMO Junior Oil Index ETF (TSX: ZJO) – This ETF tracks the Dow Jones North America Select Junior Oil Index. If you like junior oil companies, this is the ETF to go with. But keep in mind that junior companies can be very volatile.

The iShares S&P/TSX Capped Energy Index Fund (TSX: XEG) – Tracks the performance of the S&P®/TSX® Capped Energy Index. Some of its holdings are the same as ZEO mentioned above. However, XEG holds about 52 stocks while ZEO holds 16 stocks.

Disclosure – This article is for information purposes only and No information is intended as investment, tax, accounting or legal advice, or as an offer to sell or buy or solicitation of an offer to sell or buy, or as an endorsement, recommendation or sponsorship of any company, security, ETF, or fund. The author assumes no liability for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information, nor for any actions taken in reliance thereon. You bear responsibility for your own investment research and decisions, and should seek the advice of a qualified financial professional before making any investment decision. As of this writing, I do not own any of the ETFs mentioned here.

The Standard of Living in China

China’s Standard of Living

First Published Date: April 1, 2013 ADawnJournal.com

China, one of the most fascinating countries on Earth, has existed for more than 5000 years and is currently the second largest economy on the planet. This country is going through a remarkable and rapid change with widespread economic reforms. Before 1949 China was characterized by extreme poverty, income inequalities, and insecurity. By 1987, the average national life expectancy has more than doubled with increased living standards.

Starting in 1980, due to economic reforms, the standard of living started to climb beyond the basic level. The general population had adequate food, clothing, and housing, and ordinary families could eat a variety of foods, wear stylish clothing, and indulge in luxury items such as electronic appliances, furniture, and shiny personal vehicles.

The level of poverty fell from 84 percent to 16 percent from 1981 to 2005. The infant mortality rate and maternal mortality rates have fallen 39 and 41 percent from 1990 to 2005. The access to telephones increased 94-fold to 57.1 percent of the population having telephones.

China may be a huge economy, but its per capita income is only $5,400, which puts it 90th in the world. Also, China has the second largest number of poor people in the world, only after India, with more than 170 million people living below $1.25 a day international poverty line. Ten percent of Chinese population still live in extreme poverty.

Although the living standard in China is rising in general, the differences between rural areas and big cities, and the eastern seaboard and deep inland remain strikingly high. The World Bank once said that China is one of the most unequal countries in Asia. Although the majority of Chinese feel that they have a higher standard of living than their parents, there are rising concerns over inequality, corruption, and consumer protection.

Even with these problems, China is relentlessly working hard to fix them and reduce the gap between the rich and the poor. The former president of China, Hu Jintao, predicted in his speech that China is aiming to double its 2010 GDP and per capita Income by 2020 for both rural and urban residents. As the years go by, things are looking brighter for this amazing country.

Are Bloomberg’s Top 20 Green Banks Really Green?

The World’s Top Green Banks 2012

First Published Date: June 1, 2013 AdawnJournal.com

Recently, Bloomberg published its annual rankings of the world’s greenest banks for 2012. Here is the top ten green banks on that list:

1. CITIGROUP

2. BANCO SANTADER

3. JPMORGAN CHASE

4. MITSUBISHI FINANCIAL GROUP

5. CREDIT SUISSE GROUP

6. GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP

7. DEUTSCHE BANK

8. MIZUHO FINANCIAL GROUP

9. LLOYDS BANKING GROUP

10. BARCLAYS

Source: Bloomberg

The full list can be accessed here. Canada’s Royal Bank (18th position), TD Bank (27th position), CIBC (37th position), and National Bank (39th position) are also on the list.

However, there are wider arrays of disagreements on how this list was constructed. To qualify to be considered for the top 20 and to be on this list of 40 banks, banks have to have a market capitalization of at least $10B alone with listed on a major stock exchange. Only 62 banks from 23 countries were able to qualify.

Also, Bloomberg’s assessments made of these banks’ participation on clean energy project lendings and reducing their own carbon footprints. But Bloomberg ignored these banks’ own dirty energy projects, such as their support for fossil fuel and nuclear power.

Some of Bloomberg’s top green banks are listed on this Top 20 Climate Killer Banks list by BankTrack for destroying the environment. Here is an article for more on this by Yann Louvel. After reading all these, draw your own conclusions if these banks are really green or not.

Canada Is Among The Top Three Happiest Countries On Earth

The Top Ten Happiest Countries

First Published Date: June 17, 2013 ADawnJournal.com

Canada ranks third spot on the OECD happiest developed countries 2013 list. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) looked at various criteria such as jobs, income, safety, environment and health among the developed countries to make its the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Better Life Index. Australia and Sweden stayed ahead of Canada on the list, ranking first and second. Here are the top ten happiest developed countries:

1. Australia

2. Sweden

3. Canada

4. Norway

5. Switzerland

6. United States

7. Denmark

8. The Netherlands

9. Iceland

10. United Kingdom

The world’s 12th largest economy Australia kept the # 1 title for third year. Both Australia and Canada are resource-rich countries that are reaping the benefits of increased demand from Asia. Australia’s top rank comes with a price, as Australians need to work longer hours and score poorly on work-life balance. More than 14% of Australian employees are working very long hours, which is well above the 9% OECD average.

Also, there is no clear-cut answer in terms of being happy. If you look at two other happiness indexes, such as The Happy Planet Index by the London-based New Economics Foundation and World Happiness Report by the United Nations, the pictures are very different there.

Toronto Will Be One of The Top Ten Competitive Cities on Earth By

Toronto Scores High On The Future Competitiveness of Cities List

First Published Date: August 22, 2013

Commissioned by Citi, The Economist Intelligence Unit has looked at several factors such as the quality of human capital, business and regulatory environment, environmental governance, cultural aspects, among other factors to determine the competitiveness of 120 global cities in 2025. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, a city’s competitiveness means its ability to attract businesses, capital, talent, and visitors – and the factors mentioned above are required to sustain high economic growth and future Competitiveness. Let’s look at the top ten list:

The Top Ten Competitive Cities in 2025

1.    New York

2.    London

3.    Singapore

4.    Hong Kong

5.    Tokyo

6.    Sydney

7.    Paris

8.    Stockholm

9.    Chicago

10.    Toronto