War in the Middle East Intensifies, but Gold Sells Off — Why?
After falling more than 4.38% in the previous session and briefly dropping below the $5,000 mark intraday, gold has rebounded today to around $5,169, recovering part of the losses from the prior trading day. The sharp drop and subsequent rebound in gold prices over the past two days have also quickly transmitted to related ETFs. On March 3, the physically backed gold ETFs $黄金ETF-SPDR(GLD)$ and $黄金信托ETF-iShares(IAU)$ fell 4.46% and 4.44% respectively in a single session. Gold mining equity ETFs saw even larger declines, with $黄金矿业ETF-VanEck(GDX)$ dropping 8.76% and $小型黄金矿业ETF(Market Vectors)(GDXJ)$ falling 8.91%. Volatility
South Korean Stocks Suffer Biggest Single-Day Drop in History!
South Korea's stock market plunged again today, with the KOSPI index tumbling 12.06% after yesterday's 7.24% crash, marking the largest single-day decline in its history. From the perspective of ETF performance, nearly all Korea-related products suffered significant declines. $iShares MSCI South Korea ETF(EWY)$ dropped 10.30% in a single day, while $Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF(FLKR)$ fell 10.25%, with both broad-based Korea ETFs posting similar losses. The leveraged product $Direxion Daily MSCI South Korea Bull 3x Shares(KORU)$ saw the most dramatic decline, plunging 31.10% in a single day, amplifying index volatility. The actively managed product
South Korean Stocks Plunge — Is This Bull Market Over?
The KOSPI Index has seen a rare and sharp selloff since reaching a high near 6,300 in late February. It now stands at around 5,791, with a single-day drop exceeding 7%, marking the steepest correction since August 2024. The previously strong rally, which had repeatedly broken through record highs, has suddenly hit the brakes in a very short period of time. Reflected in ETFs, the largest Korea-focused fund $iShares MSCI South Korea ETF(EWY)$ dropped as much as 10.9% in pre-market trading, while $Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF(FLKR)$ fell 10.96%. The 3x leveraged product $Direxion Daily MSCI South Korea Bull 3x Shares(KORU)$ plunged 32.43% before the open, amplifying
US-Israel strike Iran — gold, silver new highs next week?
Today, the United States and Israel launched military strikes on targets inside Iran, sharply escalating tensions in the Middle East. Geopolitical risk premiums are set to return rapidly to the forefront of market pricing. Next week, capital inflows into the precious metals sector, led by gold and silver, appear almost certain. In the gold ETF space, the largest physically backed gold ETF, $SPDR Gold ETF(GLD)$ , is up 22.06% year to date, while $Gold Trust Ishares(IAU)$ has gained 22.05%. Among gold mining ETFs, $VanEck Gold Miners ETF(GDX)$ is up 35.06% this year and $VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF(GDXJ)$ has risen 37.27%.
Japan Stocks Hit Record Highs — Time to Enter or Stay Cautious?
Yesterday, the Nikkei 225 rose more than 1.2% at one point, breaking above the 59,000 mark and approaching the key 60,000 level, setting yet another record high. Since the start of the year, the Nikkei 225 has surged nearly 17%, ranking among the top performers across major global equity indices and significantly outperforming both US and Chinese markets. In terms of Japan-related ETFs, performance has been solid so far this year. The largest Japan broad-based ETF, $iShares MSCI Japan ETF(EWJ)$ , is up 14.54% year to date. $JPMorgan BetaBuilders Japan ETF(BBJP)$ has gained 14.50%, while $Franklin FTSE Japan ETF(FLJP)$ has risen 14.92%. Meanwhile,
South Korean stocks surge again — how to access the world’s hottest market through ETFs?
The KOSPI hit a fresh record above 6,300 today. After gaining more than 75% in 2025, the index has climbed another roughly 46% in less than two months in 2026. Total market capitalization has surpassed $3.76 trillion, overtaking Germany and France to become the world’s ninth-largest equity market. Related ETFs have also posted remarkable gains year-to-date: $iShares MSCI South Korea ETF(EWY)$ is up 53.15% year-to-date. Leveraged product $Direxion Daily MSCI South Korea Bull 3x Shares(KORU)$ has surged 232.02% year-to-date. $Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF(FLKR)$ has gained 50.92% year-to-date, while $Matthews Korea Active ETF(M
The Endgame of AI Is Power: Nuclear ETFs Surge — Too Late to Buy?
At the beginning of 2026, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced in its public statement and restructuring outline that it aims to shorten the approval cycle for new nuclear reactors to approximately 18 months. The policy discussion also cited growing electricity demand from data centers and other high-energy-consuming industries as a key backdrop for capacity expansion. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Energy continues to support nuclear power through loan guarantees and demonstration projects, including advanced reactors and life extensions or restarts of existing plants. From a year-to-date total return perspective in 2026, nuclear-related ETFs have delivered notable gains: $Global X Uranium ETF(URA)$ is up approximately 28.5%, leadin
As diplomatic talks between the United States and Iran are expected to take place later this week, President Donald Trump once again issued a warning to Iran’s leadership. In the futures market, crude oil prices fell for the first time in three days. Brent crude dropped about 2% in early London trading to around $68 per barrel, while WTI crude declined roughly 2.1% to near $63 per barrel. Brent Crude Among energy ETFs with exposure to oil, year-to-date performance shows that $Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund(XLE)$ has risen 18.2%, $Vanguard Energy ETF(VDE)$ is up 17.9%, $Spdr S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production Etf(XOP)$ has gained 13.9%,
Last week, gold saw a sharp correction after hitting a record high of 5,595.4 USD per ounce, briefly falling to 4,460 USD. Today, gold has moved back above 5,000 USD per ounce, with an intraday high of 5,092.3 USD. Over the past two trading days, prices have rebounded by more than 8.5%. Silver experienced an even more violent move. At its peak, silver briefly surged above 121 USD, before suffering the largest single-day drop on record, plunging 26.9% to 79 USD. The decline was significantly deeper than that of gold. Today, silver has reclaimed the 90 USD level, marking a recovery of 13.2%. Among physical gold ETFs, $SPDR Gold ETF(GLD)$ rose 6.4% on the day and $Gold Trust Ishares(IAU)$ gained 6.2%, closely