Commodities have been having their day in the sun with a noticeable run of commodity-linked launches in ETF form in the UK. 

Global X’s The Next Big Theme report for July 2021 covers six key themes: US Infrastructure; E-commerce; Lithium; Video Games & E-Sports; Cloud Computing and Cleantech. 
 

Popularity amongst investors for thematic investment strategies remains high, writes Global X, citing CNBC’s claim that assets in thematic ETFs have hit USD133 billion, up from USD27 billion before the pandemic.

President Biden’s signature USD579 billion infrastructure initiative is now one step closer to being rolled out, and its staggering size and ambition will have a profound impact on commodity markets and supply chains, in particular metals like copper, nickel, and silver, which stand to benefit substantially from this investment, says NTree’s head of research Hamad Ebrahim.

ETF issuer WisdomTree has added to its commodities product range with the launch of WisdomTree Enhanced Commodity ex-Agriculture UCITS ETF – EUR Hedged (EXAG) on the Börse Xetra with a management expense ratio of 0.35 per cent.

Hector McNeil, HANetf co-founder, has confirmed that the London-headquartered firm intends to open in the US in the first half of next year, offering their white label facility to ETF issuers from outside the US, who want to launch ETFs into the country. 

Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) has today launched the L&G Multi-Strategy Enhanced Commodities UCITS ETF, designed to offer investors diversified exposure to the commodities futures market, as they seek to manage inflation and participate in investment opportunities across different commodities throughout the market cycle. 

The launch of Europe’s first ESG focused gold mining ETF, AuAg ESG Gold Mining UCITS ETF (ESGO) will give ESG focused investors a unique opportunity to participate in the gold mining sector. 

Global gold-backed ETFs added 61.3t (USD3.4 billion, 1.7 per cent AUM) in May, reversing three straight months of net outflows according to new data released today by the World Gold Council. 

John Reade, Chief Market Strategist at the World Gold Council, comments on why gold-backed ETFs and Net Managed positions have bounced back following the release of the US’s inflation figures last week.