Financial Planner Alliance

India ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:11:00 +0000

India ETF

Wisdom Tree India Earnings Fund and PowerShares India Portfolio

Two India-focused exchange traded funds or India ETF, have become available in 2008, one being the WisdomTree India Earnings Fund (EPI) and the PowerShares India Portfolio (PIN).

Starting off with the Wisdom Tree India Earnings Fund (EPI), the fund seeks investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree India Earnings Index.

Here are the top Holdings for the WisdomTree India Earnings Index Fund as of 09/03/2008

1. Reliance Industries Ltd	14.49%
2. Oil & Natural Gas Corp Ltd	8.39%
3. Infosys Technologies Ltd	7.48%
4. Bharti Airtel Ltd	5.72%
5. ICICI Bank Ltd	3.25%
6. Hindustan Unilever LTD	2.38%
7. Sterlite Industries India Ltd	2.12%
8. Reliance Communications Ltd	2.11%
9. Satyam Computer Services Ltd	2.09%
10. Indian Oil Corp Ltd	1.81%

And the top Sectors as of 09/03/2008


1. Energy	27.81%
2. Materials	15.01%
3. Information Technology	14.07%
4. Telecommunication Services	7.83%
5. Financials	7.74%
6. Industrials	7.04%
7. Utilities	5.52%
8. Consumer Staples	5.17%
9. Health Care	5.05%
10. Consumer Discretionary	4.65%

And here is the breakdown of the PowerShares India Portfolio (PIN) by Holdings as of 09/04/08

Infosys Technologies Ltd.	11.01%
Reliance Industries Ltd.	9.62%
Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd.	8.75%
Reliance Communications Ltd.	4.96%
Hindustan Unilever Ltd.	4.39%
Reliance Petroleum Ltd.	4.15%
Bharti Airtel Ltd.	3.93%
HDFC Bank Ltd.	2.70%
Indian Oil Corp. Ltd.	2.34%
NTPC Ltd.	2.29%

And by Sector as of 09/04/2008

Graph courtesy of Powershares.com

All Holdings and Sector Weightings may be subject to change.

And here is a chart that compares the two funds with the S&P 500, Nasdaq and the Dow over the last 6 months.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: India ETF

Tags: India ETF, PowerShares India Portfolio (PIN), WisdomTree India Earnings (EPI),Indian ETF, International ETF

Singapore ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:45:00 +0000

Singapore ETF

iShares MSCI Singapore Index Fund (EWS)

Recently I did some research on Singapore ETFs and found the following fund that tracks the Singapore Index. The iShares MSCI Singapore Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Singaporean equity market, as measured by the MSCI Singapore Index. It is interesting to note the funds top sector as of 06/30/2008 was the financial sector coming in at almost 50% followed by industrials at 23% and telecommunication services at 14%. If you know of any other funds that track the Singapore market please feel free to email us at christopher.hege@gmail.com. We are always looking for more great resources that would be valuable to add to the Financial Planner Alliance Community.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

14.30%	SINGAPORE TELECOMMUNICATIO NS
12.08%	UNITED OVERSEAS BANK LTD
10.61%	DBS GROUP HOLDINGS LTD
10.12%	OVERSEA-CHINESE BANKING CORP
4.87%	KEPPEL CORP LTD
4.77%	CAPITALAND LTD
3.94%	SINGAPORE AIRLINES LTD
3.26%	SINGAPORE PRESS HOLDINGS LTD
2.88%	SINGAPORE EXCHANGE LTD
2.67%	FRASER AND NEAVE LTD

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
5.31%	Consumer Discretionary
5.75%	Consumer Staples
49.21%	Financials
1.10%	Health Care
23.05%	Industrials
1.16%	Information Technology
0.02%	S-T Securities
14.30%	Telecommunication Services

Here is a chart of the Fund Performance over the last 5 years:

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Singapore ETF

Tags: Singapore ETF, International ETF,EWS ETF,ETFs,Exchange Traded Fund

South Africa ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:11:00 +0000

South Africa ETF

iShares MSCI South Africa Index Fund (EZA)

Along with all other countries in Africa, I have never been to South Africa but it seems like it would be an interesting country to visit! The iShares MSCI South Africa Index Fund came into the investment world on March 12th of 1996. The iShares MSCI South Africa Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the South African equity market, as measured by the MSCI South Africa Index. We are always looking for more funds to write about that focus on single countries or commodities. If you know of any, please email us at christopher.hege@gmail.com.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

15.88%	SASOL LTD
11.35%	MTN GROUP LTD
9.54%	IMPALA PLATINUM HOLDINGS LTD
5.34%	ANGLO PLATINUM LTD
5.02%	STANDARD BANK GROUP LTD
4.97%	REMGRO LTD
4.31%	ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI LTD
3.82%	NASPERS LTD-N SHS
3.55%	GOLD FIELDS LTD
2.57%	MITTAL STEEL SOUTH AFRICA LT

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
6.73%	Consumer Discretionary
3.38%	Consumer Staples
15.88%	Energy
19.59%	Financials
0.94%	Health Care
5.04%	Industrials
0.50%	Information Technology
34.02%	Materials
13.73%	Telecommunication Services

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: South Africa ETF

Tags: South Africa ETF, Africa ETF, ETFs, ETF Funds,International ETF

South Korea ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:26:00 +0000

South Korea ETF

iShares MSCI So. Korea Fund (EWY)

This article was created to outline the only South Korean ETF Fund that I could find, the iShares MSCI So. Korea Fund. This fund was established on 05/09/2000.

The iShares MSCI South Korea Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the South Korean market, as measured by the MSCI Korea Index.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008
View All Holdings
15.58%	SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD
7.49%	POSCO
4.69%	KOOKMIN BANK
3.59%	SHINHAN FINANCIAL GROUP LTD
3.01%	HYUNDAI HEAVY INDUSTRIES
2.51%	LG ELECTRONICS INC
2.46%	HYUNDAI MOTOR CO
2.28%	KT&G CORP
2.18%	SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS-PFD
1.89%	SHINSEGAE CO LTD

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
9.65%	Consumer Discretionary
6.04%	Consumer Staples
2.73%	Energy
18.24%	Financials
20.63%	Industrials
23.89%	Information Technology
12.48%	Materials
0.21%	S-T Securities
3.97%	Telecommunication Services
2.18%	Utilities

Here is a chart of the fund performance over the last 5 years:

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: South Korea ETF

Tags: South Korea ETF, South Korean ETF, ETF Funds, ETF Fund, International ETF

Spain ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 14:45:00 +0000

Spain ETF

iShares MSCI Spain Index Fund (EWP)

Recently I did a search for Spain ETF and found that only one ETF is currently available that tracks Spain solely. This Exhcange Traded Fund is the iShares MSCI Spain Index Fund (EWP).

The iShares MSCI Spain Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Spanish market, as measured by the MSCI Spain Index.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008
View All Holdings
20.69%	TELEFONICA SA
19.82%	BANCO SANTANDER SA
9.77%	BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTA
4.98%	IBERDROLA SA
4.83%	REPSOL YPF SA
4.57%	BANCO POPULAR ESPANOL
3.80%	GAS NATURAL SDG SA
2.99%	ACS ACTIVIDADES CONS Y SERV
2.96%	UNION FENOSA SA
2.56%	INDITEX

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
2.84%	Consumer Discretionary
4.83%	Energy
40.79%	Financials
0.96%	Health Care
12.46%	Industrials
1.13%	Information Technology
0.67%	Materials
0.01%	S-T Securities
20.69%	Telecommunication Services
15.57%	Utilities

Here is a chart of the fund performance over the last 5 years:

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Spain ETF

Tags: Spain ETF,Spanish ETF,ETF Funds,European ETF, International ETF

Young Professional

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 05:59:00 +0000

A resource guide to finances in your 20s

What does it mean to be a young professional with money? What kind of strategies are available for young professionals to build wealth? How can I, as a young professional, take control of my income and expenses? What are some valuable tools I can use to track my finances?

The following articles look to answer these questions and provide tips for how young professionals might become wise stewards of their assets.

The first article we found is titled "Graduating to a happy, financially secure future." It discusses some basic tips that may be useful to someone that is just entering the workplace out of college. We all know people that generate high incomes but are sucked into generating high liabilities to go with their high incomes. These people typically are good at looking and feeling and acting rich but hidden behind their financial glitz and glamour are poor financial foundations which can lead to mounds of debt that will take many years to repay. The goal of this article is to provide tips that should help you avoid these types of traps and build up financial disciplines that will benefit your long term financial goals.
The next article we found is titled "Planning for Retirement whether you are 20 or 59." This article covers the whole spectrum from 20-59 and has some practical tips that can help young professionals make good choices as they enter into their careers.
The third article is called "How the Young Can Get Rich" and is a mock case study on two young professionals and their progression to retirement. The article compares "Early Shirley" to "Late Nate." Early Shirley contributes less than Late Nate to her retirement plan over time but has the benefit of compounding interest and ends up with a much more healthy retirement fund than Late Nate who pours thousands of dollars a month into his retirement plan. The article focuses on how important it is to start contributing to your retirement plan as early as possible to reap the benefit of compounding.
This article talks about a broad plan for people who want to retire early. I think young professionals now; have a different perspective than their parents towards working and life balance. Young professionals don’t want to work until they are too old to enjoy their savings, so here is a quick guide on how to achieve that goal. Again I thought about timeless material. This article is titled "Retire Early"
This article relates to credit scores and the myths behind them. Surrounded by many college students (I live 4 miles from Michigan State), I constantly hear different theories about credit scores. Some theories are pretty far out there! Believe me, the craziest story that I heard was from a “finance major”; she said that the best way for you to have a high FICO score was to be late on a couple of payments to your credit card, so that the credit card companies make a little bit of money off of you and they like you more!This guide will help answer any questions you may have about how they are formulated. Many of the mistakes young professionals make come when they are just beginning to manage their own money and credit and don’t have a lot of experience yet. Read the article here to learn more about how a FICO score is formulated. What's in your FICO score?
The final resource for Young Professionals we will cover in this entry deals with budgeting. Specifically, one personal finance tool that we have found to be particularly helpful in budgeting and money management is called mint.com. What is even better about this service is that it is free! Mint.com helps you understand how you spend your money, helps you track all of your accounts at once, including investments and liabilities and hosts very powerful and easy to use budgeting tools. When you add all of your accounts to Mint.com it automatically brings in approximately 3 months worth of transactions and also automatically categorizes them for you. The system for categorizing transactions is robust and easy to use as well, so if you do not like the category that the software selected for your transaction you can change it with a click of a button.

Many times as young professionals, with increased purchasing power, we lean on debt instruments like credit cards to feed our desire for toys and luxuries. Often this use of credit can get out of hand because we don't want to take the time to track our expenses. With Mint.com it becomes a much less painful task to stay on top of our accounts. It is an excellent service that anyone, young or old should check out! Here is the link: Mint.com

If you know of any other great resources on money management for Young Professionals please email us at christopher.hege@gmail.com so that we can share them with the Financial Planner Alliance community.

The articles in this post were found by our new contributor, Pedro Gallegos.

Permanent Link:Young Professional

Tags: Young Professional, Young Professionals,Money Management in your 20s,Managing your finances, Budgeting

New Contributor Pedro Gallegos

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 05:17:00 +0000

It a great pleasure to introduce to you a new intern of the Financial Planner Alliance. Pedro Gallegos comes to the Financial Planner Alliance with some great experience and education and we are looking forward to how his contributions will benefit the team.

On the educational front, Pedro gained his bachelors degree from Universidad San Francisco de Quito (Ecuador) with Summa Cum Laude honors. Pedro was a recipient of the Adam Smith Scholarship (full ride scholarship in the field of economics) and spent two years at Michigan State University.

Pedro is currently a finance intern for a trucking company. He has been a part of many successful projects including the development of a sophisticated financial forecasting model for company sales, and the creation of a business plan for a long-distance moving project that is expected to generate 30 million in revenue over 3 years.

Pedro's goal is to become a Certified Financial Planner and work in the Chicago area. The next step Pedro will take on the path to his Financial Planning career is to get a master's degree in Finance with a focus on Financial Planning. Pedro's main interests are in financial planning for young, high net worth professionals as well as wealth management and preservation for retired and soon-to-be-retired baby boomers.

Permanent Link:Financial Planner Alliance Contributor - Pedro Gallegos

Sweden ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 12:02:00 +0000

Sweden ETF

iShares MSCI Sweden Index (EWD)

Swedish-Flag.com copyright © 2008 Zeducorp.

When it comes to Sweden ETF, the number of options-to-date is limited, with iShares being the only producer of a single-country ETF that focuses on the country's main index. The inception of the iShares MSCI Sweden Index Fund (EWD) was 03/12/1996. The iShares MSCI Sweden Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Swedish market, as measured by the MSCI Sweden Index.

Here are the told holdings and sectors as of 07/31/2008

11.75%	ERICSSON LM-B SHS
11.17%	NORDEA BANK AB
10.35%	HENNES&MAURI TZ AB-B SHS
6.45%	TELIASONERA AB
4.59%	VOLVO AB-B SHS
4.51%	SANDVIK AB
4.45%	SVENSKA HANDELSBANKEN-A SHS
4.05%	ATLAS COPCO AB-A SHS
3.82%	INVESTOR AB-B SHS
3.64%	SKANDINAVISKA ENSKILDA BAN-A

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 7/31/2008
13.50%	Consumer Discretionary
2.00%	Consumer Staples
1.10%	Energy
25.95%	Financials
1.58%	Health Care
27.28%	Industrials
11.75%	Information Technology
6.43%	Materials
0.02%	S-T Securities
10.42%	Telecommunication Services

Here is a chart of the fund performance over the last 5 years:

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris
Permanent Link: Sweden ETF

Tags: Sweden ETF, Swedish ETF, European ETF, International ETF,ETF Funds, ETF Fund, ETFs

Switzerland ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 12:01:00 +0000

Switzerland ETF

iShares MSCI Switzerland Index Fund (EWL)

While limited in options, there is one Switzerland ETF to date that is available. This ETF is the iShares MSCI Switzerland Index Fund (EWL).

EWL is one of the older ETF with an inception of 03/12/1996.

The iShares MSCI Switzerland Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Swiss market, as measured by the MSCI Switzerland Index.

Here are the top Holdings as of 07/31/2008

17.76%	NESTLE SA-REG
14.16%	ROCHE HOLDING AG-GENUSSCHEIN
13.44%	NOVARTIS AG-REG
6.06%	ABB LTD-REG
5.12%	CREDIT SUISSE GROUP AG-REG
4.71%	ZURICH FINANCIAL SERVICE-REG
4.17%	CIE FINANCIERE RICHEMON-BR A
4.11%	SYNGENTA AG-REG
4.04%	UBS AG-REG
3.20%	SWISS RE-REG

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 7/31/2008
5.80%	Consumer Discretionary
18.24%	Consumer Staples
21.98%	Financials
33.41%	Health Care
10.12%	Industrials
0.75%	Information Technology
7.17%	Materials
0.02%	S-T Securities
1.87%	Telecommunication Services

Here is a chart of the fund performance over the last 5 years.

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Switzerland ETF

Tags: Switzerland ETF, Swiss ETF, International ETF, European ETF,ETFs, ETF,

Taiwan ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0000

Taiwan ETF

iShares MSCI Taiwan Index Fund (EWT)

If you are looking for ways to invest in Taiwan ETF, I have composed this entry to show what options you have. The only ETF that I could find that focuses solely on Taiwan was the iShares MSCI Taiwan Index Fund. This fund's inception date is 06/20/2000.

The iShares MSCI Taiwan Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Taiwanese market, as measured by the MSCI Taiwan Index.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

12.90%	TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFAC
7.07%	HON HAI PRECISION INDUSTRY
3.78%	CHINA STEEL CORP
3.53%	CHUNGHWA TELECOM CO LTD
3.43%	CATHAY FINANCIAL HOLDING CO
3.14%	HIGH TECH COMPUTER CORP
2.98%	NAN YA PLASTICS CORP
2.97%	AU OPTRONICS CORP
2.83%	MEDIATEK INC
2.79%	FORMOSA PLASTICS CORP

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
2.31%	Consumer Discretionary
1.43%	Consumer Staples
0.93%	Energy
18.24%	Financials
3.40%	Industrials
53.96%	Information Technology
14.29%	Materials
0.05%	S-T Securities
5.17%	Telecommunication Services

Here is a chart of the fund's performance over the last 5 years:

Permanent Link: Taiwan ETF

Tags: Taiwan ETF, International ETF, Asia ETF, Taiwan Exchange Traded Fund

Introduction to Asset Backed Securities

Richard@Hedgefundgroup.org (Richard Wilson) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:01:00 +0000

Here is a short video on asset backed securities. These are sometimes referred to as mortgage-backed securities and are not often understood by the common investor. This video provides a great introduction to the topic.

Permanent Link: Introduction to Asset Backed Securities
Tags: Introduction to Asset Backed Securities, Asset Backed Securities, Asset Backed Securities Definition & Explanation

Financial Planner Training

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:46:00 +0000

This category of the Financial Planner Service Provider Directory will be for those who are trying to find resources on Financial Planner Training.

If you provide financial planner training in the form of formal education(schools), online training, guides, consulting, industry standard designations or other valuable financial planner training resources and would like to be added to this directory please email us and we can discuss how to list your firm on our website.

Permanent Link: Financial Planner Training
Tags: Financial Planner Training, Financial Planning Education,Personal Financial Planning Training,Financial Advisor Training,Financial Advisor Education

Financial Planning Software

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 04:21:00 +0000

This category of the Financial Planner Service Provider Directory will be for those who are trying to find high quality Financial Planning Software. It will provide links to our online directory of Financial Planning Software providers.

If you produce high quality Financial Planning Software and would like to be added to this directory please email us and we can discuss how to list your firm on our website.

Permanent Link: Financial Planning Software
Tags: Financial Planning Software, Find Financial Planning Software,Personal Financial Planning Software, Enterprise Financial Planning Software,Financial Planner Software,Free Financial Planning Software

Find a Financial Advisor

Richard@Hedgefundgroup.org (Richard Wilson) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:43:00 +0000

This category of the Financial Planner Service Provider Directory will be for those who are trying to find a financial advisor online. It will provide links to our online directory of financial advisors.

If you are a financial advisor and would like to be added to this directory please email us and we can discuss how to list your firm on our website.

Permanent Link: Find a Financial Advisor
Tags: Find a Financial Advisor, How to Find a Financial Advisor, How Do I Find a Financial Advisor, Find a Good Financial Advisor, I Find a Financial Advisor, Find a Great Financial Advisor

Financial Planning Book

Richard@Hedgefundgroup.org (Richard Wilson) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:31:00 +0000

In 5 months I will be releasing a free e-book on financial planning called the Financial Planning Blog Book.

This will be a free book that anyone can download to learn more about over 20 different areas related to financial planning. Please subscribe to the blog now to keep updated on the release of this book this upcoming winter/spring.

Permanent Link: Financial Planning Book

Tags: Financial Planning Book, Best Financial Planning Book, Book on Financial Planning, Personal Financial Planning Book, Financial Planning Book com, Financial Planning Books

Online Financial Planning

Richard@Hedgefundgroup.org (Richard Wilson) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:14:00 +0000

This section of the Financial Planner Service Provider Directory provides links to online financial planning tools and resources.

Online Financial Planning Tool #1 - Coming soon. Please email us to list your tool here today.

Online Financial Planning Tool #2

Permanent Link: Online Financial Planning
Tags: Online Financial Planning, Online Financial Planning Options, Online Financial Planners, Online Financial Planning Certificate, Financial Planning Courses Online, Financial Planning Online Courses, Free Online Financial Planning, Financial Planning Degree Online

ETF List

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 05:28:00 +0000

Single Country, Sector and Commodity ETF Articles

The following is a list of articles I have written on ETFs including articles on Single Country ETFs as well as Sector and Commodity ETFs. If you have any resources that you think would be valuable to the Financial Planner Alliance Community I would be glad to add them to the site. Please email us at christopher.hege@gmail.com if you have any to add. Thanks.

Single Country ETF Articles

Sector / Commodity ETF

Permanent Link:ETF List

Tags:ETF List, List of ETFs, ETF Funds,Single Country ETF, Sector ETF,Exchange Traded Fund,ETFs,ETF

Israel ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:27:00 +0000

Israel ETF

iShares MSCI Israel Capped Investable Market Index Fund (ISL)

On March 26th, 2008, Israel gained its first ETF Fund available to US investors. The fund is called the iShares MSCI Israel Capped Investable Market Index Fund.

The iShares MSCI Israel Capped Investable Market Index Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI Israel Capped Investable Market Index. The First Israel Fund (ISL) and the Amidex35 (AMDEX) also provide access to the Israeli market but not in the form of an Exchange Traded fund.

The Israel ETF is broken down by the following sectors:

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008
View All Holdings
22.50%	TEVA PHARMACEUTICAL IND LTD
14.58%	ISRAEL CHEMICALS LIMITED
4.77%	BANK LEUMI LE-ISRAEL
4.34%	MAKHTESHIM-AGAN INDUSTRIES
4.26%	CHECK POINT SOFTWARE TECH
4.08%	BANK HAPOALIM BM
3.79%	THE ISRAEL CORP LIMITED
3.74%	BEZEQ THE ISRAELI TELECOM CP
3.02%	PARTNER COMMUNICATIONS CO
2.73%	ELBIT SYSTEMS LTD

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
3.15%	Consumer Discretionary
1.60%	Consumer Staples
1.11%	Energy
19.48%	Financials
23.54%	Health Care
9.26%	Industrials
9.60%	Information Technology
23.22%	Materials
0.14%	S-T Securities
8.76%	Telecommunication Services

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Israel ETF

Tags:Israel ETF, Israeli ETF,ETF Funds, International ETF,Exchange Traded Funds

Turkey ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:27:00 +0000

Turkey ETF

iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index Fund (TUR)

You may have read my post on Israel ETF. An interesting note about the Turkey ETF is that it shares an inception date with the Israel ETF. The only single-country ETF Fund that I could find that focuses on the Turkey market was the iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index Fund. If any of you know of other ETF Funds that focus on the country of Turkey I would love to hear from you. You can email me at christopher.hege@gmail.com.

The iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

9.44%	TURKIYE GARANTI BANKASI
8.09%	EREGLI DEMIR VE CELIK FABRIK
7.52%	TURKCELL ILETISIM HIZMET AS
6.10%	TURKIYE IS BANKASI-C
6.08%	AKBANK T.A.S.
5.20%	ENKA INSAAT VE SANAYI AS
4.71%	TUPRAS-TURKIYE PETROL RAFINE
3.68%	ANADOLU EFES BIRACILIK VE
3.54%	TURK TELEKOMUNIKASYON AS
3.31%	BIM BIRLESIK MAGAZALAR AS

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
5.57%	Consumer Discretionary
10.55%	Consumer Staples
5.16%	Energy
38.46%	Financials
1.02%	Health Care
14.14%	Industrials
12.17%	Materials
0.15%	S-T Securities
11.07%	Telecommunication Services
1.30%	Utilities

To do more research on the market in Turkey I have provided some helpful pdf files that I think might be beneficial in your search. I have also included a link to the World Bank's fact file on Turkey. Please email me if you know of any other valuable resources that outline the Turkish Economy.

July 2008 Economic Survey of Turkey- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Oil Prices, aggregate economic activity and global liquidity
conditions: evidence from Turkey
Global Economic Prospects:
Launch and Discussion at TEPAV, Ankara, January 16, 2008
World Bank

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link:Turkey ETF

Tags:Turkey ETF, ETF Funds, Exchange Traded Funds, International ETF,ETFs

Thailand ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:26:00 +0000

Thailand ETF

iShares MSCI Thailand Investable Market Index Fund (THD) and other Thailand Investment Options

In 2002 I visited Thailand for about 5 weeks. Most of the time that I spent in the country was in Bangkok, a city that is estimated to have about 15 Million people. It was quite an amazing city to visit. The people that I met in Thailand were so friendly and hospitable! It was an honor to be able to spend some time there amongst such great people.

In the last couple of months I have started to do a lot of research on Exchange Traded Funds and learned that there is a Thailand ETF that recently became available to investors (inception date of 03/26/2008.) Thailand doesn't have endless trading vehicles for US investors to use for investing in Thailand, but there are some trading instruments. The iShares MSCI Investable Market Index fund (THD) is one of them. Two other options, (although not ETF funds) for US investors are the Thai Fund Inc. (NYSE: TTF) and the Thai Capital Fund Inc. (AMEX: TF.)

The iShares MSCI Thailand Investable Market Index Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI Thailand Investable Market Index.

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

12.18%	PTT PCL-NVDR
11.01%	PTT EXPLOR & PROD PCL-NVDR
10.00%	BANGKOK BANK PUBLIC CO-NVDR
6.91%	KASIKORNBANK PCL-NVDR
4.99%	BANPU PUBLIC CO LTD-NVDR
4.35%	ADVANCED INFO SERVICE-NVDR
4.12%	SIAM CEMENT PCL-NVDR
3.73%	SIAM COMMERCIAL BANK P-NVDR
3.59%	BANK OF AYUDHYA PUBLIC-NVDR
3.04%	THAI OIL PCL-NVDR

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
5.31%	Consumer Discretionary
4.08%	Consumer Staples
35.68%	Energy
32.07%	Financials
1.27%	Health Care
3.91%	Industrials
3.86%	Information Technology
6.86%	Materials
4.94%	Telecommunication Services
1.96%	Utilities

Permanent Link: Thailand ETF

Tags: Thailand ETF,Thai ETF, ETF,ETF Funds, ETF Fund,International ETF

Indonesia ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:22:00 +0000

Indonesia ETF: Coming Soon?

It looks as if an Indonesia ETF does not yet exist. Although Indonesia has yet to get its own exchange traded fund (ETF), an alternative would be its closed-end fund (CEF) by the name of Indonesia Fund(IF).

According to Yahoo.com:

"Indonesia Fund, Inc. is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched by Credit Suisse Asset Management, LLC. It is managed by Credit Suisse Asset Management Limited (Australia). The fund invests in the public equity markets of Indonesia. It makes its investments across diversified sectors. The fund primarily invests in equity securities issued by Indonesian companies across all market capitalizations. It employs a bottom-up stock selection process to create its portfolio, focusing on global and local political, economic, and industry trends. The fund benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against the Morgan Stanley Capital International Indonesia Index. It was formed on March 9, 1990 and is domiciled in the United States."

We will have to see how the country recovers as it continues to move on from the devastating tsunami of December 2004 that effected every part of its economy.

According to the food and agriculture organization of the United Nations:

"... Economic losses from the earthquake and resultant tsunami were severe, particularly on the West Coast. Agriculture and small traders were seriously affected. Infrastructure to support economic activity (was) devastated and its repair is critical to any rehabiliation effort. Current estimates indicate that as many as 92,000 farms and small enterprises (were) partially or wholly destroyed. Prior to the disaster, these enterprises provided employment for approximately 160,000 people."

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Indonesia ETF

Tags: Indonesia ETFs, Indonesia ETF, Indonesia Closed-End Funds, Indonesia CEF,ETF Funds,ETFs,ETF

United States ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:21:00 +0000

United States ETF: IYY and VTI

Two options for US investors who would like to invest in the US Market via United States ETFs are the Dow Jones U.S. Index Fund (IYY) and the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI).

Here is a graph comparison of their performance over the last year. As you can see, their performance is nearly identical (as should be expected.)

Like other single-country ETFs, these two funds are a perfect example of how an investor could invest in a large number of sectors of their target country by buying shares in one of these ETFs.

If you would like more fund information you may find a prospectus on the iShares website. Here are the fund fact pages for IYY and VTI provided by iShares and Vanguard, respectively.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link:United States ETF

Tags: United States ETF,ETFs,ETF,Dow Jones ETF, Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF

United Kingdom ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:19:00 +0000

United Kingdom ETF

iShares MSCI United Kingdom Index Fund (EWU)

The only United Kingdom ETF that I could find is the iShares MSCI United Kingdom Index Fund (EWU).

The iShares MSCI United Kingdom Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the British market, as measured by the MSCI United Kingdom Index.

Here is a chart of the fund's performance over the last year:

*Top Holdings (Monthly)** as of 6/30/2008

8.11%	BP PLC
6.78%	HSBC HOLDINGS PLC
5.84%	VODAFONE GROUP PLC
5.41%	ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC-A SHS
4.51%	GLAXOSMITHKLINE PLC
4.40%	RIO TINTO PLC
4.11%	ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC-B SHS
3.42%	ANGLO AMERICAN PLC
3.17%	BG GROUP PLC
3.11%	BHP BILLITON PLC

*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 6/30/2008
4.99%	Consumer Discretionary
12.13%	Consumer Staples
21.85%	Energy
20.76%	Financials
7.53%	Health Care
4.58%	Industrials
0.33%	Information Technology
14.75%	Materials
7.28%	Telecommunication Services
4.69%	Utilities

If you would like more fund information you may find a prospectus on the iShares website. The iShares MSCI United Kingdom Index Fund (EWU) fund fact page is also available here.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: United Kingdom ETF

Tags:UK ETF, United Kingdom ETFs, United Kingdom ETF, International ETF,ETF Funds

Netherlands ETF

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 05:00:00 +0000

Netherlands ETF

iShares MSCI Netherlands Index Fund

If you are looking for more information on Netherlands ETF you have come to the right place! The iShares MSCI Netherlands Index Fund is the only fund currently in existence that is structured as an ETF that focuses soley on the Netherlands. The iShares MSCI Netherlands Investable Market Index Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Dutch market, as measured by the MSCI Netherlands Investable Market Index.

Top Holdings*(Monthly) as of 7/31/2008

18.31% ING GROEP NV-CVA
13.13% UNILEVER NV-CVA
10.75% PHILIPS ELECTRONICS NV
9.46% KONINKLIJKE KPN NV
4.49% AEGON NV
4.06% TNT NV
4.04% AKZO NOBEL
4.04% KONINKLIJKE AHOLD NV
3.38% HEINEKEN NV
3.20% REED ELSEVIER NV
*Holdings are subject to change.

Top Sectors as of 7/31/2008
26.58% Financials
23.66% Consumer Staples
19.74% Industrials
9.46% Telecommunication Services
7.19% Materials
6.26% Consumer Discretionary
4.17% Information Technology
2.20% Energy
0.58% Health Care
0.03% S-T Securities

And here is a chart of the fund performance over the last 5 years

You may also review the iShares fund fact page for more information. If you would like more fund details you may find a prospectus on the iShares website.

If you would like to learn more about ETF Funds please see the following ETF Funds Overview. Another great resource is our list of single-country and commodity ETF Funds.

As always, please consult a licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. Information within this blog is factual information only and is not a solicitation, promotion of any investment strategy, or form of financial advice in any way. The Financial Planner Alliance does not recommend any investment specifically. It intends to provide education on many financial planning and investment trends and options available to investors today.

-Chris

Permanent Link: Netherlands ETF

Tags: Netherlands ETF,Netherlands Exchange,Netherlands Stock,Netherlands Trading,Netherlands Market

What are Hedge Funds?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hege) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:00:00 +0000

I was recently doing some research and wanted to find a good resource to help you as a financial planner know what a Hedge Fund does and how it is structured. When I was searching I found this great Hedge Fund Video by Mike Gasior that talks about what a Hedge Fund is. Enjoy.

If you know of any other great videos that cover topics like wealth management, private banking, personal financial planning, retirement planning, etf funds or mutual funds I would love to share them with the Financial Planner Alliance community. Please send us an email with a link! christopher.hege@gmail.com

If you would like to learn more about Hedge Funds you should visit this excellent blog by Richard Wilson.

Permanent Link: What are Hedge Funds?

Tags:What are Hedge Funds,What is hedge fund,What is hedge funds,Hedge Funds,Hedge Fund Video