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ETFs and Market Volatility Events

Lesson 4 of 4
Duration 6:01
Level Intermediate
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Contributed By: State Street Global Advisors

ETF Volumes Increase During Volatility

HY ETF Trading Behavior

Premium & Discount

High Yield ETF Trading

High Yield Volume versus High Yield ETF Primary Market Activity.

  • During periods of high volatility, the High Yield ETF primary market activity is only a small percentage of overall High Yield cash bond trading
  • High Yield ETFs have become a notable trading tool
  • The secondary market volume is additive to the liquidity profile of the overall High Yield market

Case Study: August 24, 2015

What happened

Global growth concerns triggered a sharp selloff in emerging markets, and spilled over into US markets. This resulted in pre-market volatility, an atypical opening market process, and SPY’s largest notional trading session ever.

Case Study: February 2018

What happened

A technically driven unwind of historically long S&P 500 derivative positioning contributed to equity market volatility on February 5 and 6, resulting in SPY’s 2nd and 3rd largest notional trading sessions ever.

Case Study: Q4 2018

SPY maintains consistent spreads during market selloff.

What happened

Market volatility spiked in the 4th quarter of 2018, as concerns over slowing global growth, tightening monetary policy and escalating trade wars resulted in a sharp market selloff. During this time period, SPY’s spreads remained at consistent levels.

An ETF liquidity comparison: In Q4 2018, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) saw spreads widen with heightened volatility. Meanwhile, SPY maintained consistent spreads—allowing investors to pivot in any direction with the same trading costs.

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Disclosure: State Street Global Advisors

Do not reproduce or reprint without the written permission of SSGA.

All information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy is not guaranteed. There is no representation or warranty as to the current accuracy, reliability or completeness of, nor liability for, decisions based on such information and it should not be relied on as such.

State Street Global Advisors and its affiliates (“SSGA”) have not taken into consideration the circumstances of any particular investor in producing this material and are not making an investment recommendation or acting in fiduciary capacity in connection with the provision of the information contained herein.

ETFs trade like stocks, are subject to investment risk, fluctuate in market value and may trade at prices above or below the ETF’s net asset value. Brokerage commissions and ETF expenses will reduce returns.

Bonds generally present less short-term risk and volatility than stocks, but contain interest rate risk (as interest rates raise, bond prices usually fall); issuer default risk; issuer credit risk; liquidity risk; and inflation risk. These effects are usually pronounced for longer-term securities. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to a substantial gain or loss.

Investing involves risk including the risk of loss of principal.

The whole or any part of this work may not be reproduced, copied or transmitted or any of its contents disclosed to third parties without SSGA’s express written consent.

Investing in high yield fixed income securities, otherwise known as “junk bonds”, is considered speculative and involves greater risk of loss of principal and interest than investing in investment grade fixed income securities. These Lower-quality debt securities involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer.

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Definition:

Arbitrage: the simultaneous buying and selling of securities, currency, or commodities in different markets or in derivative forms in order to take advantage of differing prices for the same asset.

Fund Objectives:
SPY: The investment seeks to provide investment results that, before expenses, correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the S&P 500® Index. The Trust seeks to achieve its investment objective by holding a portfolio of the common stocks that are included in the index (the “Portfolio”), with the weight of each stock in the Portfolio substantially corresponding to the weight of such stock in the index.

VOO: The investment seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of large-capitalization stocks. The fund employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, a widely recognized benchmark of U.S. stock market performance that is dominated by the stocks of large U.S. companies. The advisor attempts to replicate the target index by investing all, or substantially all, of its assets in the stocks that make up the index, holding each stock in approximately the same proportion as its weighting in the index.

IVV: The investment seeks to track the investment results of the S&P 500 (the “underlying index”), which measures the performance of the large-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market. The fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the underlying index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the underlying index. It may invest the remainder of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents, as well as in securities not included in the underlying index, but which the advisor believes will help the fund track the underlying index.

The funds presented herein have different investment objectives, costs and expenses. Each fund is managed by a different investment firm, and the performance of each fund will necessarily depend on the ability of their respective managers to select portfolio investments. These differences, among others, may result in significant disparity in the funds’ portfolio assets and performance. For further information on the funds, please review their respective prospectuses.

Entity Disclosures:

The trademarks and service marks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners. Third party data providers make no warranties or representations of any kind relating  to the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the data and have no liability for damages of any kind relating to the use of such data.

SSGA Funds Management, Inc. serves as the investment advisor to the SPDR ETFs that are registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission under the Investment Company Act of 1940. SSGA Funds Management, Inc. is an affiliate of State Street Global Advisors Limited.

Intellectual Property Disclosures:

Standard & Poor’s®, S&P® and SPDR® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor’s® Financial Services LLC (S&P); Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (Dow Jones); and these trademarks have been licensed for use by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC (SPDJI) and sublicensed for certain purposes by State Street Corporation. State Street Corporation’s financial products are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by SPDJI, Dow Jones, S&P, their respective affiliates and third party licensors and none of such parties  make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in such product(s) nor do they have any liability in relation thereto, including for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of any index.

BLOOMBERG®, a trademark and service mark of Bloomberg Finance, L.P. and its affiliates, and BARCLAYS®, a trademark and service mark of Barclays Bank Plc., have each been licensed  for use in connection with the listing and trading of the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays ETFs.

Distributor: State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC, member FINRA, SIPC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of State Street Corporation. References to State Street may include State Street Corporation and its affiliates. Certain State Street affiliates provide services and receive fees from the SPDR ETFs.

ALPS Distributors, Inc., member FINRA, is distributor for SPDR® S&P 500®, SPDR® S&P MidCap 400® and SPDR® Dow Jones Industrial Average, all unit investment trusts. ALPS Distributors, Inc. is not affiliated with State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC.

Before investing, consider the funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. For SPDR funds, you may obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus containing this and other information by calling 1‐866‐787‐2257 or visiting www.spdrs.com. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

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This material is from State Street Global Advisors and is being posted with its permission. The views expressed in this material are solely those of the author and/or State Street Global Advisors and Interactive Brokers is not endorsing or recommending any investment or trading discussed in the material. This material is not and should not be construed as an offer to buy or sell any security. It should not be construed as research or investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security or commodity. This material does not and is not intended to take into account the particular financial conditions, investment objectives or requirements of individual customers. Before acting on this material, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and, as necessary, seek professional advice.

Disclosure: Displaying Symbols on Video

Any stock, options or futures symbols displayed are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to portray recommendations.

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