New York-based asset manager Van Eck Global announced today that its family of municipal bond Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) recently passed the $1 billion mark in combined assets under management (AUM). Read more…

ITM, MLN, NYSE:HYD, NYSE:XMPT, PRB, SMB

David Fry: This posting completes a comprehensive review in the fixed-income ETF segment. While this review seems a grab-bag collection of issues, we like keeping the list of choices at 10. This seems more manageable for most investors. We’re not necessarily recommending one issue over another and where Read more…

MLN, NYSE:AGG, NYSE:BND, NYSE:BSV, NYSE:HYD, PFF, SHY

Michael Johnston: In recent years, ETFs have become increasing popular tools for accessing the fixed income corner of the market. The space initially grew much more slowly than equity ETFs, but investors have gradually become more comfortable with the combination of fixed income exposure Read more…

JNK, MUB, NYSE:AGG, NYSE:BAB, NYSE:BND, NYSE:BWZ, NYSE:HYD, NYSE:HYG, PCY, PZA

“Yields from mortgage REITs have been higher in recent years than those provided by equity REITs and a number of other income-oriented products,” said Jan van Eck, Principal at Van Eck Global. “We’re pleased to bring out MORT, an ETF which we think could be a valuable portfolio building tool for yield-focused investors in this Read more…

IYM, MLN, NYSE:EMLC, NYSE:FLTR, NYSE:HYD, PRB, SMB

The Market Vectors ETF Trust announced regular monthly distributions today for its five municipal bond ETFs, Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF, Market Vectors Investment Grade Floating Rate ETF and Market Vectors LatAm Aggregate Bond ETF. Read more…

ITM, MLN, NYSE:BONO, NYSE:EMLC, NYSE:FLTR, NYSE:HYD, PRB, SMB

According to the ancient Mayan calendar, the world will end in December 2012. If banking analyst Meredith Whitney is right, the beginning of the end might be around the corner. Whitney, who rose to prominence after a pessimistic report on Citigroup issued in late 2007 later proved to be Read more…

MUB, NYF, NYSE:BAB, NYSE:CMF, NYSE:HYD

With interest rates continuing to hover near record lows, investors accustomed to generating attractive current returns from high quality fixed income securities have been forced to get Read more…

NYSE:BDCS, NYSE:HYD, NYSE:HYLD, PCEF, SDY, VIG

Van Eck, the New York City-based ETF issuer known for its lineup of sector specific ETFs in the commodity space, filed with the SEC to expand its footprint in the bond arena with a proposal for Read more…

NYSE:HYD, PCEF

Ron Rowland:  Can a passive index fund accurately track its index when it has only one holding for every 423 holdings of the underlying index?  Last week (4/14/11), State Street Global Advisors Read more…

NYSE:CBND, NYSE:HYD, NYSE:HYMB

The Market Vectors ETF Trust announced regular monthly distributions today for its five municipal bond ETFs and the Market Vectors Emerging Markets Read more…

ITM, MLN, NYSE:EMLC, NYSE:HYD, PRB, SMB

CNBC picked the brains of Mark Cortazzo, Macro Consulting Group and Paul Simon, Tactical Allocation Group to see what their Read more…

IJH, IVV, NYSE:EEM, NYSE:EWM, NYSE:HYD, NYSE:HYG

Last week I received an e-mail solicitation that was both hilarious and sad. It came from a broker trying to sell municipal bonds from Illinois. He touted them as “investment grade” and was Read more…

NYSE:HYD, PRB, PZA

With the iShares S&P National AMT-Free Muni Bd (NYSE:MUB) down 10% in the last three months, is there trouble brewing in the municipal bond market? CNBC brought in Richard Ciccarone, McDonnell Investments, and Read more…

MUB, NYSE:HYD, PZA, TFI

Last week saw the end of a year that was relatively kind to investor portfolios, as most major asset classes managed to post strong results in 2010. As the calendars flip to 2011, the outlook remains Read more…

IAU, INXX, NYSE:CEW, NYSE:CHIX, NYSE:EIS, NYSE:EUO, NYSE:HYD, PSP, REMX, XLK, XOP

When the Federal Reserve slashed the federal funds target rate to a range of 0.0% to 0.25% in late 2008, most expected that the drastic measure would be temporary, and that interest rates would Read more…

MUB, NYSE:BAB, NYSE:HYD