PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Noel C. Archard
TI  - The Brass Tacks of ETF Evaluation
DP  - 2006 Sep 21
TA  - ETFs and Indexing
PG  - 61--66
VI  - 2006
IP  - 1
4099  - http://guides.pm-research.com/content/2006/1/61.short
4100  - http://guides.pm-research.com/content/2006/1/61.full
AB  - Since the launch of the first ETF 13 years ago, institutional investors have widely incorporated these products into their portfolios, taking the market from $0 to more than $300 billion in assets under management. Perhaps in conjunction with the simple law of supply and demand, we are seeing a proliferation of ETFs. Providers are introducing more specialty sector and sub-sector funds and benchmarks that stray from the traditional index model in an effort to beat the market and compete for market share. This article will provide a roadmap for evaluating ETFs, from costs and spreads to benchmark construction and tracking error.