Platinum, Palladium ETFs Are a Homerun
Monday, January 18th, 2010Michael Johnston submits:
Given the tremendous amount of buzz surrounding the launch of the first U.S.-listed platinum and palladium ETFs earlier this month, perhaps the initial results for the ETFS Physical Platinum Shares (PPLT) and Physical Palladium Shares (PALL) shouldn’t be that surprising. Through their first six days of trading, average volumes for PPLT and PALL were about 310,000 and 465,000 shares, respectively. PALL traded more than a million shares on its fourth day of trading. The two funds took in $83 million in assets on the first day of trading and topped the $100 million mark shortly thereafter.
Fast starts are becoming routine for ETF Securities: last year, the ETFS Silver Trust (SIVR) and Physical Swiss Gold Shares (SGOL) came flying out of the gate, breaking through the $100 million mark in record time and finishing 2009 with aggregate assets of nearly $500 million. Despite the tremendous demand for the new platinum and palladium products, the creation process appeared to be working efficiently, as neither fund was trading at a severe premium or discount. PPLT was recently trading at less than ten basis points above its NAV, while PALL was showing a premium of about 0.5%. For a closer look at the new funds see these complete guides to platinum and palladium investing.
