Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and exchange-traded products (ETPs) tracking natural gas futures topped the list of last week's best performers. Natural gas prices climbed higher after newly released data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) suggested that leading natural gas producers have scaled back production, which in aggregate was down by 0.8% in February versus January. Producers such as Chesapeake Energy (CHK), ConocoPhillips (COP), and Encana (ECA) have all committed to reducing the amount of natural gas being produced due to concerns about persistent oversupply. Since last year, the EIA estimates that natural gas inventories have increased by 56% and concerns are rising that the surplus may soon outstrip the US’s storage capacity.
On the other end of the spectrum, volatility-linked products were amongst last week's worst performing ETFs. Volatility-linked products typically spike when expectations for future volatility (i.e. 'fear') rise, and therefore, can prove an effective counterweight to long-equity exposure. Last week's release of relatively solid though not stellar US economic data caused these fear-trackers to sink as expectations for the future volatility of equities eased.
Here are the details for last week's best and worst performing ETFs: