tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post7037777433895179853..comments2024-03-04T13:37:11.022+00:00Comments on Canadian Financial DIY: ETFs, Fundamental Indexing and OystersCanadianInvestorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05645767559302303541noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-83206576675547501332007-11-14T14:19:00.000+00:002007-11-14T14:19:00.000+00:00I believe you are right, there is much that we cou...I believe you are right, there is much that we could write on those topics - both from a technical point of view and a philosophical one.<BR/><BR/>I forget who it was that came in for a presentation (average 2 a week) - I *think* it was powershares - they have some fundamental indexing products as well.<BR/><BR/>I think they will start to proliferate more and more. Most retail investors will have heard of the benefits of indexing and the marketing that is going into the FI products is getting bigger.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-67689341360381002352007-11-14T14:13:00.000+00:002007-11-14T14:13:00.000+00:00CC, just read the Bogle/Malkiel article - excellen...CC, just read the Bogle/Malkiel article - excellent, more wise oysters commenting! Thanks.CanadianInvestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05645767559302303541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-32319346824093010492007-11-14T13:15:00.000+00:002007-11-14T13:15:00.000+00:00Preet, your comment made me think of another artic...Preet, your comment made me think of another article I came across yesterday but did not include in the original post - a <A HREF="http://seekingalpha.com/article/5310-rob-arnott-s-rafi-1000-fundamental-index-not-an-index-at-all-etf-prf" REL="nofollow">criticism</A> on the Seeking Alpha website to the effect that the RAFI is not even an index since it does not represent the investment opportunity set because "an index serves to reflect the options that are available to an investor within any asset class". In my words, an index should be a reference point but the RAFI is not; it is rather, as Accidental Consultant says, an investment strategy. That doesn't necessarily make it bad or useless to the investor. The burden of proof does lie on the proponent of RAFI.<BR/><BR/>Another thought is that nowadays too often people assume ETF = index and index = good, but as we know, the labels often hide significant deviations, differences and obfuscations. Good material for posts and I invite you all distinguished bloggers to go at it.CanadianInvestorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05645767559302303541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-23769877111758417272007-11-14T04:43:00.000+00:002007-11-14T04:43:00.000+00:00Excellent post! I've been ignoring all the new ET...Excellent post! I've been ignoring all the new ETFs and specialized products like FI (kind of a pretend index fund) since I think that you are better to focus on the big picture (ie your financial goals & asset allocation) and then get the basic tools to do the job.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the link to the Lewis Carrol story. Not sure if I will read it to my son or not :)<BR/><BR/>MikeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-1020620449394664972007-11-14T03:08:00.000+00:002007-11-14T03:08:00.000+00:00As soon as you put any thought into it, I think it...As soon as you put any thought into it, I think it becomes active.<BR/><BR/>The RAFI indices look impressive, but the thing that gets me is the fee attached to something that is supposed to be an "index". They are modeling their portfolio on a static screen and are charging a very high fee to do this really.<BR/><BR/>The reason ETF's are so cheap is due to the fact that you don't need a massive team of traders and analysts to create and manage the portfolio. The same would apply to these portfolios would it not? There is no active call involved.<BR/><BR/>Am I missing something?<BR/><BR/>Could this be the next generation of mutual funds? On one hand, it would be a step in the right direction - but not far enough. I think a long term realization is appearing that Canadians might not put up with exorbitant MER's forever, and a product like this is a bit backwards in a solution:<BR/><BR/>They've gone to indexing - but still charging a fee! :)<BR/><BR/>If the fees were in line with index funds - I would take a longer look.<BR/><BR/>Jean - a very well written and explained analysis!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5433839636644874439.post-48838781671001659222007-11-13T22:05:00.000+00:002007-11-13T22:05:00.000+00:00I am not sold on the benefits of FI either. I thin...I am not sold on the benefits of FI either. I think John Bogle's opinion that FI is active investing by another name is true. Not sure if you read this criticism of FI by Bogle and Malkiel:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://johncbogle.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2006/08/WSJ%20op-ed.pdf" REL="nofollow">Link</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com