Wall Street was downbeat last week, with the S&P 500 losing 1.7%, the Dow Jones shedding 2.5% and the Nasdaq slipping 2.5%. Geopolitical tensions related to Trump tariffs, the expected rise in inflation and the likelihood of a less-dovish Fed have been instrumental in pushing the U.S. market lower. Meanwhile, investors started liking Chinese stocks more due to the DeepSeek euphoria, which weighed on U.S. tech biggies (read: ETFs to Bet Big on China Amid Fund Rotation).
There was also a development related to the Defense budget. According to The Washington Post, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has proposed an 8% reduction in U.S. military spending over the next five years. If adopted, this move would be the largest effort to reduce Pentagon spending since 2013 (read: How Military Budget Cuts Could Shake Up Defense ETFs?).
Moreover, fresh U.S. economic data heightened investor fears of a slowing economy and persistent inflation. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index fell to 64.7 in February — a nearly 10% decline — as consumers voiced inflation concerns, particularly due to possible new tariffs. The five-year inflation outlook climbed to 3.5%, the highest since 1995.
U.S. existing home sales dropped more than expected to 4.08 million units in January. The U.S. services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) dipped into contraction territory for February, per S&P Global data.
Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few winning exchange-traded funds (ETFs) of last week.
ETFs in Focus
Breakwave Dry Bulk Shipping ETF BDRY – Up 17.3%
The underlying Capesize 5TC Index, Panamax 4TC Index & Supramax 6TC Index measure rates for shipping dry bulk freight. The expense ratio of the fund is 3.50%. Note that container shipping stocks gained in prices lately as Middle East peace prospects dimmed.
United States Natural Gas Fund LP UNG – Up 13.5%
The underlying Natural Gas Price Index is the futures contract on natural gas as traded on the NYMEX. The expense ratio of the ETF is 1.01%. U.S. natural gas futures rose more than 2.5% to $4.3/MMBtu, hitting a 25-month high as cold weather weighed on supply and boosted demand. Prices surged as an Arctic blast boosted heating demand while freezing oil and gas wells, disrupting production. Forecasts indicate colder-than-normal temperatures across the Lower 48 states through February 22, keeping consumption high, as quoted on tradingeconomics.
YieldMax Short COIN Option Income Strategy ETF FIAT – Up 12.9%
The YieldMax Short COIN Option Income Strategy ETF is an actively managed exchange-traded fund that seeks current income while providing indirect inverse exposure to the share price of the common stock of Coinbase Global, Inc. The COIN stock slumped 18.3% last week, which boosted the ETF that offers safer exposure to COIN trading.
Global X Data Center And Digital Infrastructure ETF DTCR – Up 7.7%
The underlying Solactive Data Center REITs & Digital Infrastructure Index seeks to provide exposure to companies that have business operations in the fields of data centers, cellular towers and digital infrastructure hardware. The fund charges 50 bps in fees.
PLUS Korea Defense Industry Index ETF KDEF – Up 7.1%
The underlying Korea Defense Industry Index is designed to track the performance of South Korean companies that have demonstrated high relevance to defense. The fund charges 65 bps in fees.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
