VanEck Adds Commodity ETF as Outlook Brightens

VanEck Securities Corp., which has $53.4 billion in exchange-traded funds, added an actively managed commodity fund to its lineup as the outlook for commodities brightens in the coming year.  

New-York based VanEck, which manages 68 U.S.-based ETFs, launched the VanEck Commodity Strategy ETF (PIT) on Thursday, according to a press statement. The fund, which will invest in commodity futures contracts across energy, precious and industrial metals, agriculture and livestock, has an expense ratio 0.55% and is traded on the Cboe.  

David Schassler, VanEck head of quantitative investment solutions, will serve as portfolio manager.  VanEck is moving ahead despite investors bailing from commodity ETFs: The asset class has posted outflows of $4.3 billion so far this year, compared to he $3.7 billion in the same period last year.  

The two largest U.S.-listed commodity ETFs by assets under management, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) and the iShares Gold Trust (IAU), have both dipped nearly 2% year to date, according to ETF.com data.  

Still, experts remain bullish on commodities and expect a rebound in the sector in the year to come. Analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in a Dec. 14 note predicted commodities would be 2023’s best-performing asset class, with a 43% gain. That return would come after a “bumpy” first quarter following economic weakness in the U.S. and China and continuing supply chain shortages within raw materials.  

“Commodity exposure can play a valuable role in a portfolio, both from a capital appreciation standpoint and as a hedging tool against inflation, which remains at historically elevated levels,” Schassler said in the statement. 

Contact Shubham Saharan at [email protected]