2 ETFs For Shelter From Any “Economic Hurricanes”

 | Jun 06, 2022 17:40

At a banking conference on June 1, Jamie Dimon, the much followed CEO of JPMorgan Chase said about the US economy:

"It's a hurricane."

"Right now, it's kind of sunny, things are doing fine. Everyone thinks the Fed can handle this. That hurricane is right out there down the road coming our way. We just don't know if it's a minor one or Superstorm Sandy."

He added: “you better brace yourself.”

Last week also saw similar dire remarks from John Waldron, COO of Goldman Sachs and Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla. All these warning come after Jane Fraser, CEO of Citigroup, said :

“There are three Rwords right now. Its Russia, Recession and Rates.”

As a result of such poor sentiment on Wall Street, the S&P 500 index has lost over 0.5% since the start of June, pushing the broad benchmark's decline to 13.5% year-to-date (YTD). Financial shares, including banks and credit card issuers, have suffered significantly since the end of May. For instance, Citigroup (NYSE:C), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), and American Express (NYSE:AXP) have dropped roughly 3.9%, 2.1%, and 1.2%, respectively.

Nevertheless, the next move for the economy and most stocks isn't easy to predict. According to Dimon, his bank’s balance sheet will be positioned conservatively. Still, he believes the US consumer remains strong, in part thanks to a healthy job market.

Today’s article, therefore, introduces two exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that could also help readers take more defensive steps in portfolio construction. These funds could particularly appeal to passive income-focused readers.

h2 1. SPDR SSGA Multi-Asset Real Return ETF/h2
  • Current Price: $31.79
  • 52-week range: $26.80 - $32.34
  • Dividend yield: 10.48%
  • Expense ratio: 0.50% per year

Multi-asset ETFs differ from more traditional equity funds that track the performance of a specific benchmark. Many multi-asset funds invest in a range of asset classes, including stocks, fixed income, commodities or real estate.

Our first choice, the SPDR® SSGA Multi-Asset Real Return ETF (NYSE:RLY), invests in other ETFs to generate current income and achieve some capital appreciation. This actively managed fund started trading in April 2012.