China ETFs Jump on Possible Government Help

Market Wrap-Up

Given the previous two trading sessions, Wednesday was a relatively quiet one for investors. The big news was that a Department of Energy report showed crude inventories jumped by 9.4 million barrels last week, a larger than expected showing. The price of crude lost almost $2 per barrel in early trading. However, it gained ground toward the closing bell and finished up over $1 to the $116 level.

Traders continued to batter Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE). For a third straight day the shares of the beleaguered mortgage giants were sold off. The latest round of trader concerns concentrate on what form a possible government bailout would take and how equity holders would fare in such a situation. The financial-services sector and the housing market, too, were also dinged by data from the Mortgage Bankers Association that showed home loan applications continued to fall.

There were a few bright spots, though. Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), the personal computer giant, posted a 14% increase in net income in its fiscal third quarter. The shares gained 5.7%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 69 points to close at 11,418.

Winners

Bloomberg reported that China may take measures to kick start economic growth in light of the country's dismal performance this year. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also reportedly said China should let its currency appreciate to curb inflation. Those two insights kickstarted a mini-rally in China-focused ETFs. The iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 ETF (FXI) gained 4.9%.

Losers

Financial-services ETFs of every kind continue to chalk up trading loses. Wednesday, the SPDR KBW Regional Banking fund (KRE) lost 2.2%.

Earnings

Aeropostale, Avanex, Barnes & Noble, BeBe, Bon-Ton, Burger King, Casual Male, Cost Plus, Dick's Sporting Goods, DryShips, Foot Locker, Frontline, Gamestop, Gap, H.J. Heinz, Hibbett Sports, Hormel, Intuit, Kensey Nash, Pacific Sunwear, Patterson Dental, The Children's Place, The Wet Seal

Economic Data

8:30a.m. Initial Jobless Claims
8:30a.m. 2Q GDP, Preliminary
8:30a.m. 2Q Corporate Profits, Preliminary
10:00a.m. Business Barometer

Quick Take

A look at how the industry's most popular ETFs did on Thursday.

10 Largest ETFs
Symbol	Net Assets	Price	52 Week High	52 Week Low	Volume
SPY	76,348	127.58	156.39	121.48	225,437,013
EFA	40,697	62.5	85.64	62.08	15,433,482
EEM	22,370	40.26	55.13	39.22	39,253,744
GLD	NA	80.06	99.81	65.04	14,711,062
IVV	16,905	127.96	156.65	121.69	2,367,429
QQQQ	16,970	47.09	55.03	41.17	155,428,722
IWF	12,958	54.65	63.64	52.79	3,270,219
SHY	9,058	83.21	84.49	80.72	717,179
VTI	10,060	64.09	77.66	60.89	1,756,994
IWD	8,043	68.38	88.24	64.01	1,550,685