The Northeast and the Midwest were brought to a standstill in late 2017 thanks to a nasty winter storm, followed by record-breaking cold to start the new year. Two groups have rejoiced at the wintry onslaught: schoolchildren and bulls in energy stocks.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices have rocketed 12% higher in the past month to near three-year highs. Spot prices for natural gas surged to a record $175 per million British thermal units at one point, Bloomberg reported – roughly 60 times the average going rate on the New York Mercantile Exchange so far this winter.
And a lot of energy stocks have enjoyed a brisk recovery after a rough first half of 2017 – itself part of a disastrous run for the sector since mid-2014.
While this could be construed as a seasonal blip in a still-bearish long-term trend, Will Rhind – CEO of commodities-focused fund provider GraniteShares – believes longer-term tailwinds will extend the trend. “While the polar vortex may have increased demand for oil at the start of the new year, the two main factors that drove oil prices higher in (late) 2017 (i.e., increased demand driven by stronger economic growth and OPEC led production cutbacks) remain influential factors for 2018,” he says.
If oil and other energy commodities really are set up for a sustainable recovery, how can retail investors participate? The answer is exchange-traded and closed-end funds that offer diversified exposure to energy stocks – and in some cases, income streams in the high single digits. Read on to learn more about 10 funds to buy to ride a rebound in oil and gas.
SEE ALSO: 18 Best Stocks to Buy for 2018
Permalink — https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/T022-S001-10-top-funds-2018-energy-stocks/index.html
URL of source article.
Date — January 9, 2018 5:00 am
Publish date of source article.
Source — http://www.kiplinger.com/about/rss/kiplinger.rss
URL of RSS feed.
