ETF Outlook for October 10, 2013

Here are some notable ETFs worth taking a look at for Thursday, October 10, 2013.

iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF EWU

The Bank of England announced it will keep its key lending rate at 0.5%, the same level it has been since March 2009. They will also keep in place the bond-buying program. Both announcement were expected and had little affect on the local stocks and currency. However, EWU is interesting in that it is underperforming the S&P 500 as well as its European peers. The ETF is down nearly 6 percent from the 5-year high set last month. That being said if the ETF can hold the $18.60 level it could be setting up for a sizable oversold bounce.

iShares MSCI Brazil ETF EWZ

Brazil’s Central Bank raised their benchmark lending rate by 50 basis points to 9.5% in a move the was widely expected. What was not expected is the language remained the same for the next meeting. Many economists thought Brazil would begin to slow the interest rate hikes designed to fight inflation, but the central bank did not give that indication. EWZ is set to open higher today on that news and the news regarding the government shutdown. After rallying by 20 percent in one month, EWZ has been consolidating between $48 and $50. A breakout above $50 could trigger a new uptrend that should send the shares to the mid-$50’s.

SPDR S&P Biotech ETF XBI

The bloodbath that is the biotech stocks continued yesterday. XBI fell by 4.4 percent on the second highest volume of the year. The ETF lost as much as 13 percent in 3 days before rallying off the intraday lows yesterday. The sector has had several research firms come out in defensive of the long-term prospects. The support at $114 was held yesterday on the close and the ETF is set to open higher this morning on the back of bargain buying. Look for a few days of consolidation near the $114-$117 area and if XBI can hold it could be a rare chance to buy XBI on a pullback.