Leveraged ETF Winners Amid Wall Street's Worst Week Since 2020

U.S. markets stumbled massively last week as renewed trade tensions and inflation concerns rattled investors. The S&P 500 declined 8.2%, recording its worst weekly performance since 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average nosedived over 7% and officially entering correction territory. The Nasdaq Composite sank 8.6%, closing in bear market territory.

China Retaliates with New Tariffs

The selloff worsened following news that China will impose a 34% tariff on all US products starting April 10, parallelling the additional 34% tariff the Trump administration had announced on Apr. 2, 2025. The move heightened fears of a prolonged global trade war, with investors fearing trade retaliations rather than negotiations.

Investors Seek Safety in Treasury Bonds

Amid the market chaos, investors sought refuge in government bonds. The 10-year Treasury yielddropped to 3.9%, approaching its lowest level since October, reflecting growing concern over economic uncertainty.

Wining ETFs of the Week

Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few winning leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) of last week.

2x Long VIX Futures ETF, UVIX – Up 95.8%

Due to the stock market chaos, volatility spiked. ,Barclays iPath Series B S P 500 VIX Short Term Futures ETN Series B ,VXX jumped 37.7% over the past week. The Long VIX Futures Index expresses the daily performance of a theoretical portfolio of first and second month VIX futures contracts that are rolled daily. The expense ratio of the ETF is 1.77% annually.

Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3x Shares, SOXS – Up 58.1%

The underlying ICE Semiconductor Index measures the performance of the semiconductor sub-sector of the U.S. equity market. The expense ratio of the ETF is 1.03% annually.

MicroSectors U.S. Big Oil -3 Inverse Leveraged ETN, NRGD – Up 55.9%

Due to the recessionary fears, Big Oil stocks slumped. The underlying Solactive MicroSectors U.S. Big Oil Index is an equal-dollar weighted index that provides exposure to the 10 largest U.S. energy and oil companies. The fund charges 95 bps in fees.

MAX Airlines -3X Inverse Leveraged ETNs, JETD – Up 50.2%

Airlines stocks also slumped due to fears of a global slowdown. The underlying Prime Airlines Index includes stocks of U.S.-listed companies that have operations relating to the airline industry, including airlines and aircraft and aircraft parts manufacturers, and companies engaged in the businesses of air freight and logistics, aircraft leasing and airline and airport operations. The fund charges 95 bps in fees.

Direxion Daily S&P Biotech Bear 3x Shares, LABD – Up 44.6%

Due to the retrenchment in risk-on sentiment, high-growth biotech stocks took a beating. The S&P Biotechnology Select Industry Index is designed to measure the performance of a sub-industry or group of sub-industries determined based on the Global Industry Classification Standards (GICS). The fund charges 110 bps in fees.

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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