No Happy Times For Egypt ETF

For so long, the Market Vectors Egypt ETF EGPT flew under the radar. The ETF is now roughly 13 months old and for 11 of those months, it was undiscovered by many ETF investors, a fact highlighted by low volume and an asset haul that could only be considered fair at best. Times change and they can change quickly during political uprisings, another fact illustrated by EGPT. Egypt's stock market finally got around to reopening today, though for those that were long EGPT, they probably wish it had stayed closed as EGPT is down almost 8% and trading lower than it did at any point during the country's recent uprising. Van Eck, the parent company of Market Vectors, is again taking new orders for EGPT, allowing new shares to be created, though that may or may not be good news. "Events in Egypt had forced the closing of Egyptian Exchange (EGX) for an extended period. As a result, Van Eck followed the firm's normal policy of suspending creation orders when the underlying market is closed for an extended period as a result of extraordinary circumstances. Creation orders were suspended on January 31, 2011," Van Eck said in a statement. According to Finviz data, EGPT is not shortable, so new share creations will have to come from those that want to be long the ETF. Hey, if the low $15 area turns into support, EGPT might just get a bounce. That's a theory, not a trading recommendation, just to be clear. Market Vectors offers two other ETFs with Egypt exposure. The Market Vectors Africa Index ETF AFK is slightly higher today as is the Market Vectors EM Local Currency Bond ETF EMLC. Market Vectors issues 30 ETFs and is the sixth-largest U.S. ETF issuer.