Four ETFs For Japan's Rebuilding Efforts

Just a few days removed from the largest earthquake on record to rock Japan and the subsequent tsunami that has led to a death toll in the thousands, it probably is early to be bullish on anything related to Japan.

The savagery wrought on Japan's equity markets the past two days highlights as much, but failure to prepare is preparing to fail, especially in the financial markets, so why not have a look at a few ETFs that could benefit as Japan emerges from this tragedy and attempts to restore some lost luster to the world's third-largest economy?

1) iShares S&P Global Infrastructure Index Fund IGF:
Infrastructure ETFs are likely to be one of the first stopping points for investors looking to profit from Japan's rebuilding efforts and IGF offers 6.4% exposure to Japan. That may not sound compelling, but IGF does offer significant exposure on a combined basis to some of Japan's major trading partners including Australia, Canada and the U.S.

2) SPDR FTSE/Macquarie Global Infrastructure 100 ETF GII:
We include GII on our list for the same reasons that IGF appears, but this ETF offers a weight of over 10% to Japan, so it might be the better play for those looking to decide between this fund and IGF. Be aware that more than three-quarters of GII's is devoted to utilities of some stripe and that diminishes the infrastructure impact here.

3) IQ Australia Small Cap ETF KROO:
We highlighted KROO on Monday as a low-volume ETF to watch, but did you know that Australia is Japan's top trading partner among the G10 nations? With KROO's exposure to energy and materials, the ETF could prove to be a nifty play on Japan's rebuilding efforts.

4) Market Vectors Coal ETF KOL:
Before tragedy struck Japan, the country got 18% of its power from nuclear and 25% from coal. The former is obviously going to dwindle in the near-term while coal could be one energy source Japan looks to keep its economy moving. That is a scenario that should benefit KOL's constituents.