Brisk Summer for ETF Launches

It's been a bustling summer for new ETF launches. Before we focus on new products to hit the market, let's take a quick gander at the overall ETF universe.

Actively Managed ETFsAt the end of June, there was a total of 1,274 U.S. listed ETFs with $1.4 trillion invested by 39 different fund managers. Compared to the end of 2012, total ETF assets have grown by $100 billion.

Since 2011, the assets in actively managed ETFs that attempt to beat benchmark indexes have more than doubled from a starting point of $6 billion. At the end of June, there was a total of $14.2 billion invested in 61 active funds according to AdvisorShares Investments. The active ETF marketplace is dominated by global bonds, which have 32.65% of the assets.

ALPS International Sector Dividend Dogs ETF (NYSEARCA:IDOG)This new international stock fund applies the 'Dogs of the Dow Theory' on a sector-by-sector basis using the World Bank High Income Country Index as its starting universe. IDOG then applies a screen by selecting the five highest yielding stocks in 10 different sectors and equally weighting them. The fund isolates the S-Net International Developed Markets Index (ex-Americas) constituents with the highest dividend yield in their respective sectors.

IDOG's dividends are scheduled for quarterly payouts and the fund charges 0.50% annually.

Barron's 400SM ETF (NYSEARCA:BFOR)This ETF follows a stock strategy index co-developed by financial magazine Barron's and MarketGrader.com.

A group of 400 stocks are selected based upon their fundamental strength, as measured by 24 fundamental indicators across growth, value, profitability and cash flow metrics. Among the other requirements for index inclusion are that companies must have a minimum float adjusted market cap of $250 million and at least 25% of the index must have a total market cap of at least $3 billion in size.

All 400 components in the underlying index are equally weighted at each semi-annual rebalance, which prevents a small minority of companies from steering the entire index, giving smaller issues equal opportunity to contribute to overall performance.

BFOR charges annual expenses of 0.65%.

Direxion Daily Japan Bull 3x Shares ETF (NYSEARCA:JPNL) Daily Japan Bear 3x Shares ETF (NYSEARCA:JPNS)This pair of Direxion ETFs are linked to the MSCI Japan Index and offer 300% daily inverse or opposite (JPNS) and 300% daily leveraged (JPNS) exposure to the Japanese stocks. Both funds charge 0.95% annually.

iShares MSCI Colombia Capped ETF (ICOL)ICOL tracks a basket of Colombian stocks held inside the MSCI All Colombia Capped Index. The top three industry sectors within the fund are financials (33%), energy (32%), and utilities (15%). ICOL currently holds 24 stocks and charges 0.61% annually. The ETF Profit Strategy Newsletter is published monthly and comes with Weekly ETF Picks along with a Technical Forecast. Since the beginning of the year, 78% of our Weekly Picks have turned a profit and a 525% gain was our biggest winner.