Investopedia: 2011 In Review - The Best-Performing ETFs

With only two weeks to go, it looks like 2011 will go down in the books as a year where the market borrowed a page from Macbeth; "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Although the broader stock indexes look to end the year close to flat, that does not mean that investors could not find profits in particular areas of the market. In particular, there were a few areas where ETF investors found notable success in 2011. (For more, see An Inside Look At ETF Construction.)


Treasury Bond ETFs 
Although many market commentators and armchair economists believe that current Federal Reserve policies will ultimately end in tears, 2011 was nevertheless still a good year to hold certain Treasury bond ETFs. The PIMCO 25+ Year Zero Coupon U.S. Treasury Index ETF (ARCA:ZROZ) had delivered a 50% year-to-date total return as of the end of November; the single best performance of any ETF this year. Close behind was the Vanguard Extended Duration Treasury Index ETF (ARCA:EDV) at 47%. Both funds are alike, in that they focus their holdings on long-dated zero-coupon Treasury bonds; the bonds most sensitive to interest rates.


Follow this link for more:
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/2011-In-Review---The-Best-Performing-ETFs-ZROZ-BNO-GLD-IHE1216.aspx