NEW YORK (TheStreet) - Detroit is bustling this week as droves of
car-admirers flock to the annual North American International Auto
Show. At this event, top car makers from around the globe including
*Ford*(F), Porsche, Audi, BYD, and Volkswagon have managed to woo
Motor City crowds with new models and technologies which will help
prolong the global automotive industry down the path to recovery.
The revival of the auto industry has been one of the most exciting
developments throughout this global economic healing process. At the
height of the Great Recession in the U.S., we watched companies such
as Ford and *General Motors*(GM) flirt with collapse. However,
throughout the ensuing recovery, these same firms have staged a
dramatic comeback, marked most recently by GM's re-listing on the New
York Stock Exchange.
This sector clearly has further to go and will likely face hurdles
down the road. However, as highlighted this week in a _TheStreet_
interview with Ford CFO Louis Booth, confidence is on the rebound for
autos.
Given the dramatic nature of the auto industry's recovery, it is no
wonder that car companies and their parts suppliers make for
attractive investing opportunities.
Despite the car industry's attraction, there are only a limited number
of ways investors can gain concentrated access to the auto resurgence
outside of stock picking.
In early 2010, Direxion filed paperwork for the Direxion Auto Shares.
However, this fund is yet to launch and currently there are no ETFs on
the market which provide investors with direct pure play exposure to
auto industry players. Instead, funds such as the *Global X Lithium
ETF*(LIT), *ETFS Physical Platinum Shares*(PPLT) and *ETFS Physical
Palladium Shares*(PALL) may prove effective proxies.
Electric-powered cars have generated some of the most interest at this
year's AIAS with the Chevy Volt earning the title of North American
Car of the Year, and companies including Ford and *Honda*(HMC)
unveiling new battery-powered models.
Global X's LIT is one way investors can follow this exciting shift
towards electric powered cars. This fund gathers together a diverse
basket of companies which are dedicated to the production of lithium
and should see a lot of upside potential as more companies take a
green approach to automobile production.
Source: Thestreet.com
