Leveraged ETF Performance in 2009

After leveraged and inverse ETFs hit mania status in 2008 and early 2009, their star-power has begun to fade as brokerages have begun to put big restrictions on them.  But they're still being traded, and below we highlight the best and worst performing leveraged and inverse ETFs in 2009.  As shown, the 2x technology sector ETF (ROM) is up the most so far this year with a gain of 109.44%.  The 2x materials sector ETF (UYM) ranks 2nd with a gain of 96.65%, and the 2x silver ETF (AGQ) is not far behind in 3rd at 95.05%.  All but one of the best performing ETFs listed below are on the long side.  The lone short ETF that is on the list of winners is TBT, which provides 2x the inverse daily return of long-term Treasuries.

The double and triple short ETFs have gotten crushed this year, which is no surprise given the rally we've had.  The 3x short Financial ETF is down the most at -93.88%, followed by a 2x short Financial (RFN) with a decline of 81.16%.  All of the double and triple short ETFs listed below are down more than 50% so far in 2009.