STI ETF a possible springboard for starter investors

PASSIVE investors, in their search for equity investment ideas, are often led to this instrument known as the exchange traded fund (ETF), an open-ended investment fund that aims to replicate the performance of a published market index.

Singapore Exchange (SGX) defines an ETF this way: It is listed and traded on a stock exchange, and investors may buy or sell ETF units to participate in the performance of the underlying index which tracks equities, fixed income, commodities or money market instruments.

On SGX, some 80 ETFs are listed, quite a maze to go through for the starter investor.