Channel Profits in Indian ETFs

India, once considered as "the jewel in the crown" of the British Empire, is an emerging market often overlooked by investors. The Indian economy has continued to deliver strong performance in 2018, with the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) growing by 8.2% year over year in the quarter ended June – the highest growth in two years and the strongest since the first quarter of 2016.

The Indian government attributed the robust economic growth to a sharp spike in manufacturing and construction, according to CNN. "Indian GDP growth beat most expectations in [the latest quarter] and is likely to continue expanding rapidly over the coming months," Shilan Shah, India economist at Capital Economics, told CNN.

Those who are interested in trading Indian exchange-traded funds (ETFs) should consider these three leaders in the space, which are all trading near key support areas in broad descending channels. Let's analyze each fund more closely.

The iShares MSCI India ETF launched in 2012 and seeks to track the MSCI India Index. The fund invests in companies that cover 85% of the Indian securities market. As of October 2018, the fund has a year-to-date (YTD) return of -9.86% and charges investors a 0.68% annual management fee. INDA's share price has traded within a broad descending channel throughout 2018. Volume increased as the ETF's price approached the pattern's lower trendline in October, suggesting climatic selling. Traders should view retracements below $30 as a high-probability buying area. Stop-loss orders should be placed below the lower channel trendline to protect capital if the price continues to move lower. The fund's price is likely to find overhead resistance between $34 and $35, near the channel's upper trendline and downward-sloping 200-day simple moving average (SMA).

Created back in 2008, the WisdomTree India Earnings ETF attempts to mirror the performance of the WisdomTree India Earnings Index. EPI holds Indian companies selected and weighted by earnings. The fund has an expense ratio of 0.84%, which is slightly above the 0.75% category average, and it has returned -12.52% YTD as of October 2018. The fund is displaying similar price action to INDA – trading within a wide descending channel. Traders should look for buying opportunities on retracements back toward the lower channel trendline between $22 and $22.5, and they may want to place stops slightly below the current swing low. Take-profit orders could sit near the upper channel line at the $26 level, where the ETF's price is likely to encounter resistance.

The Invesco India ETF also started life in 2008 and aims to replicate the performance of the Indus India Index. The ETF's basket holds securities that represent the 50 largest Indian companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and/or the National Stock Exchange of India. PIN's performance is in line with the first two funds – it has declined 9.28% YTD as of October 2018. Like the other Indian ETFs discussed, the fund has taken a substantial fall since late August into the support area of a descending channel. Above-average volume has accompanied the bounce from the lower trendline, which shows some sizable buying interest. To avoid chasing the market, traders who wish to buy should seek an entry point closer to support between $21.5 and $22 and set a stop-loss order below the October low. The pattern's upper trendline seems like a logical resistance area – traders could take profits between $25.5 and $26.