There were no changes to the Franklin International Rotation Model this week.

International equities have seen plenty of improvement this year, partially thanks to the dollar’s (DX/Y) swift decline from last year’s highs. Among international equities, Europe has been one of the strongest areas, as the continent holds the top two international ranks in DALI. Meanwhile, the region ranks third among all groups with an average score of 4.29 within Asset Class Group Scores. Those looking to add exposure to the region could look towards the Franklin FTSE Switzerland ETF (FLSW). FLSW has a strong fund score of 4.77, which is 1.45 points higher than the average non-US equity, in addition to having a sharply positive score direction of 3.31. The fund returned to a positive trend earlier in March when it also moved to a buy signal. FLSW holds long-term peer relative strength, as the fund has been on an RS buy signal versus iShares MSCI ACWI ex US ETF (ACWX) dating back to 2009. After pulling back from all-time highs, the fund has reversed up into a column of Xs to its current actionable levels around the middle of its 10-week trading band. Initial support lies at $32 with its bullish support line at that same level. 

This section of the report categorizes select Franklin ETFs by their respective broad group. Along with each group, you can view the Average Group Score, which is an average of the scores of all funds represented in that particular group. Those Franklin ETFs that meet or exceed the Average Group Score will be highlighted in green in order to easily view those ETFs that have superior strength within their respective group. You want to focus on those ETFs that exhibit superior strength when looking to add new exposure to a particular group.

The distribution curve places each ETF on a bell curve according to their respective degrees of overbought or oversold status using a 10-week distribution. ETFs that are statistically oversold will appear on the left-hand side of the bell curve, while those that have become statistically overbought will appear on the right-hand side of the bell curve. Perhaps the most useful attribute of this feature is that it displays the entire universe on the curve at one time to give us a general picture of whether the Franklin ETF universe is generally overbought on a near-term basis, or generally oversold. Our best opportunities are to buy strong relative strength ETFs that have regressed back toward mean conditions based on market weakness, or have become oversold based upon extreme market weakness. Weekly Distribution is a short-term gauge that is most helpful in timing entry and exit points, while the longer-term information of trend and relative strength is a more controlling factor in the decision of whether to buy or sell.

Legend:

• UPPERCASE indicates that the RS chart is on a buy signal.
• lowercase indicates that the RS chart is in a sell signal.
• GREEN lettering indicates the ETFs trend chart is on a buy signal.
• RED lettering indicates the ETF is on a sell signal.
• Box Color indicates the Sector Status Rating. Green = Favored, Yellow = Average, and Red = Unfavored.

The Franklin LibertyShares International Model is designed to identify major country and regional themes in the international marketplace through the use of the Point & Figure relative strength tools. For more information on the portfolio construction and back testing, see the model info file on the models page.  (Note: The Franklin LibertyShares ETF Models will be updated Thursday mornings by 9:30 am EST) 

Weekly Changes: 

* - Dates prior to 09/01/2018, which is when the Franklin LibertyShares ETF Model became available on the NDW Research Platform, are representative of when the position was added to the backtested model.