Twelve new currency ETNs are now available for trade on Xetra. ETF Securities has issued the unique group of ETNs, which focus on foreign exchange rates with the euro, as well as emerging market currency.

According to the press release, the new ETNs will allow investors the ability to capture exchange rates of the euro to other currencies such as the Australian dollar, Canadian dollar, New Zealand dollar and American dollar.

Even more unique is the fact that investors can decide to focus on either the long or short side of a trade, since the ETNs allow profits from the rise and fall of currency exchange rates. The new ETNs also allow investors to track the US dollar against specific emerging market currencies, such as the Chinese renminbi or the Indian rupee.

Michael Geister, Senior Executive at ETF Securities explains further in the press release by saying, Of particular interest will be the Emerging Market currency ETNs, which offer investors the opportunity to participate in both the potential currency appreciation and a more dynamic interest rate environment. Both investment strategies, potential currency appreciation and changing interest rates are possible with Currency ETCs, either long or short.

Planning for the future, Direxion has filed with the SEC to create 36 new funds. 34 of these will be bullish and bearish triple leveraged funds, all pending during the heat of a SEC review.

Following the popularity of geographically centered ETFs, many of the new funds will be leveraged around a portfolio of stocks from just one nation, giving short term traders and investors the opportunity to pinpoint certain regions. The SEC filing reveals triple-leveraged bull and bear funds for the following countries: Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Malaysia, Russia, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.

The company also filed for commodity, energy, and plain-vanilla stock funds, most of which will be triple-leveraged. Two funds, the Direxion Auto Shares fund and the Direxion Airline Shares ETF, will be unleveraged investments. No ticker symbols or annual fees were announced.

While other fund sponsors are scouring the earth for obscure and often illiquid markets, IndexIQ reaches out to tap two domestic countries left untouched by most of the industry. IndexIQ launched two Canadian and Australian funds yesterday to excited investors.

The newest funds are perhaps the most plain vanilla of any of IndexIQ’s interesting lineup. Other funds from the company include those that hedge inflation, track companies in merger agreements, and several others which employ hedge fund-style strategies. In contrast, the IQ Australia Small Cap ETF (KROO: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News) and the IQ Canada Small Cap ETF (CNDA: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News) balance the implied safety of each geographic area with the use of small cap stocks to boost performance. Both nations have remained relatively stable throughout the financial crisis.

The two new funds have launched with annual expense ratios of .69%, well below the cost of other IndexIQ products, TheStreet reports.

WisdomTree has filed with the SEC to create two new funds that track the change of the American dollar against a basket of world currencies. The new funds will compete with PowerShares US DB Dollar ETF (UUP: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News), which has attracted more than $3 billion from investors.

The WisdomTree Rising Dollar Fund, one of the new funds, will seek to provide performance equivalent to the change in the value of the US dollar against 15 other world currencies. The fund will invest in Treasury bonds, as well as money markets and currency contracts, to derive returns for its investors.

WisdomTree Commodity Currency Fund will seek out currency investments in countries with strong commodity producing industries. The fund is centered on the relative value of the currencies represented by the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Indonesia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Russia and South Africa, according to the SEC filing.

A Canadian firm is trying its luck with a gold ETF, hoping its niche will shine through the established competition. Sprott Asset Management has filed with the SEC for a $575 million gold trust IPO.

The Sprott Physical Gold Trust (PHYS) will be dual listed on the NYSE and Toronto Stock Exchange, and the ETF will provide investors with exposure to 100% physical metals. The fund seeks to give investors a safe haven investment that is backed entirely by physical metals with no counter-party risks or futures exposure. The fund has an expense ratio capped at .65%, according to the SEC filing.

Sprott Asset Management is no newcomer to gold. The company oversees $4.2 billion in investor assets, with nearly one-sixth of all assets invested in physical metals.