The global stock market has been in wild swings due to the ongoing U.S.-Iran tensions.The United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, 2026, with President Donald Trump saying the operation aimed to destroy Iran’s nuclear program and weaken the current regime.
The attacks prompted immediate retaliation from Iran and created utter chaos in the Middle East. At least 20,000 flights in and out of the Middle East have been canceled since the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, as quoted on CNBC.
Time to Buy Low-Beta Commodity ETFs?
Wars in the Middle East often threaten oil production and shipping routes like the Strait of Hormuz, which is a vital chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass daily.
About 13 million barrels per day moved through it in 2025, equal to about 31% of all seaborne oil flows, Kpler data showed, as quoted on CNBC. This leads to higher crude oil prices due to feared or actual supply disruption.
Investors should note that commodity ETFs often tend to have lower correlation to stocks and bonds. This makes them a good buy amid maker volatility. During geopolitical crises, investors often move away from risky assets (stocks) and into safe-haven commodities like gold and silver.
Moreover, war is always likely to disrupt shipping, production, or exports of commodities, which can lead to a rally in commodity prices. Aluminum is one such commodity which has fallen prey to the Iran war. Citi boosted aluminum 0–3-month target to $3,600 per metric ton, as quoted on Reuters.
Why Low Beta?
Beta measures the price volatility of stocks relative to the overall market. It has a direct relationship to market movements. A beta of 1 indicates that the price of the stock or fund tends to move with the broader market. A beta of more than 1 indicates that the price tends to move higher than the broader market and is extremely volatile, while a beta of less than 1 indicates that the price of the stock or fund is less volatile than the market.
That said, low-beta products exhibit greater levels of stability than their market-sensitive counterparts and will usually lose less when the market crumbles. Given lesser risks and lower returns, these are considered safe and resilient amid uncertainty. However, when markets soar, these low-beta funds experience lesser gains than the broader market counterparts and thus lag their peers.
Against this backdrop, below we highlight a few low-beta commodity ETFs that have gained handsomely over the past week.
ETFs in Focus
Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF PDBC
Beta: 0.16
One-week performance: 5.78%
First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy ETF FTGC
Beta: 0.22
One-week performance: 5.46%
iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust GSG
Beta: 0.16
One-week performance: 8.04%
iShares GSCI Commodity Dynamic Roll Strategy ETF COMT
Beta: 0.18
One-week performance: 7.03%
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iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust (GSG): ETF Research Reports Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Stratgy No K-1 ETF (PDBC): ETF Research ReportsThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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