ETF sponsors planning to slash fees to compete with Vanguard and BlackRock should think again.

The much-covered ETF fee war for index-based products is only part of the story, Wall Street Journal reporter Murray Coleman points out. The expense ratios for commodities, alts, and other spicier ETFs have not been dropping, and they're still drawing AUM.

Broad US. stock funds are "the only asset class to see expenses fall appreciably since 2010," Coleman writes. Commodities ETFs charge about 1.1 percent, while long-short funds average about 90 basis points in expenses.

Pricier ETFs aren't hurting for business, either. Coleman cites figures showing that less generic ETFs have seen a greater percentage increase in AUM than their cheaper, "plain vanilla" counterparts.

And the WSJ gives a bit of ink to Pimco's Emerging Market Local Bond Fund, which, while more expensive than index-based products, may offer "more bang for your buck," according to an advisor quoted in the story. 

Edited by: Chris Cumming


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