One of the cornerstones of the shockingly successful 2016 Trump presidential campaign was the rhetoric it employed in vouching for new infrastructure spending. In fact, this was not unique to the Trump campaign. The Trudeau government also vowed to invest in infrastructure to create working and middle class jobs in the lead up to its victory in 2015.
Up until now, the Canadian federal government has promised to spend $125 billion in infrastructure over the next decade. The Republican plan south of the border has yet to fully materialize, with only $200 billion in federal funds allocated for what was touted to be a $1 trillion or more spending plan.
Rising global economies like China and India are also spending huge sums as the middle class rises in Asia.
Those who want to invest in worldwide infrastructure should look to the iShares Global Infrastructure ETF(NASDAQ:IGF). The ETF increased 15% in 2017 and was up 0.41% in early afternoon trading on January 2.
Some of its top holdings include the Spanish infrastructure firm Abertis Infrastructures SA which runs over 8,000 kilometres of motorways in Europe and America. It also tracks the Australian company Transurban Group which manages and develops urban toll road networks in Australia and North America.
The Trump administration appears to be gearing up for a series of public-private partnerships to spark growth, rather than wide ranging public works projects that were hinted at over the course of the campaign. This should spur growth for companies like Transurban Group and others, making this ETF a great bet going forward.
