Last week, oil prices surged to their highest levels since late 2014 amid increasing demand, rising geopolitical risks and speculations that Trump administration could withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal. The US has to decide about its position on the deal by May 12. Breakdown of the 3-year old nuclear agreement with Iran could lead to re-imposition of sanctions on the country and further spike in oil prices.

Iran has the fourth largest oil reserves in the world. In the past. sanctions had curbed Iranian oil imports significantly. Also, OPEC had put in place production cuts about 18 months back to support falling oil prices. They have affirmed their commitment to the cuts and it appears that those cuts are finally working as inventories have come down and prices have been increasing. Demand for oil has also been rising thanks to global synchronized growth.

Additionally, rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East have boosted oil prices. If you are expecting a continuation of the uptrend, you can either buy energy equity ETFs or you can invest in ETFs/ETNs that track commodity prices. In the short video above, we have highlighted three best performing energy equity ETFs of 2018. The best performing ETF is the iShares U.S. Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (IEO - Free Report) , which is up about 9% this year.

Picking stocks in markets outside the U.S. An ideal for many investors to tap foreign markets is via a broad-based approach that combines developed and emerging markets. The iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS) does that, though it tilts more toward developed markets. “The fund's market-capitalization-weighting approach skews the portfolio toward large multinational firms,” said Morningstar.

With a standard deviation of just over 12%, IXUS is also suitable for conservative investors looking to carve out international exposure in their portfolios. Dividend investors have plenty of ETFs to choose from, but many of the oldest funds in this category ascribe to one of two approaches: weighting stocks by yield or measuring components by length of dividend increase streaks.

While a company's dividend track record can be instructive, it is not the only way to forecast payout growth. After all, what a company did last year (or five years ago) does not mean it will be repeated this year. The WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund's (DGRW) methodology makes it a compelling play for any income investor.

DGRW tracks the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index, which employs quality and growth factors. “The growth factor ranking is based on long-term earnings growth expectations, while the quality factor ranking is based on three year historical averages for return on equity and return on assets,” according to the issuer.

Plus, DGRW pays a monthly dividend. FQAL tracks the Fidelity U.S. Quality Factor Index, which is home to less than 130 stocks, suggesting the quality designation is not easy to attain. The ETF charges 0.29% per year, which is fair among smart beta strategies and Fidelity clients can trade it without a commission.

Seasoned energy sector investors know this sector is very much a risk/reward proposition. In the ETF space, equal-weight and other smart beta strategies can be efficacious at the sector level, but with energy, it may be best to stick with prosaic methodologies. The Fidelity MSCI Energy Index ETF (FENY) is suitable for an array of investors. Like every other cap-weighted energy ETF on the market, FENY is heavily allocated to Exxon Mobil Corp.

Chevron Corp. (CVX), the two largest U.S. However, FENY holds 130 stocks, indicating it has some exposure to potentially promising smaller energy stocks and a bigger roster than the S&P 500 Energy Index. FENY has an annual fee of just 0.084%, making it the least expensive energy ETF on the market.