Index changes are afoot at this third-largest frontier market ETF, which should increase geographic diversification, but could increase the fund’s volatility. Investors may find additional information regarding the change at: http://www.ishares.com/us/products/239649/ishares-msci-frontier-100-etf.
iShares Frontier Markets (FM)
from The Coolcat Total Stock Market Report
iShares Frontier Markets (FM), which tracks 100 stocks in countries that are even smaller than emerging markets, was just added to the ETF Majors Portfolio in The Coolcat ETF Report.
The exchange traded fund was launched in September 2012, rose 24% in 2013 and is up 11% this year. Kuwait represents almost 20% of the index, and the next two largest country allocations go to Qatar and United Arab Emirates, but both will graduate to emerging-market status at the end of May.
The rest of the countries that comprise at least 1% of the current lineup—in order of representation—are Nigeria, Argentina, Pakistan, Kenya, Morocco, Oman, Kazakhstan, Vietnam, Romania, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Financial plays dominate the index with 56% of the assets, followed by telecom services at 14% and industrials at 11%.
Kevin Kennedy, The Coolcat Total Stock Market Report, www.coolcatreport.com, 559-875-0613, May 25, 2014