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iShare 3 New International ETFs

About: ETF Profit Report, iShares, iShares MSCI New Zealand Index, MSCI New Zealand Index, New Zealand ETF, Reserve Bank of New Zealand, iShares MSCI Indonesia Investable Market Index Fund, MSCI Indonesia Investable Market Index, Market Vectors Indonesia ETF (NYSE: IDX), iShares MSCI Poland Investable Market Fund, MSCI Poland Investable Market Index, Market Vectors Poland ETF (NYSE: PLND) iShares To Launch First New Zealand ETFETF issuer iShares has announced plans for the first New Zealand-specific ETF available to U.S. investors. The iShares MSCI New Zealand Index fund will track the MSCI New Zealand Index, which held 22 stocks as of late October 2009. The three largest industry weightings in the index currently go to industrial materials, telecom and consumer discretionary names. iShares did not disclose a ticker or expense ratio for the New Zealand ETF, but it is worth noting that iShares charges an expense ratio of 0.55% for the comparable Australia ETF. New Zealand is emerging from one of its worst recessions on record and is forecasting GDP growth of 3.1% this year after a contraction of 1.4% in 2009. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has kept interest rates at a record low of 2.5% since April. New Zealand's government is also attempting to rein in spending and curb speculative real estate investments in an effort to contain inflation and prevent a real estate bubble. An interest rate hike doesn't appear likely until the middle of this year, according to recent press reports. Indonesia ETF To Get A New RivalAfter enjoying spectacular performances in 2009 and netting billions of dollars in new investments, emerging markets were expected to be one area of the ETF universe that would see a steady stream of new product offerings in 2010 and that has proven to be the case thus far. Even the recent dour performance of many emerging markets ETFs has not prevented ETF issuers from announcing new emerging markets fare. One new emerging markets ETF that is slated to arrive this year that may be of interest to investors is the iShares MSCI Indonesia Investable Market Index Fund. The ETF will track the MSCI Indonesia Investable Market Index, which held 41 stocks as of the end of October 2009. The three largest sector weightings in the index are financials, telecom and consumer discretionary names. The new iShares ETF will compete with the Market Vectors Indonesia ETF (NYSE: IDX), which was introduced in January 2009. By comparison, more than 46% of IDX's weight is devoted to industrial materials and financials and energy and consumer goods account for another 28+%. IDX has fared well since its debut, returning 150% in about 53 weeks and the ETF has gained more than $181 million in assets under management, an impressive amount for an ETF that is still relatively new. Indonesia is an emerging market worth watching. Some market observers said the BRIC acronym should be expanded to include another “I” for Indonesia and remember, this is the fourth-largest country in the world we're talking about. Indonesia is expected to see GDP growth of 5% this year and Fitch recently boosted its credit ratings on the country with a stable outlook. iShares Readies New Poland ETF

Among the new ETFs iShares is preparing to launch is the iShares MSCI Poland Investable Market Fund, another direct competitor to a currently existing offering from Market Vectors. The iShares Poland ETF will track the MSCI Poland Investable Market Index, an index with 63 Polish equities that is heavily weighted toward energy, financial and industrial names. Poland is the fastest growing economy in Central and Eastern Europe, so having two country-specific ETFs isn't over-doing the Poland theme. In addition, the iShares offering will focus more on large-caps, while the Market Vectors Poland ETF (NYSE: PLND) focuses more on mid and small-caps. PLND also has a smaller number of constituents with 27 as January 29. PLND has been trading for roughly two months and has garnered $8.3 million in assets during that time. The ETF charges an expense ratio 0.76%, so it will be interesting to see if the new iShares offering betters that rate.

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Committed To Your ETF Profits,

Jim Trippon
Editor
ETF Profit Report

http://www.ETFProfitReport.com
 

Disclosure: no positions