As of July 31, 2009, the S&P 500 Index and the Dow Jones Composite Index are up 10.97% and 2.47% respectively. But many of the ADR indices have gone up much higher. The Year-To-Date (YTD) performance of some of ADR indices are as follows:

• BNY Mellon ADR Index: 21.44%
• BNY Mellon Asia ADR Index: 27.54%
• BNY Mellon Dev Mkts ADR Index: 16.65%
• BNY Mellon Emg Mkts ADR Index: 43.22%
• BNY Mellon Europe ADR Index: 15.59%
• BNY Mellon Lat. Amer. ADR Index: 53.96%

So far this year, the developed markets are lagging the performance of emerging markets.

The S&P 500 Index is up 11.87% as of August 7, 2009. The Financials in the index are up 14.43%. However many of the foreign banks have risen considerably higher in the recent run-up in global markets. In fact many of the foreign bank ADRs are up over 50% Year-To-Date ((YTD)).

Three foreign banks have performed exceptionally well in terms of share price increase. They have grown over 100% YTD. These 3 banks are:

With the first quarter over for this year, it's time to take a look at the performance of bank ADRs. The following six ADRs are in positive territory as of April 1, 2009.

1. Woori Finance (WF)
YTD Change: 17.38%

January has come to a close this year. The S&P 500 is down 8.57%. The Financials in the index are down an incredible 26.55% in just one month.

Worldwide, bank stock stocks continue to get hammered as the credit crisis deepens. Banks are doing everything they can to shore up their capital. Investors have lost trust in the numbers reported by banks and this has led to banks being treated as 'rotten fish'.

Many foreign stocks that trade as ADRs in the US have fallen heavily in-line with their home country’s market performance. In order to identify the ADRs that are down more than 80% year-to-date, I ran the screener and ended up with the 38 stocks listed below.

Foreign ADR Stocks Down > 80%

A few a days ago I read an interesting post titled “50 SPX Stocks Down > 50%” in “The Big Picture” site.That article inspired this post where I analyze the performance of 43 foreign banks since the October 2007 peak.

I followed these rules for this study:
a. Take the highest intra-day high reached in October 2007 as the peak.
b. If a stock reached higher price before or after October ignore it.
c. Include bank stocks listed in the OTC market as sponsored ADRs.

Readers have suggested some additional tickers for me.  Here they are:

General Electric (GE), Mircosoft (MSFT), Bristol-Meyers Squibb Co. (BMY), Boeing (BA), American National Insurance Co. (ANAT), Kansas City LIfe Ins. Co. (KCLI), and Deere & Co. (DE).

Here are some interesting facts that any potential investor should know about South Korea:

China has been North Korea’s main supporter, since the Red Army saved it from defeat by US forces under a UN flag in the 1950’s. Beijing provides 90% of N Korea’s oil supply, estimated at one million tons per year. But this time, China might have overplayed the North Korean card. The specter of an Asian atomic arms race now looms over the region, and Beijing could find itself surrounded by neighbors in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan moving to join the elite club of nuclear powers.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a staunch North Korea critic, wants to amend the Constitution to give Japan’s military greater leeway to go nuclear, and it won’t take long to convert its huge stockpile of plutonium. South Korean Finance/Economy Minister Kwon O-kyu warned on October 10th, that foreign investors could flee from Asia’s fourth-largest stock market in the near future, as geopolitical risks involving North Korea are expected to further intensify. “If the UN Security Council and the US decide to take harsh actions against the Stalinist country, the negative effects on the Korean economy could worsen, prompting foreign investors to take money out of the country en masse,” Kwon said.