How to invest in Taiwan using ETFs
How do I invest in Taiwanese stocks?
The easiest way to invest in the whole Taiwanese stock market is to invest in a broad market index. This can be done at low cost by using ETFs.
On the Taiwanese stock market you find 1 index, which is tracked by ETFs.
Alternatively, you may invest in indices on the Asia-Pacific region or emerging markets. However, with a share of less than 20% the weight of Taiwan is not significant.
Performance of Taiwanese stocks (MSCI Taiwan)
Indices in comparison
The best indices for ETFs on Taiwan
For an investment in the Taiwanese stock market, 1 index tracked by 5 ETFs are available. On the MSCI Taiwan index there are 5 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on these indices is between 0.60% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
MSCI Taiwan |
Taiwan | 5 ETFs | 90 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI Taiwan index tracks large and mid cap equity market performance of Taiwan.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m CHF |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI Taiwan UCITS ETFIE00B0M63623 | 356 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) 1CLU0292109187 | 111 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| Lyxor MSCI Taiwan UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010444786 | 42 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI Taiwan UCITS ETF USDIE00B3S1J086 | 11 | 0.60% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| ComStage MSCI Taiwan TRN UCITS ETFLU0392495619 | 8 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Taiwan | 0.29% | 2.60% | 9.84% | 29.42% | 31.02% |
| Index | 2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
2013 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Taiwan | 11.02% | 20.18% | -12.04% | 20.69% | 5.18% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/17; Calculations in CHF based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
The best Taiwan ETFs
by 1 year return
| 1 | db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) 1C | 30.01% |
| 2 | ComStage MSCI Taiwan TRN UCITS ETF | 30.00% |
| 3 | HSBC MSCI Taiwan UCITS ETF USD | 29.69% |
The cheapest Taiwan ETFs
by total expense ratio (TER)
| 1 | ComStage MSCI Taiwan TRN UCITS ETF | 0.60% p.a. |
| 2 | HSBC MSCI Taiwan UCITS ETF USD | 0.60% p.a. |
| 3 | db x-trackers MSCI Taiwan Index UCITS ETF (DR) 1C | 0.65% p.a. |
Asia-Pacific indices with a share of Taiwan
Besides Taiwan ETFs you may consider ETFs on Asia-Pacific. In total, you can invest in 4 Asia-Pacific indices, which are tracked by 10 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on Asia-Pacific is between 0.20% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | Asia Pacific
Taiwan: 11.54% (31/10/2016) |
1 ETF | 701 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI AC (All Cap) Asia Pacific ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the Asia and Pacific region, excluding Japan.
Index factsheet |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | Asia Pacific
Taiwan: 14.58% (31/10/2016) |
2 ETFs | 622 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI AC (All Cap) Asia ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the Asia region, excluding Japan.
Index factsheet |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | Asia Pacific
Taiwan: 16.20% (31/10/2016) |
2 ETFs | 548 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI AC (All Cap) Far East ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the East Asian region, excluding Japan.
Index factsheet |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | Asia Pacific
Taiwan: 17.51% (31/10/2016) |
5 ETFs | 550 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets Asia index tracks large and mid cap companies from Asian emerging markets.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m CHF |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan UCITS ETFIE00B0M63730 | 2,160 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi ETF MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF EURFR0011020965 | 922 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| db x-trackers MSCI EM Asia Index UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107991 | 685 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| db x-trackers MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index UCITS ETF 1CLU0322252171 | 605 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| SPDR MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETFIE00B466KX20 | 338 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| iShares MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5L8K969 | 337 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi ETF MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF USDFR0011018316 | 225 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI AC Far East ex Japan UCITS ETF USDIE00BBQ2W338 | 202 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (IE) MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan SF UCITS ETF (USD) A-accIE00B7WK2W23 | 60 | 0.37% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Swap-based | |
| Lyxor MSCI AC Asia Pacific Ex Japan UCITS ETF C-USDFR0010581439 | 52 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | 0.52% | 3.65% | 10.71% | 21.83% | 17.09% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 2.20% | 6.29% | 12.91% | 24.75% | 23.37% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 2.46% | 6.21% | 12.44% | 25.25% | 22.31% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 1.76% | 6.53% | 13.25% | 25.57% | 24.75% |
| Index | 2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
2013 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | 11.73% | 8.28% | -9.73% | 13.39% | -0.18% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 14.81% | 7.95% | -9.74% | 13.72% | -0.22% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 14.97% | 7.76% | -9.93% | 16.31% | -1.55% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 15.01% | 7.10% | -9.49% | 15.59% | -0.69% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/17; Calculations in CHF based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
Emerging markets indices with a share of Taiwan
As further alternative you may invest in ETFs on emerging markets. In total, you can consider 3 emerging markets indices tracked by 14 ETFs. The emerging markets indices weight Taiwan with less than 20%. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on emerging markets indices is between 0.20% p.a. and 0.85% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets | Emerging Markets
Taiwan: 12.28% (31/10/2016) |
12 ETFs | 833 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets index tracks stocks from emerging markets world wide (end of day).
Index factsheet |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Beyond BRIC | Emerging Markets
Taiwan: 15.68% (31/10/2016) |
1 ETF | 530 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets Beyond BRIC index tracks stocks from emerging markets worldwide excluding Brazil, Russia, India and China ("BRIC"). In addition, to provide greater country diversification, the weight of each single country is capped on a quarterly basis at 15%.
Index factsheet |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Islamic | Emerging Markets
Taiwan: 6.05% (31/10/2016) |
1 ETF | 234 (31/10/16) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets Islamic index tracks stocks from the MSCI Emerging Markets Index which comply with Shariah investment principles. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index includes stocks from emerging markets world wide.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m CHF |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63177 | 5,157 | 0.75% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (IE) MSCI Emerging Markets SF UCITS ETF (USD) A-accIE00B3Z3FS74 | 2,371 | 0.29% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Swap-based | |
| db x-trackers MSCI Emerging Markets Index UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107645 | 1,891 | 0.49% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi ETF MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDFR0010959692 | 1,257 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B4L5YC18 | 1,085 | 0.68% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (LU) MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (USD) A-disLU0480132876 | 880 | 0.45% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Optimized sampling | |
| HSBC MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDIE00B5SSQT16 | 343 | 0.40% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Source MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF AIE00B3DWVS88 | 263 | 0.29% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF C-USDFR0010435297 | 244 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B469F816 | 239 | 0.42% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| ComStage MSCI Emerging Markets TRN UCITS ETFLU0635178014 | 215 | 0.25% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Islamic UCITS ETFIE00B27YCP72 | 32 | 0.85% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (LU) MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (USD) A-UKdisLU1126036976 | 22 | 0.45% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Optimized sampling | |
| SPDR MSCI EM Beyond BRIC UCITS ETFIE00BCBJFC69 | 4 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets Beyond BRIC | 0.79% | 5.36% | 13.38% | 18.47% | 4.08% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Islamic | 2.14% | 7.02% | 14.75% | 22.64% | 4.60% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | 0.83% | 4.03% | 11.97% | 23.88% | 10.92% |
| Index | 2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
2013 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets Beyond BRIC | 10.66% | 11.07% | -17.65% | 9.30% | - | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | 11.46% | 13.04% | -14.90% | 8.06% | -6.55% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Islamic | 13.85% | 11.41% | -15.80% | 1.93% | -11.57% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/17; Calculations in CHF based on the largest ETF of the respective index.