How to invest in South Korea using ETFs
How do I invest in South Korean stocks?
The easiest way to invest in the whole South Korean stock market is to invest in a broad market index. This can be done at low cost by using ETFs. ETFs.
On the South Korean stock market you find 1 index, which is tracked by ETFs.
Alternatively, you can invest in indices on the Asia-Pacific region and Emerging Markets. The S&P SMIT 40 Index contains the largest share of South Korea with around 25%.
Performance of South Korean stocks (MSCI Korea)
Indices in comparison
The best indices for ETFs on South Korea
For an investment in the South Korean stock market, 1 index tracked by 5 ETFs are available. On the MSCI Korea index there are 5 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on these indices is between 0.45% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
MSCI Korea |
South Korea | 5 ETFs | 111 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI Korea index tracks large and mid cap Korean stocks.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m EUR |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63391 | 636 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF AccLU1900066975 | 101 | 0.45% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Korea Index UCITS ETF 1CLU0292100046 | 86 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5W4TY14 | 44 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USDDE000A1JXC60 | 9 | 0.60% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Korea | 7.90% | 10.11% | 9.68% | 14.25% | 21.00% |
| Index | 2020 in % |
2019 in % |
2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Korea | - | 14.25% | -17.76% | 28.79% | 11.56% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/12/19; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
The best South Korea ETFs
by 1 year return
| 1 | HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USD | 14.58% |
| 2 | iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Dist) | 14.25% |
| 3 | Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF Acc | 14.24% |
The cheapest South Korea ETFs
by total expense ratio (TER)
| 1 | Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF Acc | 0.45% p.a. |
| 2 | HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USD | 0.60% p.a. |
| 3 | iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc) | 0.65% p.a. |
Asia-Pacific indices with a large share of South Korea
Besides South Korea ETFs, you may consider ETFs on the Asia-Pacific region. In total, you can invest in 4 Asia-Pacific indices, which are tracked by 11 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on Asia-Pacific is between 0.12% 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
South Korea: 11.50% (31/12/2019) |
1 ETF | 1,264 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI AC 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
South Korea: 13.79% (31/12/2019) |
3 ETFs | 1,187 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI AC 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
South Korea: 15.35% (31/12/2019) |
2 ETFs | 1,100 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI AC 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
South Korea: 15.92% (31/12/2019) |
5 ETFs | 1,119 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets Asia index tracks large and mid cap companies from Asian emerging markets.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m EUR |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan UCITS ETFIE00B0M63730 | 1,896 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets Asia UCITS ETF EUR (C)LU1681044480 | 1,142 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| SPDR MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETFIE00B466KX20 | 733 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| iShares MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5L8K969 | 580 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Xtrackers MSCI EM Asia Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107991 | 541 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0322252171 | 519 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI AC Asia Pacific Ex Japan UCITS ETF AccLU1900068328 | 498 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan UCITS ETF AccLU1900068161 | 445 | 0.50% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI AC Far East ex Japan UCITS ETF USDDE000A1W2EK4 | 343 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (IE) MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan SF UCITS ETF (USD) A-accIE00B7WK2W23 | 138 | 0.23% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Swap-based | |
| Lyxor MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF - AccLU1781541849 | 70 | 0.12% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | 3.85% | 7.14% | 7.24% | 20.31% | 28.58% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 4.19% | 8.18% | 7.82% | 20.32% | 32.32% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 5.16% | 9.14% | 9.98% | 20.85% | 33.25% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 4.81% | 8.88% | 8.58% | 20.95% | 32.53% |
| Index | 2020 in % |
2019 in % |
2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | - | 20.31% | -10.40% | 19.27% | 8.95% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | - | 20.32% | -11.47% | 24.22% | 8.07% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | - | 20.85% | -11.64% | 24.79% | 8.79% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | - | 20.95% | -11.69% | 24.08% | 8.98% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/12/19; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
Emerging markets indices with a large share of South Korea
Besides South Korea ETFs you may consider emerging markets ETFs. In total, you can invest in 2 emerging markets indices, which are tracked by 14 ETFs. The S&P SMIT 40 Index contains the largest share of South Korea with around 25%. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on emerging markets is between 0.14% p.a. and 0.75% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets | Emerging Markets
South Korea: 11.72% (31/12/2019) |
13 ETFs | 1,404 (31/12/19) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets index tracks stocks from emerging markets worldwide.
Index factsheet |
| S&P SMIT 40 | Emerging Markets
South Korea: 26.60% (31/12/2019) |
1 ETF | 40 |
The S&P SMIT 40 index tracks the 40 leading companies in four emerging markets: South Korea, Mexico, Indonesia and Turkey. Every September the weight of each country is rebalanced to 25%.
Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN |
Fund size in m EUR |
TER in % |
Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF EUR (C)LU1681045370 | 3,177 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63177 | 3,024 | 0.75% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF 1CIE00BTJRMP35 | 2,796 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (LU) MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (USD) A-disLU0480132876 | 1,765 | 0.22% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Optimized sampling | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107645 | 1,367 | 0.49% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010429068 | 1,191 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B4L5YC18 | 647 | 0.68% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Invesco MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B3DWVS88 | 538 | 0.29% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Unfunded swap | |
| SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B469F816 | 427 | 0.42% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| ComStage MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFLU0635178014 | 358 | 0.14% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi Index MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF DR EUR (D)LU1737652583 | 258 | 0.20% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| HSBC MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDDE000A1JXC94 | 169 | 0.15% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Deka MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFDE000ETFL342 | 40 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Germany | Unfunded swap | |
| ComStage S&P SMIT 40 Index UCITS ETFLU0860821874 | 3 | 0.58% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap |
| Index | 1 month in % |
3 months in % |
6 months in % |
1 year in % |
3 years in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P SMIT 40 | 5.22% | 4.21% | 9.82% | 17.58% | 11.33% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | 5.44% | 8.52% | 8.25% | 19.89% | 28.90% |
| Index | 2020 in % |
2019 in % |
2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P SMIT 40 | - | 17.58% | -18.07% | 15.57% | 10.42% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | - | 19.89% | -10.58% | 20.23% | 14.19% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/12/19; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.