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 0.60% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
MSCI Korea |
South Korea | 5 ETFs | 113 (29/12/17) |
The MSCI Korea (total return) 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 | 502 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Physically backed | |
| Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010361691 | 137 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Korea Index UCITS ETF 1CLU0292100046 | 134 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5W4TY14 | 46 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Physically backed | |
| HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USDDE000A1JXC60 | 10 | 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 | -2.22% | 4.04% | 0.45% | 6.59% | 27.23% |
| Index | 2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Korea | -1.08% | 28.79% | 11.56% | 3.56% | -0.49% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/18; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
The best South Korea ETFs
by 1 year return
| 1 | Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF C-EUR | 6.79% |
| 2 | HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USD | 6.65% |
| 3 | iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Dist) | 6.59% |
The cheapest South Korea ETFs
by total expense ratio (TER)
| 1 | HSBC MSCI Korea UCITS ETF USD | 0.60% p.a. |
| 2 | iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc) | 0.65% p.a. |
| 3 | Lyxor MSCI Korea UCITS ETF C-EUR | 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 12 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: 14,45% (29/12/2017) |
1 ETF | 722 (29/12/17) |
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
South Korea: 17,73% (29/12/2017) |
3 ETFs | 647 (29/12/17) |
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
South Korea: 19,74% (29/12/2017) |
3 ETFs | 563 (29/12/17) |
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
South Korea: 21,02% (29/12/2017) |
5 ETFs | 572 (29/12/17) |
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 | 2,252 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets Asia UCITS ETF - EUR (C)LU1681044480 | 1,469 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI EM Asia Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107991 | 711 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0322252171 | 574 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5L8K969 | 503 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| SPDR MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETFIE00B466KX20 | 416 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Lyxor MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010652867 | 415 | 0.50% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI AC Asia Pacific Ex Japan UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010312124 | 352 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI AC Far East ex Japan UCITS ETF USDDE000A1W2EK4 | 264 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (IE) MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan SF UCITS ETF (USD) A-accIE00B7WK2W23 | 131 | 0.32% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Swap-based | |
| Xtrackers MSCI AC Far East ex Japan Index UCITS ETF 2CIE00BGDWNL65 | 16 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Lyxor MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF - AccLU1781541849 | 12 | 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 | 2.58% | 2.10% | 4.40% | 10.73% | 12.12% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 1.83% | 2.04% | 3.78% | 11.90% | 13.94% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 2.09% | 1.67% | 4.30% | 12.60% | 15.07% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 2.08% | 2.13% | 4.21% | 12.95% | 14.80% |
| Index | 2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | 2.06% | 19.27% | 8.95% | 0.05% | 16.05% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 2.09% | 24.22% | 8.07% | 0.45% | 18.00% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 2.23% | 24.79% | 8.79% | -0.05% | 18.76% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 3.01% | 24.08% | 8.98% | 0.21% | 16.16% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/18; 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 0.20% 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: 15.39% (29/12/2017) |
13 ETFs | 846 (29/12/17) |
The MSCI Emerging Markets index tracks stocks from emerging markets world wide (end of day).
Index factsheet |
| S&P SMIT 40 | Emerging Markets
South Korea: 26.70% (29/12/2017) |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63177 | 5,076 | 0.75% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF - EUR (C)LU1681045370 | 3,684 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets Index Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107645 | 1,822 | 0.49% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Lyxor MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF C-EURFR0010429068 | 1,445 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF 1CIE00BTJRMP35 | 1,103 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| UBS ETF (LU) MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (USD) A-disLU0480132876 | 1,031 | 0.45% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Optimized sampling | |
| iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B4L5YC18 | 860 | 0.68% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| ComStage MSCI Emerging Markets TRN UCITS ETFLU0635178014 | 274 | 0.25% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDDE000A1JXC94 | 268 | 0.40% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B469F816 | 265 | 0.42% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| Source MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF ADE000A1JM6G3 | 146 | 0.29% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi Index MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF - EUR (D)LU1737652583 | 49 | 0.20% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| Deka MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFDE000ETFL342 | 32 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Germany | Unfunded swap | |
| ComStage S&P SMIT 40 Index TRN UCITS ETFLU0860821874 | 4 | 0.60% 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 | -4.76% | -8.84% | -6.81% | -9.78% | -4.11% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | -0.51% | -1.82% | 1.81% | 8.66% | 10.25% |
| Index | 2018 in % |
2017 in % |
2016 in % |
2015 in % |
2014 in % |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P SMIT 40 | -11.00% | 15.57% | 10.42% | -11.88% | 18.60% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets | -0.48% | 19.96% | 14.16% | -5.63% | 10.34% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31/05/18; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.