Easy ways to tap into growing markets

Article Excerpt

ISHARES FTSE/XINHUA CHINA 25 INDEX FUND $37.54 (New York symbol FXI; buy or sell through brokers) is an exchange traded fund that aims to track the FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index, which is made up of the 25 largest and most liquid Chinese stocks. All of the stocks in the index trade on the Hong Kong exchange. Some also trade as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the New York exchange. The fund’s top holdings are China Mobile, 9.6%; China Construction Bank, 9.0%; Industrial & Commercial Bank, 8.0%; Tencent Holdings, 7.1%, Bank of China, 6.1%; China Overseas Land & Investment, 4.1%; PetroChina, 4.1%, Agricultural Bank of China, 4.0%; and CNOOC, 3.9%. The fund’s holdings give it the following industry breakdown: Financials, 56.0%; Telecommunications, 16.0%; Oil and Gas, 12.1%; Technology, 7.1%, Basic Materials, 3.7%; and Consumer Goods, 3.2%. Its expense ratio is 0.74%. Chinese stocks were down 25% in June from the start of this year due to concerns that the country’s economic…