ISHARES MSCI JAPAN INDEX FUND $11.08 (New York Exchange symbol EWJ; buy or sell through brokers; us.ishares.com) is an ETF that tries to match the return of the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Japan index.
The fund’s top holdings include Toyota, 5.8%; Softbank Corp., 2.8%; Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, 2.7%; Honda Motor, 2.2%; Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, 1.9%; Mizuho Financial Group, 1.7%; Japan Tobacco, 1.4%; Hitachi, 1.4%; Takeda Pharmaceutical, 1.4%; and Canon, 1.4%.
The fund’s industry breakdown includes: Consumer Discretionary, 20.8%; Industrials, 19.6%; Financials, 19.5%; Information Technology, 10.9%; Consumer Staples, 6.6%; Health Care, 6.4%; Telecommunication Services, 5.7%; Materials, 5.6%; Utilities, 2.5%; and Energy, 1.2%.
iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund was launched on March 12, 1996. Its expense ratio is 0.48%.
The fund continues to benefit from a lower yen. Under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s so-called “Abenomics” strategy, the Bank of Japan is pumping more money into the country’s economy, which is why the yen is down. As a result, exports have risen for many Japanese manufacturers.
The government raised the sales tax to 8% from 5% on April 1, 2014, but a new $182-billion stimulus package should offset any resulting fall in consumer spending.
iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund is a buy.
