ISHARES MSCI SOUTH KOREA INDEX FUND $46.06 - New York Exchange symbol EWY

ISHARES MSCI SOUTH KOREA INDEX FUND $46.06 (New York Exchange symbol EWY; buy or sell through brokers), is an ETF that aims to track the MSCI Korea Index. The index aims to capture 85% of the total market capitalization of the South Korean stock market. The other 15% is unavailable for investment, partly due to limitations on foreign ownership. The fund’s top holdings are Samsung Electronics at 18.0%; Posco (steel), 7.4%; KB Financial Group, 4.3%; Shinhan Financial, 4.2%; Hyundai Motor Co., 3.8%; LG Electronics, 2.4%; Hyundai Mobis (Hyundai auto parts and service), 2.3%; Samsung Electronics preferred shares, 2.2%; LG Chemical, 2.2%; and Korea Electric Power, 2.0%. The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Information Technology, 28.1%; Financials, 18.3%; Industrials, 14.7%; Materials, 13.3%; Consumer Discretionary, 12.0%; Consumer Staples, 5.1%; Telecommunication Services, 3.3%; Energy, 2.4%; Utilities, 2.2%; and Health Care, 0.6%. iShares MSCI South Korea Index Fund was launched on May 9, 2000. The ETF has an expense ratio of 0.63%. The fund is up 131.1% from its March 2009 low of $19.93. That’s mainly because interest-rate cuts, tax cuts and government stimulus spending are boosting the South Korean economy. As well, exports to China are rising. That’s helping offset lower exports to the U.S. and Europe. China is now South Korea’s biggest export market. A continuing drawback to any South Korean investment is the country’s proximity of North Korea, with its nuclear weapons and seemingly unstable leader. So far, however, his bluster has stopped far short of any serious risk to the south. iShares MSCI South Korea Index Fund is a buy for aggressive investors.