diversification

A: First Asset Tech Giants Covered Call ETF (CAD Hedged), $14.97, symbol TXF on Toronto (Units outstanding: 6.1 million; Market cap: $91.3 million; www.firstasset.com), invests in what it sees as some of the largest and most innovative U.S....

We think conservative investors can hold up to 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. One way to do that is by choosing exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with an overseas focus.


The best ETFs continue to offer very low management fees and well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of highquality stocks.


Here’s a look at four international ETFs we see as buys, and two we feel you should continue to hold.


ISHARES MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX FUND $41.20 (New York symbol EEM; buy or sell through brokers) aims to track the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.


The fund’s geographic breakdown includes China, 26.9%; South Korea, 15.5%; Taiwan, 12.2%; India, 8.5%; Brazil, 6.9%; South Africa, 6.6%; Mexico, 3.6%; Russia, 3.4%; Indonesia, 2.5%; Malaysia, 2.4%; Thailand, 2.2%; and Poland, 1.3%.


Its top holdings are Tencent Holdings (China: Internet), 4.3%; Samsung Electronics (South Korea), 4.3%; Taiwan Semiconductor (computer chips), 3.6%; Alibaba Group (China: e-commerce), 3.0%; Naspers (South Africa: media and Internet), 2.0%; China Construction Bank, 1.5%; China Mobile, 1.5%; Hon Hai Precision (Taiwan), 1.2%; Baidu (China: Internet), 1.1%; and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, 1.1%.


iShares launched the ETF on April 7, 2003....

A: We’ve long advised holding 20% or more of your portfolio in U.S. stocks. We see exposure to U.S. stocks, and the U.S. dollar, as a valuable form of diversification. It also gives you a hedge against a drop in the Canadian dollar, especially if you hold your stocks in a U.S.-dollar brokerage account.


Canadian shareholders pay a 15% withholding tax on dividends from U.S....

You can’t predict stock market corrections, and trying to will inevitably hurt your returns

“The saying ‘Sell in May and go away’ is based on an approach to the stock market that works only sporadically. It could actually cost you money if you go along with it.”

The most popular stocks, which are often in the media or broker limelight, are often overpriced and may plunge.

Did you know that buying ETFs with a passive investing strategy can lead to much lower expense ratios?

Dear Inner Circle Member,


If you take a university-level psychology or medical course, you run the risk of “medical student’s disease”. This happens when you read about disease symptoms, and get a sudden fear that they describe something you already suffer from.


A good teacher will tell you that many symptoms in your textbook are exaggerations of normal, everyday fluctuations in your health and vitality....

Dear Inner Circle Member,


If you take a university-level psychology or medical course, you run the risk of “medical student’s disease”. This happens when you read about disease symptoms, and get a sudden fear that they describe something you already suffer from.


A good teacher will tell you that many symptoms in your textbook are exaggerations of normal, everyday fluctuations in your health and vitality....

We’ve long advised holding 20% or more of your portfolio in U.S. stocks. We see exposure to U.S. stocks, and the U.S. dollar, as a valuable form of diversification. It also gives you a hedge against a drop in the Canadian dollar, especially if you hold your stocks in a U.S.-dollar brokerage account.


Canadian shareholders pay a 15% withholding tax on dividends from U.S....