stock exchange

iShares S&P/TSX SmallCap Index Fund, $16.41, symbol XCS on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 7.3 million; Market cap: $119.8 million), holds the stocks in the S&P/TSX SmallCap Index. This index is made up of the smaller companies on the Toronto Stock Exchange. These stocks are chosen by market size (their market caps must be between $100 million to $1.5 billion) and liquidity. The fund’s expenses are 0.55% of its assets. The 10 highest-weighted stocks of the 178 companies in the index are New Gold, 1.74%; Quadra FNX Mining, 1.68%; Semafo, 1.67%; Trican Well Service, 1.60%; SXC Health Solutions, 1.57%; Toromont Industries, 1.41%; HudBay Minerals, 1.40%; IESI-BFC, 1.40%; Detour Gold, 1.39%; and Keyera Facilities Income Fund, 1.36%. The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Materials, 32.6%; Energy, 23.7%, Financials, 14.3%; Industrials, 11.7%; Consumer Discretionary, 6.4%; Consumer Staples, 3.6%; Health Care, 3.3%, Information Technology, 2.0% and Utilities, 1.7%....

High-quality foreign stocks are a great way to diversify your portfolio. Moreover, many fast-growing markets, like China and India, have positive outlooks. That’s because their people are generally younger than North Americans, and rising incomes are helping more of them advance into the middle class. Even so, world stock market investing remains riskier than investing in North America. That’s because many emerging countries have language barriers, weak investor-protection laws, less commitment to openness, fairness and so on. Here are 3 simple ways to tap into world stock market profits at lower risk:...

DPF India Opportunities Fund, $5.50, symbol DPF.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 23.1 million; Market cap: $127.1 million), is a closed-end fund that invests in Indian stocks. It holds shares of mostly large-cap, well-established Indian companies. The fund has a high 3.31% MER. We like the outlook for the Indian economy. However, for new buying, we recommend the iShares S&P India Nifty 50 Index Fund, $31.28, symbol INDY on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 3.35 million; Market cap: $104.8 million). iShares S&P India Nifty 50 Index Fund is an exchange-traded fund that aims to track the S&P CNX Nifty Index. This index represents the 50 largest, most liquid Indian securities on the National Stock Exchange of India. The fund’s MER is just 0.89%....

Tata Motors (ADR), $24.04, symbol TTM on New York (Shares outstanding: 506.4 million; Market cap: $12.2 billion), designs, makes and sells vehicles, including cars, trucks and buses, mainly in India. It also makes and sells related parts and accessories. Tata is based in Mumbai, India. Tata Motors is part of the Tata Group, one of India’s leading business conglomerates. Tata Group has interests in a number of areas, including steel, software services, hotels, chemicals, insurance and asset management. Tata’s sales have grown along with the Indian economy. In 2003, its revenue was $3.2 billion. By 2006, revenue had more than doubled, to $7.7 billion. Earnings jumped 37.5%, to $1.10 a share from $0.80 a share. Cash flow per share rose 29.6%, to $1.49 from $1.15....

Brazil’s economy is the world’s eighth largest, and the largest in South America. Brazil is also the world’s ninth-largest oil exporter. Brazil’s economy stalled during the financial crisis, as global demand for the country’s commodity-based exports, including oil, slowed. However, it was one of the first emerging markets to begin a recovery, posting positive growth in the second quarter of 2009. The Brazilian economy could grow as much as 5.5% in 2010. To top it off, the country’s exports to fast-growing China have risen sharply. In 2009, China passed the U.S. to become Brazil’s biggest export market, accounting for 12.5% of its total 2009 exports. The U.S. accounted for 10.5%, followed by Argentina (8.4%), the Netherlands (5.4%) and Germany (4.1%)....

ISHARES MSCI BRAZIL INDEX FUND $70.55 (New York Exchange symbol EWZ; buy or sell through brokers), is an exchange-traded fund that is designed to track the Brazilian stock market. The fund’s top holdings are Petrobras preferred shares (energy), 9.4%; Cia Vale do Rio Doce (mining) preferred shares, 9.3%; Itau Unibanco Multiplo SA (banking), 9.0%; Petrobras common shares, 7.9%; Cia Vale do Rio Doce common shares, 6.8%; Banco Bradesco preferred shares (banking), 5.2%; Itausa-Investimentos Itau (conglomerate), 3.4%; Cia de Bebidas das Americas preferred shares (beer and other beverages), 3.1%; BM&F Bovespa SA (Brazilian stock exchange), 2.7%; and OGX Petroleo e Gas Patricipa (energy), 2.6%. The ETF’s industry breakdown is as follows: Materials, 26.2%; Financials, 25.1%; Energy, 20.6%; Consumer Staples, 8.8%; Utilities, 5.6%; Consumer Discretionary, 5.3%; Industrials, 3.3%; Telecommunication Services, 2.8%; and Information Technology, 2.0%. The fund has an expense ratio of 0.65%....

ISHARES S&P INDIA NIFTY 50 INDEX FUND $27.04 (Nasdaq symbol INDY; buy or sell through brokers), is an ETF that aims to track the S&P CNX Nifty Index, which represents the 50 largest, most liquid Indian securities on the National Stock Exchange of India. The fund’s top holdings are Reliance Industries (conglomerate), 10.2%; Infosys Technologies (software), 8.3%; ICICI Bank, 6.9%; Larsen & Toubro Ltd. (conglomerate), 6.2%; ITC Ltd. (conglomerate), 5.4%; Housing Development Finance, 5.2%; HDFC Bank, 4.8%; State Bank of India, 4.7%; Oil and Natural Gas Corp., 2.8%; and Tata Consulting Services (information technology), 2.8%. The fund’s industry breakdown includes: Banks, 19.6%; Computers: Software, 13.0%; Refineries, 10.9%; Cigarettes, 5.4%; Finance: Housing, 5.2%; Automobiles, 4.7%; Power, 4.6%; Steel and Steel Products, 4.4%; Oil Exploration and Production, 3.8%; and Electrical Equipment, 3.7%....

Exports to the U.S., Europe and other developed nations are a significant source of growth for emerging economies. However, expanding domestic demand is increasingly supporting those economies. That’s helping offset slower growth internationally. And with savings rates as high as 53% of GNP in China, 33% in India and 16% in Brazil, compared to just 12% in the U.S., there’s lots of room for domestic consumption to grow in many emerging countries. One of the best ways to invest in emerging markets is through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). You’ll need to be selective, but ETFs make it easy to invest internationally. As well, the best ETFs offer a great combination of low fees and top-quality stocks. Here are four emerging market ETFs we like:...

POTASH CORP. OF SASKATCHEWAN, $154.99, Toronto symbol POT, continues to trade above the $130.00 U.S.-a-share hostile takeover offer from BHP Billiton Ltd. (New York symbol BHP). BHP is a recommendation of our Wall Street Stock Forecaster newsletter. Based on today’s exchange rate, Potash Corp. shares trade at 13.2% more than BHP’s offer. That suggests investors expect a higher bid. However, because of Potash’s $45.5-billion market cap (or the value of all of its outstanding shares), there are only a handful other companies that could afford to buy it. As well, the federal government would probably block an offer from a company controlled by a sovereign wealth fund. (Sovereign wealth funds are state-owned investment funds that are usually financed by an economic surplus. For example, China Investment Corp. is China’s sovereign wealth fund.) Moreover, BHP has little room to raise its offer. That’s because BHP’s shares also trade on the London Stock Exchange, which would require BHP to hold a special shareholders’ vote if the value of the deal is more than 25% of BHP’s market cap just prior to the takeover announcement. On this basis, BHP’s current offer represented 21% of its market cap....

A number of our Inner Circle members have asked our opinion on global stock market investing in recent months, particularly companies that operate in fast-growing emerging markets. Some of these companies may not be well-known to North American investors. However, if it’s possible to invest in these stocks through North American markets, our team of independent investment experts is happy to look into them. We then share our research with all of our Inner Circle members, along with the original member’s question (of course, we eliminate any personal information). We reserve our specific buy/sell/hold advice for Inner Circle members, of course. But to give you an idea of the depth of our research, here are two recent examples of member questions about global stock market investing. One is about a Spanish telecommunications company that’s part of a joint venture to expand China’s wireless networks. The other is about a growing Philippine fast-food chain....