Frontier markets are still emerging

Article Excerpt

Frontier markets are developing countries, but with economies considered still too small to be emerging markets. While risky, the best of frontier-market stocks offer good prospects for growth and strong fundamental value. Here are two ETFs that aim to benefit from those stocks and their markets. (See supplement on page 89 for more on frontier markets). ISHARES MSCI FRONTIER 100 ETF $28.37 (New York symbol FM; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $552.3 million) invests in the top 100 companies that are located in frontier markets. The fund passively tracks the MSCI Frontier Markets 100 Index; its companies are the largest and most liquid of the publicly listed frontier market firms; A company’s weighting in the index is based on the size of its market cap. The combined weight of companies from any two countries may not exceed 40% of the total portfolio. Frontier markets lack the size and liquidity of emerging markets ETFs are the best way for foreigners to invest in…