Japan sets you up for gains

Article Excerpt

ISHARES MSCI JAPAN INDEX FUND, $55.67 is a buy. The ETF (New York symbol EWJ; buy or sell through brokers; us.ishares.com) tries to match the return of the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Japan Index. The fund’s top holdings include Toyota, 5.4%; Sony Corp., 3.3%; Keyence (sensors), 2.5%; Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, 2.1%; Recruit Holdings (human resources), 1.7%; Tokyo Electron (computer chips), 1.6%; KDDI (telecom), 1.6%; Softbank, 1.5%; and Shin Etsu Chemical, 1.5%. The ETF’s MER is a relatively low 0.50%. Japan’s economy is recovering, powered by consumer spending after the end of COVID-19 restrictions. Meanwhile, though, supply-chain bottlenecks, the war in Ukraine, pandemic lockdowns in China, and higher global inflation and interest rates have held back exports. Still, despite all of today’s challenges, the longer-term outlook for the Japanese economy remains sound. iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund is a buy. buy. …