Tap into overseas markets with these six

Article Excerpt

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offer very low management fees. As well, the best ETFs offer well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of high-quality stocks. We think conservative investors could hold up to, say, 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. You need to be highly selective with your ETF selections, but they’re a great way to hold those stocks. Here are six foreign ETFs we like: ISHARES MSCI JAPAN INDEX FUND $9.99 (American Exchange symbol EWJ; buy or sell through brokers; us.ishares.com) is an exchange traded fund that tries to match the return of the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Japan index. The fund’s top holdings include Toyota Motor, 5.1%; Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, 2.9%; Honda Motor, 2.7%; Canon, 2.2%; Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, 2.1%; Mizuho Financial Group, 1.7%; Takeda Pharmaceutical, 1.6%; Mitsubishi Corporation, 1.5%; Fanuc Corp., 1.5%; and Mitsui & Co., 1.3%. The fund’s industry breakdown is as follows: Industrials, 21.3%; Consumer Discretionary, 20.0%; Financials, 17.8%; Information Technology, 12.2%; Materials, 7.1%; Health Care, 6.1%; Consumer Staples, 5.9%; Telecommunication Services, 4.1%;…