How to invest in South Korea using ETFs
How do I invest in South Korean stocks?
The easiest way to invest in the whole South Korean stock market is to invest in a broad market index. This can be done at low cost by using ETFs.
On the South Korean stock market you'll find 3 indices which are tracked by ETFs.
Alternatively, you can invest in indices on the Asia-Pacific region and Emerging Markets.
Performance of South Korean stocks (MSCI Korea 20/35)
1 month: -4.49%
1 year: -4.89%
3 years: -20.14%
5 years: 4.26%
Indices in comparison
The best indices for ETFs on South Korea
For an investment in the South Korean stock market, there are 3 indices available which are tracked by 6 ETFs. On the FTSE Korea 30/18 Capped index there is 1 ETF. On the MSCI Korea 20/35 index there are 4 ETFs. On the MSCI Korea 20/35 Custom index there is 1 ETF. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on these indices is between 0.09% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
FTSE Korea 30/18 Capped | South Korea | 1 ETF | 161 (31.03.22) | The FTSE Korea 30/18 Capped index tracks the largest stocks from South Korea. The largest company in the index is limited to a maximum of 30 percent of the index capitalization, all other index components to a maximum of 18 percent. Index factsheet |
MSCI Korea 20/35 | South Korea | 4 ETFs | 111 (30.11.22) | The MSCI Korea 20/35 index tracks large and mid cap Korean stocks. The weight of the largest constituent is constrained to 35% and the weights of all other constituents are constrained to a maximum of 20%. Index factsheet |
MSCI Korea 20/35 Custom | South Korea | 1 ETF | 111 (30.11.22) | The MSCI Korea 20/35 Custom index tracks large and mid cap Korean stocks. The weight of the largest constituent is constrained to 35% and the weights of all other constituents are constrained to a maximum of 20%. A buffer of 10% is applied on these limits at each index rebalancing. Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN | Fund size in m EUR | TER in % | Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin FTSE Korea UCITS ETFIE00BHZRR030 | 804 | 0.09% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63391 | 236 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI Korea UCITS ETF AccLU1900066975 | 171 | 0.45% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5W4TY14 | 128 | 0.65% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| HSBC MSCI Korea Capped UCITS ETF USDIE00B3Z0X395 | 47 | 0.50% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Korea UCITS ETF 1CLU0292100046 | 44 | 0.45% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Full replication |
| Index | 1 month in % | 3 months in % | 6 months in % | 1 year in % | 3 years in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Korea 20/35 Custom | -4.95% | -11.97% | -9.37% | 6.44% | -17.52% | |
| MSCI Korea 20/35 | -4.82% | -11.92% | -9.36% | 6.63% | -17.88% | |
| FTSE Korea 30/18 Capped | -4.82% | -11.72% | -8.85% | 7.70% | -15.80% |
| Index | 2024 in % | 2023 in % | 2022 in % | 2021 in % | 2020 in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Korea 20/35 Custom | -10.49% | 17.84% | -24.50% | -0.85% | 31.07% | |
| MSCI Korea 20/35 | -9.82% | 15.59% | -24.03% | -0.94% | 30.84% | |
| FTSE Korea 30/18 Capped | -9.72% | 18.89% | -24.31% | 1.04% | 32.81% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31.10.24; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
The best South Korea ETFs
by 1 year return
| 1 | Franklin FTSE Korea UCITS ETF | 7.70% |
| 2 | iShares MSCI Korea UCITS ETF (Acc) | 6.75% |
| 3 | Amundi MSCI Korea UCITS ETF Acc | 6.71% |
The cheapest South Korea ETFs
by total expense ratio (TER)
| 1 | Franklin FTSE Korea UCITS ETF | 0.09% p.a. |
| 2 | Amundi MSCI Korea UCITS ETF Acc | 0.45% p.a. |
| 3 | Xtrackers MSCI Korea UCITS ETF 1C | 0.45% p.a. |
Alternative investment opportunities
Asia-Pacific indices with a large share of South Korea
Besides South Korea ETFs, you may consider ETFs on the Asia-Pacific region. In total, you can invest in 5 Asia-Pacific indices, which are tracked by 13 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on Asia-Pacific is between 0.12% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan | Asia Pacific South Korea: 28.19% (30/11/2022) | 2 ETFs | 399 (31.08.23) | The FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan index tracks large and mid cap stocks from developed countries in the Asia Pacific region excluding Japan. Index factsheet |
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | Asia Pacific South Korea: 11.25% (30/11/2022) | 1 ETF | 1,132 (30.09.24) | The MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the Asia and Pacific region, excluding Japan. Index factsheet |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | Asia Pacific South Korea: 13.61% (30/11/2022) | 2 ETFs | 1,070 (30.09.24) | The MSCI AC Asia ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the Asia region, excluding Japan. Index factsheet |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | Asia Pacific South Korea: 16.39% (30/11/2022) | 3 ETFs | 919 (30.09.24) | The MSCI AC Far East ex Japan index tracks equity markets of the emerging and developed countries of the East Asian region, excluding Japan. Index factsheet |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | Asia Pacific South Korea: 15.31% (30/11/2022) | 5 ETFs | 1,027 (30.09.24) | The MSCI Emerging Markets Asia index tracks large and mid cap companies from Asian emerging markets. Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN | Fund size in m EUR | TER in % | Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| iShares MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B5L8K969 | 2,882 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Vanguard FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan UCITS ETF DistributingIE00B9F5YL18 | 1,071 | 0.15% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| SPDR MSCI EM Asia UCITS ETFIE00B466KX20 | 826 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets Asia UCITS ETF EUR (C)LU1681044480 | 819 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| iShares MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan UCITS ETFIE00B0M63730 | 699 | 0.74% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets Asia UCITS ETF USDLU1681044563 | 580 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Vanguard FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan UCITS ETF (USD) AccumulatingIE00BK5BQZ41 | 464 | 0.15% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI AC Asia Pacific Ex Japan UCITS ETF AccLU1900068328 | 382 | 0.60% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| UBS ETF (IE) MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan SF UCITS ETF (USD) A-accIE00B7WK2W23 | 250 | 0.23% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Swap-based | |
| Amundi MSCI AC Asia Ex Japan UCITS ETF AccLU1900068161 | 236 | 0.50% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Asia II UCITS ETF AccLU1781541849 | 200 | 0.12% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI AC Far East ex Japan UCITS ETF USDIE00BBQ2W338 | 114 | 0.45% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| iShares MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan UCITS ETF USD (Acc)IE00BKPX3K41 | 33 | 0.74% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication |
| Index | 1 month in % | 3 months in % | 6 months in % | 1 year in % | 3 years in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan | -4.16% | -1.24% | 2.55% | 16.48% | 2.89% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | -0.81% | 8.05% | 11.08% | 23.27% | -4.58% | |
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | -2.35% | 4.45% | 9.29% | 24.07% | 3.01% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | -1.85% | 4.92% | 9.80% | 24.76% | 2.08% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | -1.71% | 4.32% | 9.63% | 25.76% | 3.14% |
| Index | 2024 in % | 2023 in % | 2022 in % | 2021 in % | 2020 in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTSE Developed Asia Pacific ex Japan | 2.00% | 7.20% | -7.26% | 9.46% | 8.65% | |
| MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan | 15.47% | 2.96% | -12.62% | 3.78% | 11.51% | |
| MSCI AC Far East ex Japan | 17.08% | -1.28% | -15.89% | -2.74% | 14.53% | |
| MSCI AC Asia ex Japan | 17.28% | 2.12% | -14.88% | 2.94% | 13.90% | |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Asia | 17.81% | 3.84% | -15.09% | 1.48% | 16.80% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31.10.24; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.
Emerging markets indices with a large share of South Korea
Besides South Korea ETFs you may consider emerging markets ETFs. In total, you can invest in 1 emerging markets index, which is tracked by 19 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on emerging markets is between 0.14% p.a. and 0.66% p.a..
| Index | Investment focus | Number of ETFs | Number of constituents | Short description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets | Emerging Markets South Korea: 11.95% (30/11/2022) | 19 ETFs | 1,277 (30.09.24) | The MSCI Emerging Markets index tracks stocks from emerging markets worldwide. Index factsheet |
| ETF ISIN | Fund size in m EUR | TER in % | Use of profits | Fund domicile | Replication method | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF 1CIE00BTJRMP35 | 5,380 | 0.18% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Optimized sampling | |
| iShares MSCI EM UCITS ETF (Dist)IE00B0M63177 | 4,430 | 0.18% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| iShares MSCI EM UCITS ETF (Acc)IE00B4L5YC18 | 3,239 | 0.18% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi Index MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF DR (C)LU1437017350 | 3,013 | 0.18% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| HSBC MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDIE00B5SSQT16 | 2,441 | 0.15% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF EUR (C)LU1681045370 | 2,350 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets II UCITS ETF DistLU2573966905 | 2,211 | 0.14% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| UBS ETF (LU) MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (USD) A-disLU0480132876 | 1,380 | 0.18% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Optimized sampling | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USDLU1681045453 | 864 | 0.20% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets III UCITS ETF EUR AccFR0010429068 | 863 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B469F816 | 629 | 0.18% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets Swap UCITS ETF 1CLU0292107645 | 582 | 0.49% p.a. | Accumulating | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap | |
| Amundi Index MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF DR (D)LU1737652583 | 517 | 0.18% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Full replication | |
| Invesco MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETFIE00B3DWVS88 | 406 | 0.19% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Unfunded swap | |
| HSBC MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USD (Acc)IE000KCS7J59 | 276 | 0.15% p.a. | Accumulating | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF 1DIE000GWA2J58 | 212 | 0.18% p.a. | Distributing | Ireland | Full replication | |
| Amundi MSCI Emerging Markets III UCITS ETF USD AccFR0010435297 | 108 | 0.55% p.a. | Accumulating | France | Unfunded swap | |
| Deka MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF DE000ETFL342 | 96 | 0.66% p.a. | Accumulating | Germany | Unfunded swap | |
| Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets Swap UCITS ETF 1DLU2675291913 | 95 | 0.18% p.a. | Distributing | Luxembourg | Unfunded swap |
| Index | 1 month in % | 3 months in % | 6 months in % | 1 year in % | 3 years in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets | -1.60% | 3.15% | 7.01% | 22.32% | 2.08% |
| Index | 2024 in % | 2023 in % | 2022 in % | 2021 in % | 2020 in % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSCI Emerging Markets | 13.46% | 5.75% | -15.28% | 5.39% | 8.01% |
Source: justETF.com; As of 31.10.24; Calculations in EUR based on the largest ETF of the respective index.