How do I invest in Asian stocks?

The easiest way to invest in the whole Asian stock market is to invest in a broad market index. This can be done at a low cost by using ETFs.

In this curated investment guide, you will find all ETFs that allow you to invest broadly diversified in Asian stocks. Currently, there are 19 ETFs available.

The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs tracking stocks from Asia is between 0.10% p.a. and 0.74% p.a..

How do I invest in companies from Asia and the Pacific region?

Investing in the Asian stock market can be very easy and cost-effective by using a single ETF that tracks a broadly diversified index that is weighted by market capitalisation.

The available Asia ETFs differ significantly in some cases. The Japanese stock market has been highly developed for decades and plays a leading role worldwide. As a consequence, there are a lot of Japan ETFs available. Covering Japan with one of these ETFs, for example on the MSCI Japan or the Nikkei 225, can therefore be done very easily and at low cost. Index providers take this into account, which is why Japan is excluded from most indices covering Asian markets. Moreover, the available ETFs differ in whether only developed markets, only emerging markets or both types are tracked. Furthermore, some indices cover the Pacific region in addition to Asia.

This curated investment guide allows you to compare both the available ETFs and the underlying indices on Asia and the Pacific region and to select an ETF that fits your preferences best.

In our ETF screener, you will find additional Asia ETFs, like sustainable Asia-Pacific ETFs and dividend ETFs on Asia. Furthermore, you can monitor the performance of various Asia and Pacific indices with our market overview “ETF Asia-Pacific”.
 

Performance of broadly diversified Asia indices in comparison

Source: justETF Research; As of 20/11/2024; Performance over 1 year in GBP.

Indices in comparison

The best indices for Asia ETFs

For an investment in stocks from Asia, there are 7 indices available that are tracked by 19 ETFs. The total expense ratio (TER) of ETFs on these indices is between 0.10% p.a. and 0.74% p.a.. Depending on the market environment, stocks from a single country can make up large parts of an index. You can find more information regarding the concentration of countries, companies and sectors in the index factsheets linked below.
 

• Properties
• Performance

Source: justETF.com; As of 31/10/2024; Calculations in GBP based on the largest ETF of the respective index.

ETFs in comparison

All Asia ETFs in comparison

In the table below we have listed the currently available Asia ETFs. Via the "Properties" and "Performance" tabs, you can find detailed information on these ETFs and sort them according to your desired criterion. More information about the different criteria when choosing an ETF can be found in our article on ETF selection.
 

• Properties
• Performance

Source: justETF.com; As of 31/10/2024