June 08, 2007 at 8:02 am by Tom Lydon
When looking at country-specific exchange traded funds (ETFs), you want to know what is going on in that country. Sweden for example is in the midst of privatization. Carl Delfeld of ETF XRAY reports the newly elected center-right government has started the selling, which by the way is open to foreign investors. The first sell was an 8% stake in TeliaSonera, a telecommunication company, and was oversubscribed. Be on the look out for more sells in the next three years.
On the economic front, the central bank in Sweden has been a fierce inflation fighter – with inflation at 1.9%.
iShares MSCI Sweden (EWD) is full of companies known across the globe. The top holding is Ericsson at 21%. Other holdings include Volvo, Sandvik, Atlas Copco, and the trendy fashion store, H&M. EWD, like many other areas, has felt the affects of the market decline over the past few days, but it is up 8% year-to-date.
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