Emerging markets stocks and exchange traded funds have not lacked for negative attention in 2015 and the fact the MSCI Emerging Markets Index trades at a low multiple has not been enough to entice investors because earnings growth in developing economies is not strong.
While it can be tough to discern legitimate emerging markets opportunities at the moment, investors should not forget the emerging markets consumer and the EGShares Emerging Markets Consumer ETF (NYSEArca: ECON).
Emerging markets investing, including doing so with ETFs, is changing, presenting investors with opportunities to take more tactical, thematic approaches to tap into the rise of developing world consumers. With many traditional emerging markets ETFs either too concentrated in the BRIC nations, excessively exposed to state-run enterprises or both, investors should rethink how they access emerging markets consumer trends.
The allure of ECON, one of the original dedicated emerging markets consumer ETFs, comes from its large combined weight to reform-mind countries. For example, China, Mexico and India combine for over 42% of the ETF’s weight. [India Consumer ETF Capitalizes on Growth Spurt]
In a recent interview with Dimtra DeFotis of Barron’s, Lu Yu, who runs the AllianzGI Emerging Market Opportunities fund, said “The future of the emerging-market economy resides in domestic consumption.” The fund manager added that investors should be willing to pay up for the higher valuations seen on some emerging markets consumer stocks.