The Singapore fund is recovering after a tough 2011, when it was hit by exposure to the financial sector and worries over the global economy. The Asian island country lacks natural resources but its economy grew almost 15% last year. It is one of the wealthiest nations in Asia that also boosts low unemployment, a budget surplus and high per-capita GDP.
“As a single-country fund, EWS is suitable as a satellite holding within a diversified portfolio. While Singapore is considered a developed country, its recent growth rates have been more in line with that of emerging markets,” writes Morningstar’s Patricia Oey in an analyst report on the ETF. “Not surprisingly, this fund’s volatility is in line with that of emerging-markets equities, an asset class that historically has been about 60% more volatile than U.S. equities.”
iShares MSCI Singapore