EGShares, the ETF issuer known for its suite of emerging markets funds, will introduce its second dividend fund Monday when the EGShares Emerging Markets Dividend Growth ETF (NYSEArca: EMDG) debuts. The firm already sponsors the EGShares Low Volatility Emerging Markets Dividend (NYSEArca: HILO).
The EGShares Emerging Markets Dividend Growth ETF will track the Emerging Markets Dividend Growth Underlying Index, whichselects companies from the FTSE Emerging All Cap ex-Taiwan Diversified Capped Dividend Growth 50 Index. EMDG will have an annual expense ratio of 0.85%, the same as HILO.
The universe for EMDG’s index “is defined as all publicly traded stocks domiciled in Emerging Markets countries, which may include, among other countries, Brazil, Chile, China, Columbia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey,” according to an EGShares filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
None of the EGShares ETFs feature South Korea or Taiwan. The International Monetary Fund stopped classifying South Korea and Taiwan as emerging markets in 1997, but some index providers such as MSCI (NYSE: MSCI) still classify those nations as developing economies.
HILO, which has an index weight of 4.75%, allocates a combined 63% of its weight to South Africa, Turkey Mexico and Malaysia. [A Toxic Brew for This ETF]