Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management, the exchange traded funds unit of German banking giant Deutsche Bank, today expanded its lineup of currency hedged ETFs with the addition of three new products.
Deutsche, which already has one of the industry’s largest stables of currency hedged ETFs, introduced the db X-trackers MSCI All World ex US Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBAW), db X-trackers MSCI South Korea Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBKO) and the db X-trackers MSCI Mexico Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBMX).
“In the current market environment, investors are looking for products to help them manage exposure to currency risk in their international investments. For this reason, we continue to expand our hedged equity platform to include countries and regions where the management of currency risk can strengthen a global equity portfolio,” said Martin Kremenstein, Head of Passive Asset Management for Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management Americas, in a statement.
DBKO will compete directly with the WisdomTree Korea Hedged Equity Fund (NasdaqGS: DXKW), which launched late last year as the first currency hedged play on South Korea. The country is Asia’s fourth-largest economy. [South Korea ETFs the Hedged Currency Way]
DBAW tracks the MSCI ACWI ex USA Hedged Index, an index designed to give investors exposure to developed and emerging markets excluding the U.S. The U.K. and Japan combine for 31% of the index’s weight. Top-10 holdings in DBAW include Nestle (PK: NSRGY), Vodafone (NYSE: VOD), BP (NYSE: BP) and Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A).
DBMX represents the first peso-hedged play on Mexico, Latin America’s second-largest economy. The new ETF joins the iShares MSCI Mexico Capped ETF (NYSEArca: EWW) as just the second dedicated Mexico ETF on the market. [Getting Selective With Emerging Markets]
In addition offering the first currency hedged play on Mexico, Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management also sponsors the lone currency hedged Brazil ETF: The db X-trackers MSCI Brazil Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBBR).
Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management’s U.S. exchange-traded products (ETP) platform was also the first to provide U.S. investors with convenient access to broad-based commodity exposure when it launched in 2006. Currently the platform has $12 billion in assets under management, according to the statement.
Other currency hedged products from the firm include the db X-trackers MSCI Japan Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBJP) and the db X-Trackers MSCI Europe Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: DBEU).