Among those names is Emaar Properties, by far UAE’s largest holding at a weight of 14%. Aldar Properties, UAE’s second-largest holding at 9.5%, will also join the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. So will Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, First Gulf Bank and Dubai Islamic Bank. Those stocks combine for over 21% of UAE’s weight, according to iShares data.
Qatar and UAE officially join the MSCI Emerging Markets Index on May 30, but for investors in the iShares MSCI Frontier 100 ETF (NYSEArca: FM) will not immediately lose exposure to the two countries that currently combine for 38% of that ETF’s weight.
The plan to move Qatar and UAE out of FM is gradual and pragmatic, including seven tranches of reducing exposure to those countries lasting through November, iShares told ETF Trends in an interview earlier this month. [Frontier Changes Could Produce a Better ETF]
iShares MSCI UAE Capped ETF Sector Weights
Chart Courtesy: iShares