IQDY’s dividend growth and yield advantages come by of about a third of the ETF’s combined weight going to the U.K., Australia and Switzerland. Australian companies paid $40.3 billion in dividends last year, nearly double the amount paid in 2012 while the U.K. was the second-largest developed markets dividend payer after the U.S. [Consider Aussie Dividends]
Remember that developed market dividend payers often sport higher yields than their U.S. counterparts in the same sectors, an important consideration if and when U.S. interest rates rise.
Speaking of rising rates, IQDY has gained 6.2% in the past 90 days despite rampant talk the Bank of England will soon boost rates and speculation the Reserve Bank of Australia could be forced to do the same. [Australia ETFs in Focus on Rate Hike Talk]
IQDY’s Japan and Eurozone exposure balances the fund nicely between countries and regions where rates will remain low for the foreseeable future and those that could soon seen higher rates.
FlexShares International Quality Dividend Dynamic Index Fund
