

iShares J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF
$42.44+0.03 (+0.06%)
- 0.30%
- $778M
- +6.1%
- 2.39%
- 0.2M sh
- $42.26
- low $40.35high $43.46
The ETF.net LEMB Grade
Score 76 out of 100
- 2 of 7
Score 76 of 100 falls in the A band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.
Cost
The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.A80 out of 100Rank 1 of 7Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.A96 out of 100Rank 2 of 7Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.B57 out of 100Rank 3 of 7Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.B60 out of 100Rank 3 of 7Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.A71 out of 100Rank 2 of 7Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A76 out of 100Rank 1 of 7
Our read on LEMB
AMost emerging-markets funds buy stocks. LEMB buys government bonds priced in pesos, rand and rupiah, so the ride comes from local interest rates and the currency, not the dollar. iShares has run this unhedged EM debt sleeve since 2011.
The fund seeks to track an index of sovereign bonds issued by emerging-market countries in their local currencies.
Why people hold it
- Sovereign debt in local currency, not dollars: you hold the borrowing rates and the currencies of emerging economies directly.ishares.com
- 0.30% expense ratio, below the median for the emerging-markets funds we track.
- The J.P. Morgan index it follows caps any one country at 15% and floors smaller ones at 4%, spreading roughly 400 bonds across many issuers instead of two or three giants.ishares.com
- Trading since 2011, one of the longest-running US listings in this corner of the bond market, and it scores in the upper half of its peer group overall.
Worth knowing
- No currency hedge. Local yields can be healthy and still be swamped by a strong dollar, so day-to-day moves often look more like FX than bonds.ishares.com
- Government issuers only. This is a rates-and-currency vehicle, not a play on emerging-market companies or credit spreads.
- Income arrives on an annual or semiannual schedule, and the fund is moderately traded rather than a headline-volume name.
LEMB Holdings
- Bonds
- 484
- 13%
- PARAGUAY REPUBLIC OF (GOVERNMENT) RegS 8.50% 04/04/2038
Geography
- China14.71%
- India8.87%
- Mexico5.36%
- Malaysia4.91%
- Indonesia4.74%
- Brazil4.57%
- Poland4.45%
- Thailand4.26%
- 48.13%
Developed 0% · Emerging 100%
LEMB Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
Returns run to the Oct 12, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
| Period | LEMB |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +2.0% |
| 1 month | −1.4% |
| 3 months | −0.4% |
| 1 year | +6.1% |
| 3 years | +8.6% |
| 5 years | +1.9% |
| 10 years | +1.0% |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | LEMB |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +2.0% | |
| 2025 | +18.0% | |
| 2024 | −1.7% | |
| 2023 | +7.2% | |
| 2022 | −10.7% | |
| 2021 | −9.9% | |
| 2020 | +3.1% |
LEMB in the news
LEMB Dividends
- 2.39%
- $1.02
- $1.02 per share
- Irregular
Distribution history
LEMB Risk
- 7.2%
How it’s calculated: standard deviation
The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.
- 0.48
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio
Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.
Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.
- −21.4%
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown
The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.
Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.
- 1.00
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
LEMB Cost
- The middle half of Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency) funds
- Median 0.55%
No Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency) fund charges less.
Other funds in Emerging Markets Bonds (Local Currency)
- AEMLCVanEck J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.30%1 year return +4.8%
- BEMBXVanEck Emerging Markets Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.65%1 year return +6.2%
- CELDWisdomTree Emerging Markets Local Debt FundExpense ratio 0.55%1 year return +4.5%
- CFEMBFirst Trust Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.85%1 year return +5.7%
- DCBONVanEck China Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.50%1 year return +9.6%




