AVXC vs EMES

AVXCAAvantis Emerging Markets ex-China Equity ETF

EMESCHarbor Emerging Markets Select ETF (EMES)

In short

AVXC The China question, answered by subtraction. Avantis runs its usual emerging-markets playbook (roughly 2,800 stocks of every size, tilted toward the cheap and the profitable) with China left out entirely, for 0.33% a year.

EMES Harbor's active take on emerging markets: roughly 50 stocks instead of a sprawling index, priced at the middle of the active EM pack rather than the premium end. Launched in 2025.

Stated mandate

AVXC The fund invests in a broad set of companies across emerging-market countries, excluding China, and spanning all market capitalizations. It seeks higher expected returns by overweighting securities with lower valuations and higher profitability ratios.

EMES The Fund invests primarily in equity securities, principally common stocks, of companies in emerging markets.

Why people hold it

• AVXC 0.33% a year, about half the typical fee among active EM funds, and the ex-China carve-out costs no more than Avantis charges on its with-China flagship, AVEM.
• Roughly 2,800 holdings spanning all market-cap sizes, so removing China doesn't turn the fund into a concentrated bet on a few large markets.avantisinvestors.com
• Actively run against MSCI Emerging Markets IMI rather than tracking it: the mandate overweights lower-valuation, higher-profitability companies.
• One of the stronger builds in the active emerging-markets group we review, on cost and portfolio construction alike.

• EMES Concentrated by design. Roughly 50 emerging-market stocks means each name actually moves the fund, unlike broad EM indexes where a single pick barely registers.
• At 0.65%, the fee lands right at the middle of actively managed EM funds. Active stock picking without the premium price tag some active EM shops charge.
• Its short life so far shows steadier drawdown and volatility behavior than most active EM rivals, and it grades out in the upper half of that peer group.

Worth knowing

• AVXC Thinly traded next to the giants of the category, so spreads and limit orders matter more on the way in and the way out.
• Launched in 2024, so the live record is short and the risk picture is still forming.
• Leaving China out is a real departure from standard EM exposure, and the value and small-cap tilts add more distance from a plain cap-weighted index.

• EMES Launched in May 2025, so there is no full market cycle to judge. The risk picture rests on about a year of data, which is a thin sample for emerging markets.
• Small asset base and thin trading. Fewer shares changing hands can mean wider gaps between the buy and sell price, especially on larger orders.
• Systematic peers cost about half: AVEM and AVXC at 0.33%, DFEM at 0.39%. You are paying up for a concentrated stock-picking approach over broad quant exposure.

Full AVXC profile⁠

Full EMES profile⁠