EWO vs FLKR

EWOBiShares MSCI Austria ETF

FLKRBFranklin FTSE South Korea ETF

In short

EWO Austria in a single ticker, and a 1996 original from the first wave of single-country index funds. Fees sit just under the peer median, and nothing else in its peer group tracks the same Austrian index.

FLKR Korea in one passive basket for 0.09% a year, a fraction of the 0.50% typical single-country fee. Roughly 160 Korean names tracking a capped FTSE index, run as plain index plumbing rather than a stock-picking bet.

Stated mandate

EWO The fund seeks to track an index composed of Austrian equities.

FLKR The Fund uses a passive indexing approach to seek returns that closely correspond, before fees and expenses, to the FTSE South Korea Capped Index.

Why people hold it

• EWO Launched in 1996, when single-country index funds were still a novelty, and still running under the iShares banner. Longevity in a corner of the market where niche funds often close early.
• 0.49% a year, a hair under the 0.50% median for developed single-country funds. Not a huge edge, but you keep it every year you hold.
• Tracks the MSCI Austria IMI 25/50 Index, which reaches past the giants into mid and small caps and applies issuer caps so no single stock can swallow the portfolio.ishares.com
• Sits in the upper half of the developed single-country ETFs we cover, and the underlying data on its mandate and index is unambiguous rather than inferred.

• FLKR Charges 0.09% a year against a 0.50% median for single-country developed-market ETFs, tying FLAU as the cheapest fee among this cohort's leaders and undercutting EWC and EWU by a wide margin.
• Straight indexing: it seeks returns that closely correspond, before fees, to the FTSE South Korea Capped Index. No manager views, no discretionary tilts.
• The capped index spreads roughly 160 stocks and limits how far any single giant can dominate the basket, which matters in a market this top-heavy.
• A billion-dollar-plus fund that trades actively, and it has been running since 2017, so it is well past the launch-window stage.

Worth knowing

• EWO Thinly traded with a modest asset base, so bid-ask spreads can widen and sizeable orders can push the price around. Trading mechanics matter more here than in a mega-fund.
• One small European market means a short holdings list where a handful of names carry real weight. That concentration cuts both ways.
• Cash comes once or twice a year rather than quarterly or monthly, so income lands in lumps.

• FLKR One country, one currency. Korean shares price in won, so the exchange rate is baked into what a US investor sees, separate from how the companies do.
• Roughly 160 stocks in a single export-driven market is a narrow slice next to a global fund. Capping softens concentration, it does not erase it.
• Distributions land annually or semiannually, not monthly, so it is built as an equity holding rather than an income schedule.

Full EWO profile⁠

Full FLKR profile⁠