EWW vs VNAM

EWWAiShares MSCI Mexico ETF

VNAMCGlobal X MSCI Vietnam ETF

In short

EWW Mexico in one ticker, doing that job since 1996. Roughly 40 of the country's biggest listed names, capped so no single company runs the show, for 0.50% a year.

VNAM Vietnam in a single US-listed ticker: about 70 locally listed large and mid caps, with index rules that stop one conglomerate from becoming the whole fund. It also prices under the typical single-country emerging-market ETF.

Stated mandate

EWW The fund seeks to track an index composed of Mexican equities and provides targeted exposure to companies in Mexico.

VNAM The fund seeks to track the performance of the MSCI Vietnam Select 25-50 Index before fees and expenses. It uses an indexing approach and invests primarily in securities represented by that index.

Why people hold it

• EWW 0.50% a year, below the typical single-country emerging-market fund. Cheap is not the pitch here, but you are not paying a premium for the exposure.
• A billion-dollar-plus fund that trades actively, which is why it has long been the default way US investors get Mexico exposure in a brokerage account.
• The 25/50 index rules keep any one issuer from swallowing the portfolio, a real safeguard in a market where a handful of giants dominate the exchange.ishares.com
• Tracks its MSCI Mexico index tightly and ranks among the strongest builds in the single-country emerging-market group.

• VNAM Pure-play access to a market most US brokerage accounts cannot reach directly: roughly 70 Vietnamese large and mid caps in one index fund.globalxetfs.com
• At 0.51% a year, it prices below the median fee in its single-country emerging-market peer group.
• The 25-50 index rules cap the largest group at 25% and hold everything above 5% to 50% combined, a real check in a top-heavy market.msci.com
• Plain vanilla build: a standard 1940 Act index fund, no leverage, no swaps.

Worth knowing

• EWW About 40 stocks, one country, one currency. Peso moves and Mexican politics land straight in the return, with no diversification to soften them.
• FLMX tracks Mexico for 0.19%. If cost is the deciding factor, that gap is the trade-off against EWW's deeper trading and longer track record.
• Distributions come once or twice a year, not monthly. This is an equity exposure vehicle, not a steady income line.

• VNAM Thinly traded with a small asset base, so spreads can run wider than on big-name ETFs and small funds carry more closure risk.
• One country, one market, and the caps still allow half the fund in a few large names, so Vietnam's swings arrive undiluted.msci.com
• Cash comes back once or twice a year rather than quarterly.

Full EWW profile⁠

Full VNAM profile⁠