FLCA vs FLKR

FLCAAFranklin FTSE Canada ETF

FLKRBFranklin FTSE South Korea ETF

In short

FLCA Canada in one ticker, at index-fund pricing. FLCA tracks the FTSE Canada Capped Index, about 50 large- and mid-cap Canadian names, for 0.09% a year.

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

FLCA The fund seeks to track the FTSE Canada Capped Index, which measures the performance of Canadian large- and mid-capitalization stocks.

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

• FLCA 0.09% a year against a 0.45% median for index-tracking ETFs. On plain-vanilla country exposure, the fee gap is most of the story.
• The mandate is refreshingly plain: the FTSE Canada Capped Index, Canadian large and mid caps, no factor tilts, no derivatives overlay.
• Live since 2017 and one of the stronger implementations in a crowded field of index trackers.

• 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

• FLCA About 50 stocks in one country. That is a targeted slice of the world, not a diversified core.
• Mid-sized and moderately traded, so limit orders are the sane way in and out.
• Distributions arrive once or twice a year rather than quarterly, which matters if you spend the income.

• 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 FLCA profile⁠

Full FLKR profile⁠