Products April 14, 2011

Van Eck Launches Russia ETF

Van Eck Global has launched what it says is the first U.S.-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) designed to give investors pure-play exposure to the developing Russian economy.
Reported by

Market Vectors Russia Small-Cap ETF (NYSE Arca: RSXJ) seeks to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Market Vectors Russia Small-Cap Index (MVRSXJTR). Market Vectors indexes’ constituent requirements include liquidity based on minimum levels of market capitalization and daily trading volume; local market exposure, with at least 50% of revenues generated from a country, even if the company is listed, domiciled, or headquartered elsewhere; diversification based on a tiered weighting scheme; and transparency, with constituents and weights updated and published daily.   

As of April 13, 2011, the Market Vectors Russia Small-Cap Index comprised 35 companies with an average market capitalization of $2.3 billion. The largest sector weightings were Utilities (18%), Materials (18%), and Energy (17%).  

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According to Van Eck, Russia is currently among the least expensive of the major emerging markets from a valuation perspective. Russia’s stock market price/earnings ratio is just 6.6 times, which represents a significant discount versus emerging markets stocks in general.   

RSXJ carries a net expense ratio of 0.67% and a gross expense ratio of 0.75%  

More information is at http://www.vaneck.com/RSXJ.

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