Get Started with iShares ETFs
1. iShares: international exposure in one trade
iShares are open-ended Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that are traded like any other listed share on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). A single trade of an iShares ETF provides a diversified portfolio of international securities/companies. There are currently 19 iShares ETFs listed on the ASX.
2. iShares: the combined advantages of index funds and shares
iShares provide investors with a variety of benefits:
- iShares provide diversification – own an entire market, country or region with one trade
- iShares are listed on the ASX– buy and sell iShares just like shares whenever the market is open; standard settlement is in A$ on the third business day after the trade date
- iShares offer trading flexibility – place market, limit or stop orders, short sell or include iShares in a margin lending portfolio
- iShares are liquid – in addition to ASX trading volume, the unique issuance/cancellation mechanism provides a second layer of liquidity
- iShares are transparent – fund holdings are published daily*
- iShares are cost effective – gain international market exposure at a lower cost than most actively managed funds, with fees from as low as 0.09%
* Except for MSCI funds holdings which are published monthly
3. iShares: the exposure you need, when you need it
iShares trade like other listed shares on ASX, and can be bought or sold through any broker and are available on most trading platforms. They can be traded anytime during normal trading hours using all the trading strategies associated with shares such as market orders, limit orders, stop orders, short sales and margin lending.
iShares offer diversified international exposure as wide ranging as the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (representing 20+ countries and 300+ companies) or the iShares S&P Global 100 (representing 100 global large-cap shares throughout the world), or as focused as iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 (representing approximately 25 companies concentrating only on China). Each iShares fund provides easy access to a variety of exposure criteria including market capitalisation, single country, regional and international.
