ETFs to cover Latin America and Europe

In this post lets review two ETFs to cover the largest companies in Latin America and Europe.

A simple and efficient way to invest in foreign companies is via ETFs. In the current market conditions, they offer more advantages than just buying individual stocks. There are hundreds of ETFs on the market in all flavors and color.

If an investor is looking to gain exposure to the top companies of Europe and Latin America, then the following 2 ETFs may be the answer:

1.iShares S&P; Latin American 40 Index Fund (ILF)
This ETF contains 40 of the most liquid company stocks from Mexico and South American markets.

Total Assets = $3.3B

Brazilian stocks form the major part of the portfolio at 67% followed by Mexico.

2. DJ Euro STOXX 50 ETF (FEZ)

This fund invests in the 50 largest companies of Western Europe excluding UK.

Total Assets = $420 M

France and German stocks account for about 63% of portfolio. For more info on this ETF goto: A Look at DJ EURO STOXX 50 ETF: FEZ

Three Foreign ADRs in the Green Year to Date

Mexico Man

As the markets continue to whipsaw investors left and right,its time to look for players who are still in the green year to date. For starters, here are three such winners:

1.Company Name: Endesa-Empresa Nacional de Electricidad
Ticker: EOC
Country: Chile
Year-To-Date change: 13.92%

2.Company Name: Telefonos de Mexico
Ticker: TMX
Country: Mexico
Year-To-Date change: 13.65%

3.Company Name: Coca-Cola Femsa
Ticker: KOF
Country: Mexico
Year-To-Date change: 2.76%

You may also like these articles:

Top Banks of the World available as ADRs

Top Canadian Dividend Stocks available as ADRs

Top 10 European Utilities available as ADRs

Hi-Yield Portfolio(HYP)- Asian Pacific Banks

Hi-Yield Portfolio (HYP) – European Banks

Top German Chemical ADRs

Fuel Your Portfolio with Foreign Oil Stocks

petrobras rigOil price closed today below $94 a barrel after reaching a record high of $147 in July this year. The fall in the price of crude oil has been attributed to lower demand worldwide especially in emerging markets like India,China,etc.

When oil price reached the peak in July, oil stocks did not go up very high in sync.Similarly oil stocks have not fallen as much as the price of oil has in the past few months.This is because many folks consider them to be cyclical stocks. Whether oil prices go up or down in the future, I believe that oil is an important commodity needed by the majority of the world. Hence oil stocks can be a good addition to a diversified portfolio.

Outside of US,there are many oil firms such as EcoPetrol(Colombia), Petronas(Malaysia) or Petrobras(Brazil) that are worth looking into. The following is a list of some of the foreign oil stocks trading as ADRs in the US:

1.Company Name: BP Plc (BP)
Country: UK
Dividend Yield: 6.84%
Year-To-Date change: -35.71%

2.Company Name: Total S.A (TOT)
Country: France
Dividend Yield: 5.43%
Year-To-Date change: -31.63%

3.Company Name: PetroChina (PTR)
Country: China
Dividend Yield: 3.99%
Year-To-Date change: -43.79 %

4.Company Name: Sasol (SSL)
Country: South Africa
Dividend Yield: 5.95%
Year-To-Date change: -26.88 %

5.Company Name: Petrobras (PBR)
Country: Brazil
Dividend Yield: 0.08%
Year-To-Date change: -33.91 %

6.Company Name: Petrobras Energia (PZE)
Country: Argentina
Dividend Yield: 3.93%
Year-To-Date change: -30.25 %

7.Company Name: Statoilhydro ASA (STO)
Country: Norway
Dividend Yield: 3.74%
Year-To-Date change: -32.83 %

8.Company Name: Repsol YPF (REP)
Country: Spain
Dividend Yield: 5.52%
Year-To-Date change: -24.05 %

9.Company Name: Eni Spa (E)
Country: Italy
Dividend Yield: 7.39%
Year-To-Date change: -31.92 %

10.Company Name: EcoPetrol (EC)
Country: Colombia
Dividend Yield: N/A
Year-To-Date change: N/A

11.Company Name: Royal Dutch Shell – A Shares (RDS.A)
Country: UK
Dividend Yield: 5.04%
Year-To-Date change: -34.38 %

12.Company Name: Royal Dutch Shell – B Shares (RDS.B)
Country: UK
Dividend Yield: 5.92%
Year-To-Date change: -34.93 %

13.Company Name: Gazprom (OGZPY)
Country: Russia
Dividend Yield: N/A
Year-To-Date change: -50.05 %

14.Company Name: Lukoil (LUKOY)
Country: Russia
Dividend Yield: 0.90%
Year-To-Date change: -35.92%

15.Company Name: MOL Magyar Olaj-ES Gazipari (MGYOY)
Country: Hungary
Dividend Yield: 4.91%
Year-To-Date change: -40.01%

Disclosure: Long PBR

Note: All data used is considered to be accurate as of October 2, 2008. Do your own research before making any investment decision.

European Telecom Stocks

Here are three fixed line telecom stocks from France, Greece and Germany trading in New York Stock Exchange (NYSE):

1.France Telecom – FTE
Stock Price Year-To-Date: -18.64%

2. Hellenic Telecom- OTE
Stock Price Year-To-Date: -52.79%

3.Deutsche Telekom – DT
Stock Price Year-To-Date: -26.95%

Latin American Bank Stocks Performance

Short post today.

The following table shows the performance of Latin American bank stocks so far this year:

[TABLE=105]

The two Chilean banks Banco Santander and Banco de Chile and the Colombian bank BanColombia are down less than 20% year-to-date. The Brazilian bank Itau is performing well than Banco Bradesco and Unibanco.All the Argentine stocks are down considerably.

Investors interested in Latin American bank stocks may want to keep an eye on these stocks thru the reminder of the year.