International fund/etf

[Moneygrubber]

Any good suggestions on a core international holding? Need To up my allocation, have fidelity discovery k fund in my 401k, but need another pick.


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[pb4uski]

Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund is my first choice in that sector.

 

[eta2020]

vanguard total international stock index fund is my first choice in that sector.

+1

vxus

 

[Animorph]

FSGDX is Fidelity's Spartan Advantage all world ex-U.S. fund.

Same net expense ratio as vxus.

 

[Greg V]

Just to give another choice; IEFA is the iShares International Developed Markets ETF. Similar ER to VXUS and a no trading cost ETFs if Fidelity is your brokerage of choice.

 

[panacea]

Vanguard Total International is my first choice for an index fund. Harbor International (HIINX) is a good option if you are looking for an active fund.

 

[wanaberetiree]

any good suggestions on a core international holding? Need to up my allocation, have fidelity discovery k fund in my 401k, but need another pick.


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vxus - vanguard total intl stock index fund etf
schf - scwhab intl eq etf

 

[NYEXPAT]

I have been out of International for several years, but did just buy on Friday both the Peru (EPU) and Brazil ETF (EWZ) but as I live here, I might see things a bit differently.

 

[Sunset]

+1

vxus

+1 too.

 

[Totoro]

Another +1

Not explicitly mentioned: VXUS is complementary to VTI.

They go nicely together.

 

[Cobra9777]

I owned VXUS exclusively in the past. It's a great choice as a core international holding. But a couple years ago, I wanted more exposure to emerging markets. VXUS is less than 15% emerging. So I now own a mix of VEA (developed) and VWO (emerging), that I can control going forward. Additionally, the weighted average ER is lower than VXUS.

 

[eta2020]

I owned VXUS exclusively in the past. It's a great choice as a core international holding. But a couple years ago, I wanted more exposure to emerging markets. VXUS is less than 15% emerging. So I now own a mix of VEA (developed) and VWO (emerging), that I can control going forward. Additionally, the weighted average ER is lower than VXUS.

VXUS = 6000 Stocks
VEA + VWO = 2500 Stocks

It is not as broad of the index as VXUS alone which contains more Mid Cap Small Cap stocks. VEA/VWO entirely misses Canada.

So while those are good funds I find VXUS more of the "Core" holding.

BTW VXUS is almost 18% in Emerging Markets. Maybe it was less then 15% few years ago.....

 

[Cobra9777]

VXUS = 6000 Stocks
VEA + VWO = 2500 Stocks

It is not as broad of the index as VXUS alone which contains more Mid Cap Small Cap stocks. VEA/VWO entirely misses Canada.

So while those are good funds I find VXUS more of the "Core" holding.

BTW VXUS is almost 18% in Emerging Markets. Maybe it was less then 15% few years ago.....

According to M*, VXUS was 13.86% emerging as of 9/30/15.

VXUS is 80% large cap, while my mix of VEA+VWO is 86%. I don't consider that difference significant enough to counter my main goal of holding more emerging than what VXUS offers. Lower ER is a bonus.

I agree about the number of holdings and that is a downside. As I stated previously, VXUS is a fine "core" international holding for the OP to consider. I still own a small amount. Just be aware it is 85%+ developed, mainly UK, Europe, and Japan. I happen to believe growth will be stronger elsewhere in the world over the course of my 30-40 year retirement. Just my 2 cents.

 

[eta2020]

VXUS is 21% Mid Cap/Small Cap.
VEA+VWO would be 14% if you put 100% into VWO. It Will really be more like 12-13%.

So it is 8-9 percent more in that space.

I have those number from Morningstar reports in my brokerage account.

My statement that 17.8% of VXUS is in Emerging Markets is based on Vanguard Web Site.

If you really want cheapest ER replace VEA and VWO with SCHF and SCHE from Schwab. They are almost same indexes with a bit lower fees. SCHF/SCHE combination will also lack in Mid Cap Small Cap area but they include Canada.

You certainly can add a bit of VSS and your VWO/VEA/VSS becomes almost identical to VXUS.....So not like you are missing something and perhaps this would result in lower fees then VXUS alone.

 

[Moneygrubber]

Lots of great ideas , thanks all! What is your foreign allocation? I am only at 8% trying to get to 15%


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[hnzw_rui]

Lots of great ideas , thanks all! What is your foreign allocation? I am only at 8% trying to get to 15%

40% of stock. At least I think that's what I remember Vanguard LifeStrategy and Target Retirement have for their international allocation.