Van Eck Dives Into The Gulf With New ETF

Van Eck is trekking out into frontier markets with the launch of their exchange traded fund (ETF).

Market Vector Gulf States [[mes]] gives easy access to the gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Katar and United Arab Emirates.

The fund’s expense ratio is 0.50%, with total net expenses at 0.98%. The ETF tracks the Dow Jones GCC Titans 40 Index. The Gulf region has been on a run, thanks to high energy prices. The spending on infrastructure and urbanization is growing and sustainability will only be known in the future.

The top country weightings are: Kuwait, 52.3%; United Arab Emirates, 25.9% and Qatar, 14.9%. Banks are the most well-represented sector, with 38.5% of the holding. Financial services follow at 21.6%; real estate is 10.5%.

This fund comes on the heels of the WisdomTree Middle East Dividend Fund [[gulf]], which shares a similar makeup. The top countries are Kuwait, 27.2%; United Arab Emirates, 16.9%; Qatar, 16.5%. Financials is the top sector, with 51.6%, while telecommunications comes next with 24.7% of the holdings.

The Middle East has been a hot place lately, for both temperature and ETF attention:

• iShares MSCI Israel Capped Investable Market Index [[eis]]
• iShares MSCI Turkey Investable Market Index Fund [[tur]]
• SPDR S&P Emerging Middle East & Africa [[gaf]]
• Claymore/BNY Mellon Frontier Markets ETF [[frn]]
  

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