Invesco has become the second issuer in Europe to launch a Kuwait ETF ahead of the country’s inclusion in the MSCI Emerging Markets index next year,
ETF Stream
can reveal.
The Invesco MSCI Kuwait UCITS ETF (MKUW) is listed on the London Stock Exchange with an ongoing charges figure (OCF) of 0.50% and a swap fee of 0.40%.
Tracking the MSCI Kuwait 25/30 index, MKUW offers investors exposure to approximately 85% of Kuwait’s market cap.
This includes companies involved in the country’s various economic and cultural development projects.
More than half of Kuwait’s GDP comes from petroleum export revenues, however, the government has embarked on a seven-pillar programme, the New Kuwait Vision 2035, which is aiming to diversify the economy.
The programme includes projects such as sustainable housing, developing infrastructure and improving health care services and education.
Earlier this year, MSCI announced the country’s inclusion in its flagship Emerging Market index for 2020 with an approximate weighting of 0.5%.
Chris Mellor, head of EMEA ETF equity product management at Invesco, commented: “With an index comprising financials, communication services, industrials, real estate and materials sectors, our MKUW offers investors the opportunity to gain exposure to those companies at the heart of the long-term transformation taking place in Kuwait.
“In the shorter term, the inclusion into the MSCI Emerging Markets index could drive significant inflows from asset managers needing to maintain benchmark weights.”
Invesco follows the Kuwait & Middle East Financial Investment Company (KMEFIC), which launched Europe's first Kuwait ETF through white-label platform HANetf in April.
