iShare, will you?

Not to be confused with an Apple product, the next big thing for Australian investors to sink their teeth into is a Barclays Global Investors iShare, which is set to begin trading on the ASX within the week.

The iShare is an international exchange traded fund (ETF) and ETF player Barclays will introduce its offering to Australians as a suite of eight iShares. Further iShares are expected to be released in the coming year.

Each of the eight initially listed iShares track an established international market index, enabling investors to gain immediate and precise global, regional and single-country exposure with just one trade. The first eight iShares are cross-listed from the New York Stock Exchange and comprise of $125 billion in total assets under management.

The iShares range in composition from 100 large trans-national companies with minimum capitalisation of $US5 billion to leading companies in 22 emerging countries and 10 industry sectors, among others.

ASX group executive of business development Peter Hiom said exchange-traded funds have been one of the most successful growth products for both retail and institutional investors worldwide in the last decade, and in the last financial year 20,842 ETF trades on ASX were valued at $1.2 billion.

“The listing of iShares will expand the suite of listed managed investments available on the ASX and provide Australian investors with greater opportunity to internationalise their portfolios,” he said.