ETF Evaluator: iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF () Follow This ETF

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF Overview

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF (EEMA) is a passively managed International Equity Pacific/Asia ex-Japan Stk exchange-traded fund (ETF). iShares launched the ETF in 2012.

The investment seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI EM Asia Custom Capped Index. The fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities of the underlying index and in investments that have economic characteristics that are substantially identical to the component securities of the underlying index. The underlying index is designed to measure equity market performance in the emerging market countries of Asia. The underlying index includes large- and mid-capitalization companies and may change over time.

About iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF (EEMA)

There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 4.40 years: Jennifer Hsui (2012), Peter Sietsema (2025), Matt Waldron (2025) and Steven White (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed ETFs than passive index ETFs.

The ETF has 2 primary benchmarks: MSCI EM NR USD index with a weighting of 100% and MSCI EM Asia Custom Cap NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has 896 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 35.3% of the ETF’s assets. The ETF meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The ETF is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the International Equity ETF group. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has 99.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.8% There is 99.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has 0.3% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $839 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Pacific/Asia ex-Japan Stk category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.

EEMA Performance and Fees

The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Pacific/Asia ex-Japan Stk category. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has an expense ratio of 0.49%, which is 14% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.

High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has a portfolio turnover rate of 17%, which indicates that it holds its assets around / 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 36% for the Pacific/Asia ex-Japan Stk category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF returned -4.8%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Pacific/Asia ex-Japan Stk category had an average return of -2.7%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all ETFs in that category.

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF has a trailing yield of 1.38%, which is below the 2.18% category average. The fund normally distributes its income semi-annually.

It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF Grades

Year to date, the ETF has returned 19.5%, 1.0 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 35.7% over the past year (grade of B), 19.1% over the past three years (grade of C) and 7.4% per year over the past five years (grade of C) and 9.5% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).

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