Before considering which exact ETFs to buy, look at the issue from different POVs.
A lot of talking heads say "the Cdn economy is only (say)5% of the world economy therefore you should buy foreign companies to get exposure to those economies". But the economic results of a country are not always reflected in the price of public stocks for many reasons.
And it is quite possible that US based companies will continue their expansion in foreign economies instead of at home. I believe the S&P's revenues now come about 40% from elsewhere. So buying US stocks gives you the assurance of better financial infrastructure as well as the economic exposure.
And why do you want that exposure in the first place? If their returns are no better than Cdn returns, and we all know now that the returns will be highly correlated, then the only possible reason is the promise of HIGHER returns.
But are foreign returns higher? The Cdn market has been one of the most successful through history. Look at the historical market values in these graphs. They use a log scale so it is the slope of each line that indicates its success.
http://members.shaw.ca/retailinvestor/OtherCountryStock.html
Even a diversification between US and EAFE stocks has only yielded marginal benefits. See Sheet 6 of this spreadsheet.
That said, I currently own emerging market common equity.
A lot of talking heads say "the Cdn economy is only (say)5% of the world economy therefore you should buy foreign companies to get exposure to those economies". But the economic results of a country are not always reflected in the price of public stocks for many reasons.
And it is quite possible that US based companies will continue their expansion in foreign economies instead of at home. I believe the S&P's revenues now come about 40% from elsewhere. So buying US stocks gives you the assurance of better financial infrastructure as well as the economic exposure.
And why do you want that exposure in the first place? If their returns are no better than Cdn returns, and we all know now that the returns will be highly correlated, then the only possible reason is the promise of HIGHER returns.
But are foreign returns higher? The Cdn market has been one of the most successful through history. Look at the historical market values in these graphs. They use a log scale so it is the slope of each line that indicates its success.
http://members.shaw.ca/retailinvestor/OtherCountryStock.html
Even a diversification between US and EAFE stocks has only yielded marginal benefits. See Sheet 6 of this spreadsheet.
That said, I currently own emerging market common equity.
