Investing Port

This ETF is a low cost option for accessing advanced Asia Pacific economies. VPL consists almost entirely of developed market exposure, with Japan accounting for most of the portfolio and Australia also making up a significant chunk. Given this profile, VPL can potentially be used in a number of different ways; this ETF is certainly useful as a short term trading vehicle for those seeking exposure to advanced Asian economies, and can potentially be used as a core holding in a longer-term portfolio as well. It should be noted, however, that VPL won't give investors exposure to emerging Asian economies (some of the other options in the Asia Pacific Equities ETFdb Category will include both developed and emerging markets).

The portfolio of VPL is concentrated in two equity markets, but overall this ETF does a nice job of spreading exposure across sectors of the economy, and limits individual security concentration by holding nearly 500 different stocks. The concentration in large and mega cap stocks is worth noting, as this feature often diminishes the correlation to local markets. VPL's biggest draw is its rock bottom expense ratio; this Vanguard fund is considerably cheaper than other ETFs offering exposure to the Asia Pacific region. Moreover, VPL is available commission free for some investors (those with Vanguard accounts), which could further increase the value proposition.