iShares MSCI Italy ETF

The iShares MSCI Italy ETF (EWI) is a BlackRock index fund that tracks the MSCI Italy 25/50 Index, which holds large and mid-sized Italian companies. It is far more concentrated than broad European funds: as of August 31, 2026, its top 10 holdings made up 70.8% of assets, led by UniCredit, Intesa Sanpaolo and Enel. Its 0.50% expense ratio is above the 0.38% average of the similar funds we compared.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, EWI returned +11.1%, 1st of 5 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +15.1% and its 10-year +13.1%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 40.6% and regained its old high 9.7 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2008 (-46.8%); its best was 2025 (+55.7%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 70.4% (May 7, 2007 to Mar 9, 2009), recovered by Feb 12, 2025.

As of Aug 31, 2026, the fund held 26 securities; the ten largest made up 70.82% of assets.

• Over the three months to Aug 31, 2026, investors added a net $428.3M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +1.53%, +3.81%, +1.35%.

EWI tracks the MSCI Italy 25/50 Index, built by MSCI. The index covers large and mid-sized Italian companies. It is weighted by free float-adjusted market value, so bigger companies count for more, based only on shares available to public investors. A cap stops any single corporate group from going above 25% of the index. All groups weighing more than 5% together are held to 50%. The index is rebalanced every quarter, staying as close as the caps allow to the uncapped MSCI Italy Index.

BlackRock Fund Advisors uses representative sampling. That means the fund holds a set of stocks that, taken together, behaves like the index, though it may not own every one. At least 80% of assets go into index stocks or close equivalents. Up to 20% can go into futures, options, swaps and cash. As of August 31, 2026, the fund held 26 stocks and a tiny FTSE MIB index futures position. It may lend out securities worth up to one-third of its assets. Portfolio turnover was 13%.

The fund doesn't try to beat its index or make defensive moves when markets fall. About 90% of assets were in Italian companies. Another 7.95% were in companies based in the Netherlands, such as Ferrari. The fund's value is counted in US dollars, so changes in the euro's value against the dollar affect returns.

• EWI charges 0.5% a year, versus an average of 0.38% for the similar funds below (3rd of 5, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.49% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $51 in the first year and $628 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

A single-country fund weighted heavily toward Italian banks, with a past drop of about 70%, fits as a small add-on rather than a foundation.

EWI could add Italian banks, utilities and energy companies that a US-focused portfolio mostly lacks. It also pays income: its trailing 12-month yield was 3.35% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year. Based on price data, it lost 46.8% in 2008. It fell about 70% from its late-2007 peak and did not regain that level until February 2025, some 191 months later. It also dropped 40.6% in the 2020 COVID crash and 34.9% in the 2022 bear market, though both recoveries took under 10 months. Someone who has to sell shares or draw income during a slump like that could lock in deep losses. In the SEC's standard example, costs on $10,000 are $51 in year one and $628 over 10 years. Past results don't predict future ones, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by closest holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports (no similar fund shares 20% or more of its holdings).