iShares Global Industrials ETF

iShares Global Industrials ETF (EXI) is a BlackRock index fund that tracks the S&P Global 1200 Industrials (Sector) Capped Index, a basket of large industrial companies such as Caterpillar, General Electric and Siemens. Unlike many industrials funds, it reaches beyond the US: about 53% of assets were in US companies as of June 30, 2026, and about 13% in Japan. That reach costs more: 0.38% a year, against 0.08%–0.09% for XLI, VIS and FIDU.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, EXI returned +8.2%, 3rd of 7 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +10.8% and its 10-year +11.9%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 38.7% and regained its old high 7.5 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2008 (-41.5%); its best was 2013 (+32.4%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 62.6% (Oct 11, 2007 to Mar 9, 2009), recovered by May 6, 2013.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 230 securities; the ten largest made up 24.71% of assets.

By sector

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $125.4M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +8.15%, -0.39%, +3.48%.

EXI follows an index built by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It starts with the S&P Global 1200, a measure of large companies from major stock markets, and keeps only the ones it counts as industrials. As of March 31, 2026, those companies came from the US, Japan, much of Europe, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and a few other markets. A capping rule stops the biggest names from taking over: companies that each make up more than 5% of the index can't add up to more than 25% together. At each quarterly review the index trims harder, to a combined 22.5% for companies above 4.5%. It also rebalances between reviews if the 25% limit is breached.

BlackRock Fund Advisors uses "representative sampling." This means the fund holds a group of stocks chosen to behave like the index, rather than every single member. It held 230 companies as of June 30, 2026. It must keep at least 80% of net assets in index stocks. It can use futures (contracts that track an index) to manage cash, though these were about 0.01% of assets. It can also lend up to one-third of its assets to other investors for a fee. Turnover was low, at 6%.

The fund reports its value in US dollars. So when foreign currencies fall against the dollar, its value can fall too. It never takes defensive steps in falling markets.

• EXI charges 0.38% a year, versus an average of 0.24% for the similar funds below (4th of 7, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $39 in the first year and $480 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It holds a single sector, so it works better as a smaller add-on to a broad core than as the main holding, because its past drops have been deep.

EXI could add global industrial companies, including aerospace, rail, machinery and electrical equipment makers, to a portfolio. But it is one sector, and it has fallen hard. From October 2007 to March 2009 it lost 62.6%, and it didn't recover until May 2013, about 50 months later. In 2008 alone it lost 41.5%. It fell 38.7% in the 2020 COVID crash and recovered in about 7.5 months. In 2022 it fell 27.2% and needed about 9.4 months. Anyone who had to sell shares during those stretches would have locked in big losses.

Income is modest: the trailing yield was 1.13% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year. In the SEC's standard example, the 0.38% expense ratio costs $480 over 10 years on $10,000. Past results don't predict future ones. A plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.