SPDR Portfolio Developed World ex-US ETF

SPDR Portfolio Developed World ex-US ETF (SPDW) is a State Street index fund that tracks the S&P Developed Ex-U.S. BMI Index, holding thousands of large and smaller companies in developed markets outside the US, led by Japan. Its 0.03% expense ratio (yearly fee) ties Vanguard's VEA for lowest among similar funds, and because S&P counts South Korea as developed, Samsung and SK hynix topped its holdings as of June 30, 2026.

• Over the year to Nov 2, 2026, SPDW returned +17.3%, 3rd of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +9.0% and its 10-year +9.9%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 33.7% and regained its old high 7.6 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2008 (-40.8%); its best was 2025 (+34.7%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 60% (Oct 31, 2007 to Mar 9, 2009), recovered by May 27, 2014.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 2,447 securities; the ten largest made up 13.97% of assets.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $239.2M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +9.25%, +5.22%, -0.82%.

SPDW tracks the S&P Developed Ex-U.S. BMI Index, a broad-market index from S&P Dow Jones Indices. It covers publicly listed companies in developed countries outside the US, and S&P reviews which countries qualify each year. A company joins when its float-adjusted market value reaches $100 million and it trades enough, and can remain while above $75 million. "Float-adjusted" means only shares available to the public count. Stocks are weighted by that value, so the largest companies matter most.

State Street's adviser, SSGA Funds Management, uses sampling: rather than owning every index stock, it may hold a subset chosen to behave like the whole. The fund had 2,447 holdings on June 30, 2026; the index had 5,208 securities on November 30, 2025. At least 80% of assets must be in index stocks or depositary receipts (certificates that let foreign shares trade on other exchanges). Futures contracts, agreements to trade an index at a set price on a future date, help it stay invested while managing cash.

The index is rebuilt each September and adjusted quarterly for share changes and new listings. Portfolio turnover, the share of the portfolio replaced in a year, was just 3%. Returns also depend on currencies: when the yen, pound or euro weakens against the dollar, the fund's value can fall even if its stocks don't.

• SPDW charges 0.03% a year, versus an average of 0.11% for the similar funds below (1st of 9, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $3 in the first year and $39 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

A 0.03% expense ratio and 2,447 holdings across developed markets outside the US, as of June 30, 2026, make it a broad, low-cost building block for the international part of a stock mix.

SPDW can add thousands of companies outside the US to a portfolio for 0.03% a year, or $39 over 10 years on $10,000 in the SEC's standard example. Its trailing 12-month yield (the past year's payouts divided by the share price) was 3.04% as of October 27, 2026. Payments come only twice a year, so the income arrives in lumps.

It is still a stock fund. It fell 60% from October 2007 to March 2009, lost 40.8% in its worst calendar year, 2008, and took until May 2014, more than five years after the bottom, to regain its previous high. It dropped 33.7% in the 2020 COVID crash but recovered by November, and fell 29% in 2022, recovering by March 2024. Drawing on these shares for spending in years like those would lock in losses. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

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