Using the MSCI Emerging Markets Index as its benchmark, the fund invests in large- and mid-cap stocks across emerging markets and adjusts country and sector weights, aiming for more stable performance relative to the market.

It suits investors who want diversified exposure to emerging markets but expect the benefit of a professional manager's stock selection rather than simple index tracking.

Launched by JPMorgan in 2021, it is an actively managed ETF.

The fund ranks stocks with its proprietary quantitative model and builds the final portfolio through bottom-up research. By spreading investments across roughly 500 or more holdings, it manages single-company risk while still responding flexibly to market changes.

• A low expense ratio that competes with passive ETFs despite active management
• Emerging market research capabilities backed by JPMorgan's global network

Assets under management (AUM) stand at $1.7B, and the expense ratio is 0.33% per year.

Compared with large passive ETFs such as IEMG and VWO shown in the table, JEMA is distinctive in offering active stock selection at a similar level of cost. It also differs in investment philosophy from other factor-based ETFs such as AVEM.

The fund has shown volatility in line with the restructuring of global supply chains and emerging market economic growth. In particular, it has a high weighting in technology stocks, such as Taiwanese and Korean semiconductor companies, and tends to react sensitively to changes in industry conditions.

As the importance of stock selection within emerging markets draws more attention, inflows into the low-cost active product JEMA have been observed, and it is also being used as an asset allocation tool by institutional investors.

The fund offers an active emerging market strategy at a low cost, but investors should consider the geopolitical risks and currency volatility unique to emerging markets.

IEMG and VWO in the table are standard passive vehicles for gaining low-cost exposure to the entire emerging market. If you want emerging market exposure excluding China, you can consider EMXC, and if you want more active value stock selection, AVEM is worth reviewing as well. Meanwhile, if you need global exposure that also covers developed markets, a product such as VT can be an alternative.

These are the key checkpoints to review before investing in JEMA. Be sure to fully understand the volatility risk that accompanies the high growth potential of emerging markets and consider whether it fits your investment profile.

Emerging market stocks are more volatile than developed market stocks, and they can come under strong downward price pressure from capital outflows, especially during periods of shrinking global liquidity or rising interest rates.

This is a suitable solution for investors who want to invest actively in emerging markets at a low cost. It is well suited as an aggressive allocation to complement a portfolio's returns.