The recent launch of two new ETFs on the London Stock Exchange expands the iShares Dublin-based emerging market equity ETF range to 19 funds. 

The first new fund, the iShares MSCI GCC Countries ex-Saudi Arabia ETF, covers equity markets in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman.

The ETF captures the performance of a range of sectors within the GCC ex-Saudi Arabia markets, including companies active in the financial, real estate, mobile telecommunications, industrial and materials sectors. Its total expense ratio is 80 basis points a year.

The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap ETF provides exposure to small cap stocks from a range of emerging market countries. The total expense ratio is 74 basis points a year.

Nizam Hamid, head of sales strategy for iShares, Europe, commented: 'We are delighted to offer investors the opportunity to diversify their portfolios geographically with these two new products. It has historically been difficult to access GCC markets, and whilst there are products offering exposure to individual countries and to the region as part of broader benchmarks, the iShares MSCI GCC Countries ex-Saudi Arabia is the first ETF in Europe to focus on the five investible GCC markets within a single fund.

'Investors in the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets SmallCap fund will benefit from access to a geographically-diverse range of small cap stocks from across all sectors within the cost-efficient and transparent structure of an ETF. With this launch, iShares is pleased to be able to provide the most comprehensive suite of small cap and emerging markets ETFs in Europe with both broad-based small cap ETFs and country-based funds giving exposure to this difficult to access asset class.'