State Street Offers Diversified Global and International ETFs

State Street Investment Management offers two primary exchange-traded funds for international diversification: the SPDR Portfolio MSCI Global Stock Market ETF (SPGM) and the SPDR Portfolio Developed World ex-US ETF (SPDW). The two funds provide fundamentally different exposure strategies and cost structures for investors.

SPGM provides all-in-one global exposure, with 61% of its holdings in U.S. stocks including Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft. This fund carries an expense ratio of 0.09% and has delivered 10-year total returns of 220%. In contrast, SPDW excludes U.S. companies entirely, focusing 99% of its exposure on international developed markets, primarily in Europe and Japan. SPDW features a lower expense ratio of 0.03% and a higher dividend yield of 3.10%, compared to SPGM's 1.80% yield and 158% 10-year total returns.

The Vanguard Group competes with the SPDW offering through its Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF (VEA). The VEA fund provides similar U.S.-excluded exposure with a matching expense ratio of 0.03% and a dividend yield of 2.54%.