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December 30, 2024 |
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Summary Prospectus |
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iShares MSCI BIC ETF | BKF | NYSE Arca
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s prospectus,
which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus (including amendments and supplements) and other information about the Fund, including the Fund’s statement of additional information and shareholder reports, online at https://www.blackrock.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) or by sending an e-mail request to
iSharesETFs@blackrock.com, or from your financial professional. The Fund’s prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated December 30, 2024, as amended and supplemented from time to time, are incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus. Information on the Fund’s net asset value, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads can be found at https://www.iShares.com.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
iSHARES® MSCI BIC ETF
Ticker: BKFStock Exchange: NYSE Arca
Investment Objective
The iShares MSCI BIC ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of Chinese equities that are available to international investors, and Brazilian and Indian equities.
Fees and Expenses
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares, Inc. (the “Company”) and BlackRock Fund Advisors
(“BFA”) (the “Investment Advisory
Agreement”) provides that BFA
will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except: (i) the management fees, (ii) interest expenses, (iii) taxes, (iv) expenses incurred with respect to the acquisition and
disposition of portfolio securities and the execution of portfolio transactions, including brokerage commissions, (v) distribution fees or expenses, and (vi) litigation expenses
and any extraordinary expenses.
You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
| Annual Fund
Operating Expenses (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investments)1 | |||
| Management
Fees |
Distribution and Service (12b-1)
Fees |
Other
Expenses2 |
Total
Annual Fund
Operating
Expenses |
| 0.72% |
None |
0.00% |
0.72% |
1Operating expenses paid by BFA under the Investment Advisory Agreement exclude acquired fund fees and expenses, if any.
2The amount rounded to 0.00%.
Example. This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the
cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those
periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
| 1
Year |
3
Years |
5
Years |
10
Years |
| $74 |
$230 |
$401 |
$894 |
Portfolio Turnover. The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when
Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in the Annual Fund
Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 10% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI BIC Index (the “Underlying Index”), which is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure the combined equity market performance in Brazil, India and China (“BIC”). The Underlying Index primarily consists of stocks traded on B3 (the largest Brazilian exchange), National Stock
Exchange of India, Shanghai Stock Exchange, Shenzhen Stock Exchange and the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
The Underlying Index includes large- and mid-capitalization companies and may change over time. As of
August 31, 2024, the Underlying Index consists of
approximately 849 constituents, and a significant portion of the Underlying Index is represented by securities of
companies in the consumer discretionary and financials industries or sectors. The components of the
Underlying Index are likely to change over time.
BFA uses an indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. The Fund does not try to “beat” the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.
Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce
some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower
costs and better after-tax performance by aiming to keep portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively
managed investment companies.
BFA uses a representative sampling
indexing strategy to manage the Fund. “Representative sampling” is an indexing
strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an
investment profile similar to that of an applicable underlying index. The securities selected are expected
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to have, in the aggregate, investment
characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental
characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of an applicable underlying index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index.
The Fund generally will invest at least 80% of its assets in the component securities of its Underlying Index and in investments that have economic characteristics that are
substantially identical to the component securities of its Underlying Index (i.e., depositary receipts representing securities of the Underlying Index) and may invest up to 20% of its assets in certain futures, options and swap contracts, cash and cash equivalents,
including shares of money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates, as well as in securities not
included in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index.
Cash and cash equivalent investments associated with a derivative position will be treated as part of that
position for the purposes of calculating the percentage of investments included in the Underlying Index.
The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the Underlying Index before fees and expenses of the
Fund.
The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund's total assets (including the value
of any collateral received).
The Underlying Index is sponsored by MSCI Inc. (the “Index Provider” or “MSCI”), which
is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and
publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index.
Industry Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its
investments (i.e.,
hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the
same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the
U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by
U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.
Diversification Policy. The Fund intends to be diversified in
approximately the same proportion as the Underlying Index is diversified. The Fund may become “non-diversified,” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. Shareholder approval will not be
sought if the Fund becomes
“non-diversified” due solely to a change in the relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. The Fund discloses its portfolio holdings and weightings at
www.iShares.com.
Summary of Principal
Risks
As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your
investment in the Fund, and the Fund's performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is
subject to certain risks, including the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the
Fund's net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return and
ability to meet its investment
objective. Certain key risks are prioritized below (with others following in alphabetical order), but the relative
significance of any risk is difficult to predict and may change over time. You should review each risk
factor carefully.
Risk of Investing in
China. Investments in Chinese securities, including certain Hong Kong-listed and U.S.-listed securities, subject the Fund to risks specific to China. China may be
subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability. China is an emerging market
and demonstrates significantly higher volatility from time to time in comparison to developed markets. Over
the last few decades, the Chinese government has undertaken reform of economic and market practices and has
expanded the sphere of private ownership of property in China. However, Chinese markets generally continue
to experience inefficiency, volatility and pricing anomalies resulting from governmental influence, a lack
of publicly available information and/or political and social instability.
Chinese companies are also subject to the risk that Chinese authorities can intervene
in their operations and structure. Internal social unrest or confrontations with neighboring countries,
including military conflicts in response to such events, may also disrupt economic development in China and result in a greater risk of currency fluctuations, currency non-convertibility, interest rate fluctuations and higher rates of
inflation.
China has experienced security concerns, such as
terrorism and strained international relations. Additionally, China is alleged to have participated in
state-sponsored cyberattacks against foreign companies and foreign governments. Actual and threatened
responses to such activity and strained international relations, including purchasing restrictions,
sanctions, tariffs or cyberattacks on the Chinese government or Chinese companies, may impact China’s
economy and Chinese issuers of securities in which the Fund invests. Incidents involving China's or the region's security may cause uncertainty in Chinese markets and may adversely affect the Chinese economy and the Fund's investments. Export growth continues to be a major driver of China's rapid economic growth. Reduction in spending on
Chinese products and services, supply chain diversification, institution of additional tariffs or other
trade barriers (including as a result of heightened trade tensions or a trade war between China and the
U.S. or in response to actual or alleged Chinese cyber activity) or a downturn in any of the economies of
China's key trading partners may have an adverse impact on the Chinese economy. The Underlying Index may
include companies that are subject to economic or trade restrictions (but not investment restrictions)
imposed by the U.S. or other governments due to national security, human rights or other concerns of such
government. So long as these restrictions do not include restrictions on investments, the Fund is generally
expected to invest in such companies, consistent with its objective to track the performance of the
Underlying Index.
Chinese companies, including Chinese companies that
are listed on U.S. exchanges, are not subject to the same degree of regulatory requirements, accounting
standards or auditor oversight as companies in more developed countries. As a result, information about the
Chinese securities in which the Fund invests may be less reliable or complete. Chinese companies with
securities listed on U.S. exchanges may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and
auditor oversight
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requirements, which would significantly
decrease the liquidity and value of the securities. There may be significant obstacles to obtaining
information necessary for investigations into or litigation against Chinese companies, and shareholders may have limited legal remedies. The Fund does not select investments based on investor protection considerations.
Risk of Investing in India. Investments in Indian issuers involve risks that are specific to India, including legal, regulatory, political, currency and economic risks. Political and
legal uncertainty, greater government control over the economy, currency fluctuations or blockage, and the
risk of nationalization or expropriation of assets may result in higher potential for losses. The
securities markets in India are relatively underdeveloped and may subject the Fund to higher transaction costs or greater uncertainty than investments in more developed securities markets.
Risk of Investing in Brazil. Investing in Brazilian issuers subjects the Fund to legal, regulatory, political, currency, security, and economic risks that are specific to Brazil.
Agricultural and mining exports are important to the Brazilian economy, which thus is susceptible to
fluctuations in the commodity markets. The Brazilian economy has experienced high inflation and high
government debt levels, which could constrain economic growth. Brazil may face heightened risks of
political instability, which could exacerbate structural economic risks.
Equity Securities Risk. Equity securities are subject to changes in value, and their values may be more volatile than those of other asset classes. The value of a security may decline for a number of reasons that may directly relate to the issuer as
well as due to general industry or market conditions. Common stock is subordinated to preferred securities
and debt in a company’s capital structure. Common stock has the lowest priority, and the greatest
risk, with respect to dividends and any liquidation payments in the event of an issuer’s bankruptcy.
Market Risk. The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. Local, regional or global
events such as war, acts of terrorism, pandemics or other public health issues, recessions, the prospect or
occurrence of a sovereign default or other financial crisis, or other events could have a significant
impact on the Fund and its investments and could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s NAV.
Index-Related Risk. The Index Provider may rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of components of the Underlying Index, including information that may be
based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor BFA can offer assurances that the Index
Provider’s methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of included
components or will result in the Fund meeting its investment objective. Errors in index data, index
computations or the construction of the Underlying Index in accordance with its methodology may occur, and
the Index Provider may not identify or correct them promptly or at all, which may have an adverse impact on
the Fund and its shareholders. Unusual market conditions or other unforeseen circumstances (such as natural
disasters, political unrest or war) may impact the Index Provider or a third-party data provider and could
cause the Index Provider
to postpone a scheduled rebalance. This could cause the Underlying Index to vary from its normal or expected
composition.
Asset Class Risk. The securities and other assets in the Underlying Index or in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to financial markets generally, a particular financial market, another index, or other asset
classes.
Authorized Participant
Concentration Risk. An
“Authorized Participant” is a member or participant of a clearing agency registered with the SEC, which has a written agreement with the Fund or one of its service providers that allows the
Authorized Participant to place orders for the purchase and redemption of creation units (“Creation Units”). Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. There are a limited number of institutions that may act as Authorized Participants for the Fund, including on
an agency basis on behalf of other market participants. No Authorized Participant is obligated to engage in
creation or redemption transactions. To the extent that Authorized Participants exit the business or do not
place creation or redemption orders for the Fund and no other Authorized Participant places orders, Fund
shares are more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts or
delisting.
Commodity Risk. The Fund invests in companies that are susceptible to fluctuations in certain commodity markets and to price changes due to trade relations. Any negative changes in commodity markets that may be due to changes in supply and
demand for commodities, market events, war, regulatory developments, other catastrophic events, or other
factors that the Fund cannot control could have an adverse impact on those companies.
Concentration Risk. The Fund may be susceptible to an increased risk of loss, including losses due to adverse events that affect the Fund’s investments more than the market as a whole, to the extent that the Fund’s investments are
concentrated in the securities or other assets of one or more issuers, countries or other geographic units,
markets, industries, project types, or asset classes.
Consumer Goods and Services Companies Risk. Consumer goods and services companies (“consumer
companies”) face risks related
to changes in consumer preferences and disposable income, commodity prices, government regulation, supply chain disruptions, damage to brand or reputation, economic slowdown and labor shortages, among other things.
Currency Risk. Because the Fund’s NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the
U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on the repatriation of foreign currency. Currency exchange
rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the Fund’s NAV may
change quickly and without warning. In addition, the Fund may incur costs in connection with conversions
between U.S. dollars and foreign currencies.
Custody Risk. Less developed securities markets are more likely to experience problems with the clearing and settlement of trades, as well as the custody of securities and other assets by local banks, agents and depositories. These issues may
have an
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adverse impact on the Fund, including losses
or delays in payments, delivery or recovery of money or other assets.
Cybersecurity Risk. Failures or breaches of the electronic systems of the Fund, its adviser, distributor, Index Provider, other
service providers, counterparties, or issuers of assets in which the Fund invests may cause disruptions
that negatively impact the Fund and its shareholders. While the Fund has established business continuity
plans and risk management systems seeking to address system breaches or failures, there are inherent
limitations in such plans and systems. The Fund cannot control the cybersecurity plans and systems of its
service providers, counterparties, and other third parties whose activities affect the Fund. In addition,
cyber incidents may adversely impact the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, which may cause
such investments to lose value.
Financial Companies Risk. Financial services companies are subject to extensive governmental regulation and intervention, which may adversely affect their profitability, the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge, the amount of
capital and liquid assets they must maintain and their size, among other things. Financial services
companies also may be significantly affected by, among other things, interest rates, economic conditions,
volatility in financial markets, credit rating downgrades, adverse public perception, exposure concentration
and counterparty risk.
Issuer Risk. The performance of the Fund depends on the performance of individual securities or other assets to which the Fund has exposure. The value of securities or other assets may decline, or perform differently from the market as a
whole, due to changes in the financial condition or credit rating of the issuer or
counterparty.
Large-Capitalization Companies Risk. Large-capitalization companies may be less able than smaller-capitalization companies to adapt to changing market conditions and competitive challenges. Large-capitalization companies may be more mature and subject to more limited growth potential
compared with smaller-capitalization companies. The performance of large-capitalization companies could
trail the overall performance of the broader securities markets.
Large Shareholder and Large-Scale Redemption Risk.
Certain shareholders of the Fund, including an Authorized Participant, a third-party investor, the
Fund’s adviser, an affiliate of the Fund’s adviser, a market maker, or another entity, may from time to time own or manage a substantial amount of Fund shares, or may hold their investment in the Fund for a limited period of
time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder or large group of shareholders would not redeem
their investment. Redemptions of a large number of Fund shares could require the Fund to dispose of assets
to meet the redemption requests, which can accelerate the realization of taxable income and/or capital gains and cause the Fund to make taxable distributions to its shareholders earlier than the Fund otherwise would have. In addition,
under certain circumstances, non-redeeming shareholders may be treated as receiving a disproportionately
large taxable distribution during or with respect to such year. In some circumstances, the Fund may hold a
relatively large proportion of its assets in cash in anticipation of large redemptions, diluting its investment returns. These large redemptions may also force the Fund to sell portfolio
securities or other assets when it might not otherwise do so,
which may negatively impact the Fund’s NAV, increase the Fund’s brokerage costs and/or have a
material effect on the market price of Fund shares.
Management Risk. The Fund generally does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets. As the Fund will not fully replicate the Underlying Index and may hold securities or other assets not
included in the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that the investment strategy of BFA may not
produce the intended results. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s investment results will have a
high degree of correlation to those of the Underlying Index or that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares (including through a trading halt), losses from
trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility, and disruptions in the process of creating and
redeeming Fund shares. Any of these factors, among others, may lead to the Fund’s shares trading in
the secondary market at a premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s portfolio
holdings. If you buy Fund shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to NAV or sell Fund shares
at a time when the market price is at a discount to NAV, you may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Fund shares.
National Closed Market Trading Risk. To the extent that securities or other assets held by the Fund trade on foreign exchanges or in foreign markets that may be closed when the
securities exchange on which the Fund’s shares trade is open, there are likely to be deviations
between such asset’s current price and its last quoted price (i.e., the quote from the closed foreign market to the Fund). The impact of a closed foreign market on the Fund is likely to be greater where a large portion of the Fund’s holdings trade on a closed foreign
market or when a foreign market is closed for unscheduled reasons. These deviations could result in
premiums or discounts to the Fund’s NAV that may be greater than those experienced by other funds.
Non-Diversification Risk. To the extent the Fund is non-diversified, the Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities or other instruments representing a small number of
issuers or counterparties and thus may be more susceptible to the risks associated with these particular
issuers or counterparties. As a result, the Fund's performance may depend to a greater extent on the
performance of a small number of issuers or counterparties, which may lead to more volatility in the
Fund’s NAV.
Non-U.S. Securities Risk. Securities issued by non-U.S. issuers (including depositary receipts) are subject to different legal, regulatory, political, economic, and market risks than securities issued by U.S. issuers. These risks include greater
market volatility, less market liquidity, higher transaction costs, expropriation, confiscatory taxation,
adverse changes in foreign investment or currency control regulations, restrictions on the repatriation of
capital, and political instability. Non-U.S. issuers may be subject to different accounting, audit and financial reporting standards than U.S. issuers, and there may be less publicly available information about non-U.S. issuers.
Foreign market trading hours, different clearing and settlement
S-4
procedures, and holiday schedules may limit
the Fund's ability to engage in portfolio transactions. To the extent that investments are made in a
limited number of countries, events in those countries will have a more significant impact on the Fund. The
Fund is specifically exposed to Asian Economic Risk.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third
parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund and BFA seek to reduce
these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every
possible risk and may be inadequate to address significant operational risks.
Reliance on Trading Partners
Risk. The Fund invests in countries or regions whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have
an adverse impact on the Fund's investments. Through its holdings of securities of certain issuers, the
Fund is specifically exposed to Asian Economic Risk, European Economic Risk and U.S. Economic
Risk.
Risk of Investing in Emerging Markets. Investments in emerging market issuers may be subject to a greater risk of loss than investments in issuers located or operating in more developed markets. Emerging markets may be more likely to experience
inflation, social instability, political turmoil or rapid changes in economic conditions than more
developed markets. Companies in many emerging markets are not subject to the same degree of regulatory
requirements, accounting standards or auditor oversight as companies in more developed countries, and as a
result, information about the securities in which the Fund invests may be less reliable or complete.
Emerging markets often have less reliable securities valuations and greater risk associated with custody of
securities than developed markets. There may be significant obstacles to obtaining information necessary for
investigations into or litigation against companies and shareholders may have limited legal remedies. The
Fund does not select investments based on investor protection considerations.
Risk of Investing in Russia. Investing in Russian
securities involves significant risks, including legal, regulatory, currency and economic risks that are
specific to Russia. In addition, investing in Russian securities involves risks associated with the settlement of portfolio transactions and loss of the Fund’s ownership rights in its portfolio securities as a result of the
system of share registration and custody in Russia. Governments, including the U.S., the U.K., the E.U.,
and many other countries have imposed economic sanctions on certain Russian individuals and Russian
corporate and banking entities, and jurisdictions may also institute broader sanctions on Russia. Russia
has issued a number of countersanctions, some of which restrict the distribution of profits by limited
liability companies (e.g., dividends), and prohibit Russian persons from entering into transactions with designated persons from “unfriendly states” as well as the export of raw materials or
other products from Russia to certain sanctioned persons.
Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The extent and duration of the military action,
resulting sanctions and resulting future market disruptions, including
declines in its stock markets and the value
of the ruble against the U.S. dollar, are impossible to predict, but could be significant. Disruptions
caused by Russian military action or other actions (including cyberattacks and espionage) or resulting actual and threatened responses to such activity, including purchasing and financing restrictions, boycotts or changes in consumer
or purchaser preferences, sanctions, import and export restrictions, tariffs or cyberattacks on the Russian
government, Russian companies, or Russian individuals, including politicians, may impact Russia’s
economy and Russian companies in which the Fund invests. Actual and threatened responses to Russian military
action may also impact the markets for certain Russian commodities, such as oil and natural gas, as well as
other sectors of the Russian economy, and are likely to have collateral impacts on such sectors globally.
Russian companies may be unable to pay dividends and, if they pay dividends, the Fund may be unable to
receive them. As a result of sanctions, the Fund is currently restricted from trading in Russian securities, including those in its portfolio, and the Underlying Index has removed Russian securities. It is unknown when, or if, sanctions may be lifted
or the Fund’s ability to trade in Russian securities will resume.
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may engage in
securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower
of the loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also
lose money in the event of a decline in the value of collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the
Fund.
Tax Risk. The Fund is subject to tax in India on the purchase and sale of Indian securities, which will reduce the Fund's returns. For more information regarding the tax implications of
investing in Indian securities, please see the section entitled “Indian Tax Disclosure.”
Tracking Error Risk. The Fund may be subject to
“tracking error,” which is the divergence of the Fund’s performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur due to a number of factors, including differences between the securities
and other assets held in the Fund’s portfolio and those included in the Underlying Index; differences
in the timing and methodologies used to value securities and other assets; transaction costs and other
expenses incurred by the Fund that the Underlying Index does not incur; the Fund’s holding of uninvested cash; differences in the timing of the accrual or the valuation of dividends or interest received by the Fund or distributions paid to
Fund shareholders; tax gains or losses; the requirements for the Fund to maintain pass-through tax
treatment; portfolio transactions carried out to minimize the distribution of capital gains to
shareholders; the acceptance of custom baskets; changes to the Underlying Index; and impacts to the Fund of
complying with certain regulatory requirements or limits. Tracking error risk may be heightened during
times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. A Fund that tracks an index with
exposure to non-U.S. issuers may experience higher tracking error than ETFs that do not track such
indexes.
Valuation Risk. The price that the Fund could receive upon the sale (or other disposition) of a security or other asset may differ from the Fund’s valuation of the security or
other asset,
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particularly for securities or other assets
that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. The price
received by the Fund also may differ from the value used by the Underlying Index. In addition, the value of
the securities or other assets in the Fund’s portfolio may change on days or during time periods when
investors are not able to purchase or sell Fund shares. Authorized Participants that create or redeem Fund
shares on days when the Fund is holding fair-valued securities or other assets may receive fewer or more
shares, or lower or higher redemption proceeds, than they would
have received had the securities or other assets not been fair
valued or been valued using a different methodology. The ability to value investments may be impacted by
technological issues or errors by pricing services or other third-party service providers. DUE TO THE
INABILITY TO TRADE RUSSIAN SECURITIES, CERTAIN OF THE FUND'S ASSETS ARE VALUED USING A FAIR VALUE
METHODOLOGY. THE ACTUAL PRICE RECEIVED BY THE FUND FOR SUCH ASSETS MAY DIFFER SUBSTANTIALLY FROM THE FAIR
VALUE ASSIGNED TO THEM.
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Performance
Information
The performance information below illustrates how the Fund’s
performance has varied over different periods and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Fund has varied
from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table compares the Fund’s performance to that of an appropriate broad-based securities market index and the Underlying
Index. Fund returns assume the reinvestment of any dividends and distributions. The Fund’s returns reflect the impact of any agreements to waive or reimburse expenses,
which would reduce performance if not in effect. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated
performance information, including the Fund’s current NAV, may be obtained by visiting www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll
free).
Calendar Year-by-Year Returns
| |
Return (%) |
Period Ended |
| Calendar Year-to-Date Return |
18.46% |
September 30, 2024 |
| During the periods shown in the chart:
| ||
| Best Quarter |
16.64% |
June 30, 2020 |
| Worst Quarter |
-21.11% |
September 30, 2015 |
Average Annual Total Returns
(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)
(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)
| |
One Year |
Five Years |
Ten Years |
| (Inception Date: 11/12/2007) |
|
|
|
| Return Before Taxes |
1.48% |
-0.06% |
1.19% |
| Return After Taxes on Distributions |
1.30% |
-0.35% |
0.81% |
| Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
1.38% |
0.16% |
1.04% |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Index1 (Returns do not reflect deductions for
fees, expenses or taxes) |
9.83% |
3.68% |
2.66% |
| MSCI BIC Index (Returns do not reflect deductions for fees,
expenses or taxes) |
1.96% |
0.62% |
1.78% |
1The Fund has added this broad-based index in response to new regulatory requirements.
After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”). Fund returns after taxes on
distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital
losses from the sales of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.
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Management
Investment Adviser. BlackRock Fund Advisors.
Portfolio Managers. Jennifer Hsui, Greg Savage and Paul Whitehead (the “Portfolio Managers”) are primarily responsible for the
day-to-day management of the Fund. Each Portfolio Manager supervises a portfolio management team. Ms. Hsui, Mr. Savage and Mr. Whitehead have been Portfolio Managers of the Fund since 2012, 2008 and 2022, respectively.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
The Fund is an ETF. Individual shares of the Fund may only be bought and sold in the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Because ETF shares trade at market prices rather than
at NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (a premium) or less than NAV (a discount). An investor
may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to
purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the
“bid-ask spread”).
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make distributions that may be taxable to you as ordinary income
or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement such as a 401(k) plan or an
IRA, in which case, your distributions generally will be taxed when withdrawn.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), BFA or
other related companies may pay the intermediary for marketing activities and presentations, educational
training programs, conferences, the development of technology platforms and reporting systems or other
services related to the sale or promotion of the Fund. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
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