Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
EWY vs XLU: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, EWY returned +79.7% to XLU's −3.0%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $24.4bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares MSCI South Korea ETF, and $23.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLU costs 0.51 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 82.7 points; XLU is 1.1 times larger.
| Measure | EWY | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +79.7% | −3.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 24.3%, high on Jun 18, 2026 | 9.1%, high on Feb 27, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI Korea 25/50 Daily 25 Capped Index | Utilities Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.59% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026 | $22.5bn | $23.7bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 60.9% | 58.7% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
May 19, 2000 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,379 weekly returnsEWY returned more: +991.0% to +672.4%. XLU swung less: 18.0% to 31.1%. XLU fell less at its worst: −48.3% to −70.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | EWY | XLU | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +991.0% | +672.4% | EWY | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +9.4% | +8.0% | EWY | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +683.3% | +205.7% | EWY | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 31.1% | 18.0% | XLU | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 21.2% | 12.8% | XLU | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −70.1% | −48.3% | XLU | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.39 | 0.42 | XLU (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.57 | 0.59 | XLU (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.13 | 0.17 | XLU | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,379 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, EWY and XLU hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
EWY and XLU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
EWY and XLU do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. EWY follows MSCI Korea 25/50 Daily 25 Capped Index and XLU follows Utilities Select Sector Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 EWY returned +79.7% and XLU −3.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 82.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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EWY
EWY tracks the MSCI South Korea. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +79.7% with distributions reinvested, against +16.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.59% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 78 positions, with the top ten at 60.9%. It sat 24.3% below its high of Jun 18, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XLU
XLU tracks an index of Utilities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 32 positions, with the top ten at 58.7%. It sat 9.1% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, EWY or XLU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EWY returned +79.7% and XLU −3.0%.
- Which is cheaper, EWY or XLU?
- XLU is cheaper, by 0.51 percentage points a year. That is about $51 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, EWY against XLU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ewy-vs-xlu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). EWY against XLU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ewy-vs-xlu
[EWY against XLU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ewy-vs-xlu)
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