EWI offers a small but comprehensive basket of large- and midcap Italian stocks. Its exclusion of small-caps gives the fund a tilt toward larger firms, including utilities giant Enel, but this exposure is pared back by regulated investment companies (RIC) limits under the current US Internal Revenue Code. This caps a single issuer at 25% of the index weight, and all issuers with weights above 5% do not cumulatively exceed 50% of the index. Keep in mind that Italian markets close just a few hours after the US markets, so short-term premiums or discounts to NAV may simply reflect price discovery by the fund. The fund may also invest up to 10% of its assets in futures, options and swap contracts. The index is rebalanced quarterly starting each February.
