VanEck JP Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF

EMLC

Market cap $4.79B

The outlook for long-term total return for the Global Market Index (GMI) edged up again in June, touching the highest level in recent history. Despite the recent rise, the expected performance remains well below GMI's realized return over the trailing ten-year window.

Here is a thesis that flips the bond world on its head: the volatility everyone fears in emerging markets has migrated to developed markets, while the yield premium for owning EM debt has stayed put.

The Invesco Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt ETF (NYSEARCA:PCY) has quietly become one of the better-performing fixed income vehicles of the past year, returning 16% over the trailing twelve months as the Federal Reserve cut its policy rate by 75 basis points and risk appetite returned.

The iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF (NASDAQ:EMB | EMB Price Prediction) closed at around $96 today, capping a 12% total return over the past year and a quieter 1% gain year to date.

Most US investors hold bonds priced in dollars, which means their fixed-income returns rise and fall almost entirely on what the Federal Reserve does next.

Investors may be better off looking outside the world's core bond markets right now, Brij Khurana writes in a guest commentary.

Emerging market bond ETFs are drawing increased institutional interest, prompting asset managers to staff up with specialized teams. Allspring Global Investments became the latest firm to make such a move this month, acquiring a team from GIA Partners to manage $1.1 billion in emerging market assets, according to Pensions & Investments reporting.

VanEck J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:EMLC | EMLC Price Prediction) pays a monthly distribution that currently translates to a trailing yield near 6.1%, a level that sits above the 10-year Treasury at 4.3%, and the Fed funds upper bound has been held at 3.75% since December.

VanEck J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:EMLC) offers a 6.09% yield that draws income-focused investors, particularly retirees hunting for yield above what U.S.

Retirees chasing income have started paying attention to a corner of the bond market most U.S.