Faith Morrow
The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for federal employees and military personnel in the US. The TSP I Fund (International Stock Index Investment Fund) is one of five core investment funds available in the TSP. The I Fund invests in stocks of large, medium, and small companies in more than 40 developed and emerging market countries (excluding the US), providing investors with the opportunity to gain exposure to the international stock market.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | International Stock Index Investment Fund (I Fund) |
| Description | An international stock index fund that tracks the investment performance of the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index |
| Number of Countries Invested In | 44 |
| Number of Companies Invested In | Approximately 5,600 |
| Annual Expense Ratio | 0.054% |
| Top Holdings | TSM Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg Co Ltd, NOVOB Novo Nordisk Class B, ASML ASML Holding NV, SSNLF Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, RHHBF Roche Holding AG |
| Total Expense Ratio | $0.540/$1,000 account balance (5.4 basis points) |
| Investment Objective | To match the performance of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index |
| Inception Date | 5/1/2001 |
| Benchmark Index | MSCI EAFE Index |
| Asset Manager(s) | BlackRock Institutional Trust Company, N.A. State Street Global Advisors Trust Company |
| Assets | $78.2 billion |
| Net Administrative Expense Ratio | $0.480/$1,000 account balance (4.8 basis points) |
| Investment Expense Ratio | $0.060/$1,000 account balance (0.6 basis points) |
What You'll Learn
- The TSP I Fund is an international stock index fund
- It tracks the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index
- The I Fund offers the opportunity to experience gains from equity ownership of non-U.S. companies
- The I Fund can be useful in a portfolio that also contains stock funds that track other indexes
- The I Fund is subject to significant stock market risk
The TSP I Fund is an international stock index fund
The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for federal employees and military personnel in the US. The TSP I Fund (International Stock Index Investment Fund) is one of five core investment funds available in the TSP.
The I Fund offers investors the opportunity to experience gains from equity ownership of non-US companies. As it represents stocks of large, medium, and small companies in more than 40 developed and emerging market countries (excluding the US), it is an excellent way to diversify the stock portion of your TSP allocation.
The I Fund's investment objective is to match the performance of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index. As of July 31, 2024, the index included over 5,000 stocks representing 44 countries. The I Fund holds most of the large and medium-sized companies in the index, using a mathematical technique to hold a representative sample of smaller stocks.
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It tracks the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index
The TSP I Fund (International Stock Index Investment Fund) is an international stock index fund that tracks the investment performance of the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index.
The TSP I Fund is a low-cost way to gain diversified exposure to the international stock market. By investing in the I Fund, you own a small slice of approximately 5,600 international (non-US) companies, diversified across 44 countries. These include 21 Developed Markets (DM) countries and 23 Emerging Markets (EM) countries.
The I Fund's investment objective is to match the performance of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index. As of July 31, 2024, the index included over 5,000 stocks representing 44 countries. The I Fund holds most of the large and medium-sized companies in the index, using a mathematical technique to hold a representative sample of smaller stocks.
The performance of the I Fund is evaluated based on how closely its returns match those of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index. The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board has chosen this index as its benchmark.
The I Fund returns are subject to market and inflation risk. The returns move up and down with the returns in the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index. Additionally, the returns will rise or fall as the value of the US dollar fluctuates relative to the currencies of the countries represented in the index.
The I Fund can be a useful addition to a portfolio that also contains stock funds tracking other indexes, such as the C Fund and the S Fund. Investing in the I Fund allows investors to reduce their exposure to market risk and diversify their stock portfolio.
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The I Fund offers the opportunity to experience gains from equity ownership of non-U.S. companies
The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for federal employees and military personnel in the US. The TSP offers five different individual fund options, one of which is the International Stock Index Investment Fund, or the I Fund.
The I Fund offers the opportunity to experience gains from equity ownership of non-US companies. The fund invests in stocks of large, medium, and small companies in more than 40 developed and emerging market countries, excluding the US. As of July 31, 2024, the I Fund's benchmark index, the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index, included over 5,000 stocks across 44 countries. The fund provides exposure to international markets and is a great way to diversify a TSP portfolio.
The I Fund's investment objective is to match the performance of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index. The fund's returns are influenced by market and inflation risk. The returns will rise or fall with the index's performance and are also subject to currency risk, as the value of the US dollar fluctuates relative to the currencies of the countries represented in the index.
The I Fund can be a useful addition to a TSP portfolio that includes other stock funds or bond funds. By investing in international stocks, investors can reduce their exposure to market risk and volatility. The I Fund provides an opportunity for investors to gain diversified exposure to the international stock market at a very low cost, with an annual expense ratio of 0.054%.
The I Fund's top holdings as of July 31, 2024, included well-known international companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, Novo Nordisk Class B, ASML Holding NV, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, and Roche Holding AG.
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The I Fund can be useful in a portfolio that also contains stock funds that track other indexes
The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for federal employees and military personnel in the US. It offers five different individual fund options, each invested in either US Treasury securities, bonds, or US or international stocks. The TSP I Fund (International Stock Index Investment Fund) is one of these five core funds.
The I Fund can be a useful addition to a portfolio that also contains stock funds tracking other indexes. This is because the I Fund offers investors the opportunity to gain exposure to the gains from equity ownership of non-US companies. As of July 31, 2024, the I Fund tracks the performance of the MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index, which includes stocks from over 40 developed and emerging market countries. This provides a means of diversifying the stock portion of a TSP allocation.
The I Fund can be particularly useful when combined with other TSP funds, such as the C Fund and the S Fund. By investing in all segments of the stock market, investors can reduce their exposure to market risk. For example, the C Fund (Common Stock Index Investment Fund) is invested in large-capitalization US stocks, while the S Fund (Small Capitalization Stock Index Fund) is invested in the stocks of small and medium-sized US companies. Including the I Fund in a portfolio with these funds ensures exposure to both domestic and international stocks, which can provide a more globally diversified stock portfolio.
Additionally, the I Fund can also be beneficial when combined with bond funds, such as the F Fund (Fixed Income Index Investment Fund). A retirement portfolio containing a mix of stock funds and bond funds will generally be less volatile than one containing only stock funds. The F Fund, for instance, invests in US investment-grade bonds and can provide a buffer during market downturns, reducing the overall volatility of the portfolio.
It is worth noting that the I Fund is subject to market and inflation risk, as well as currency risk due to its international nature. However, this currency risk can also be a welcome source of currency diversification for investors.
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The I Fund is subject to significant stock market risk
The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for federal employees and military personnel in the US. The TSP I Fund, or International Stock Index Investment Fund, is one of five core investment funds available in the TSP. The I Fund is an international stock index fund that tracks the performance of the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index.
The I Fund's returns are also exposed to currency risk. The index prices will rise or fall as the value of the US dollar decreases or increases relative to the value of the currencies of the countries represented in the I Fund index. This currency risk may be considered a welcome source of currency diversification, as the US dollar has generally been trending lower against other major world currencies since the mid-1980s.
In addition, the I Fund is passively managed, which means it remains fully invested during all market cycles and economic conditions. While stocks have historically been a good hedge against inflation, there is no guarantee that the I Fund will grow enough to offset inflation in the future.
To reduce exposure to stock market risk, investors can consider owning shares in all three TSP stock funds (the C Fund, S Fund, and I Fund), which will result in a more globally diversified stock portfolio. Additionally, investors can consider bond funds like the TSP F Fund, as bond prices are often uncorrelated or inversely correlated to stocks, providing a buffer during market downturns and reducing the overall volatility of an investment portfolio.
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Frequently asked questions
The TSP I Fund is the International Stock Index Investment Fund. It is one of the five core investment funds available in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP).
The TSP I Fund invests in stocks of 44 foreign countries. It tracks the investment performance of the Morgan Stanley Capital International ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Kong Index.
The TSP I Fund invests in 21 developed markets (DM) countries and 23 emerging markets (EM) countries. DM countries include Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. EM countries include Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and United Arab Emirates.
The TSP I Fund offers the opportunity to experience gains from equity ownership of non-U.S. companies. It is a very low-cost way to gain diversified exposure to the international stock market, with an annual expense ratio of 0.054%.
