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Asia boosts international ETF gains as VXUS outpaces VTI again
Vanguard Total International Stock ETF, VXUS, is up 12% this year versus 10% for VTI, with Asia Pacific contributing more than 8 percentage points of VXUS’s return.
Asia has been the main driver of international stock outperformance, with gains concentrated in the Asia Pacific region, according to analysis from Yahoo Finance.
Yahoo Finance highlights that the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF, VXUS, is outpacing the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF, VTI, for a second straight year, rising 12% versus 10% this year. It also cites last year’s wider gap, when VXUS gained 32.4% compared with 17.1% for VTI.
More than 8 percentage points, roughly two thirds of VXUS’s 2026 return, is attributed to Asia Pacific, with Taiwan contributing 3.3 percentage points, South Korea 2.7, and Japan 2.2. The outlet links the outperformance to artificial intelligence exposure through the semiconductor supply chain, including TSMC in Taiwan, high-bandwidth memory suppliers Samsung and SK Hynix in South Korea, and Japan’s role in equipment and materials for chip production.
Yahoo Finance also notes that Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan are “punching above their weight” inside VXUS, with Japan contributing over 20% of the ETF’s return despite an average 15% weight, South Korea contributing similarly while representing less than 6%, and Taiwan contributing more than a quarter of the return while averaging only 7.5% of the portfolio. Western Europe is the only other region it cites as clearing a 1 percentage point contribution threshold.