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華爾街日報Alphabet Crushed Mag 7 Stocks This Year — Only To Be Crushed By These 8 Country ETFs
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is on pace to top the 2025 Magnificent Seven leaderboard, but investors who looked beyond U.S. tech found even richer returns across eight different global equity markets.
Shares of Google's parent company are up 66% year-to-date, the best performance among the seven mega-cap tech giants. That rally easily tops Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA), which is up 42%.
Yet the real surprise sits overseas.
Across emerging and developed markets alike, eight country exchange-traded funds tracking stocks from around the globe have outpaced Google's parent, offering a vivid reminder that the world's investment story this year is not solely written in Big Tech.
According to data from CountryETFtracker, eight country-focused ETFs have delivered stronger year-to-date returns than Alphabet:
8. iShares MSCI South Africa ETF (NYSE:EZA), up 67.3%
7. iShares MSCI Austria ETF (NYSE:EWO), up 67.9%
6. Global X – MSCI Colombia ETF (NYSE:COLO), up 68.5%
5. iShares MSCI Poland ETF (NYSE:EPOL), up 68.6%
4. iShares MSCI Spain ETF (NYSE:EWP), up 73%
3. Global X – MSCI Greece ETF (NYSE:GREK), up 77%
2. iShares MSCI Peru and Global Exposure ETF (NYSE:EPU), up 85%
1. iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (NYSE:EWY), up 87%
Commodities Rewrite The Script In Emerging Markets
At least three of the strongest performers share a common driver: commodities.
South Africa, Colombia and Peru rode a powerful surge in precious and industrial metals.
Silver has surged 160% year-to-date, while gold has climbed nearly 70%. Even lesser-known metals like platinum and palladium posted gains of 170% and 110%, respectively.
For stocks tied to these markets, it has been a windfall of gains.
In South Africa, miners dominated the tape. AngloGold Ashanti Plc (NYSE:AU) and Gold Fields Limited Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GFI), both top holdings in EZA, have each surged more than 220%.
Currency strength added fuel. The South African rand is up more than 11% against the dollar, on track for its best year since 2009.
Peru followed a similar script. Six mining companies rank among the top 10 holdings in EPU. Each has posted triple-digit gains so far this year, lifting the entire market higher.
The Peruvian sol gained over 10% against the dollar, on track for its best-performing year since Peru’s Central Bank issued the new currency in 1997.
For markets long viewed as cyclical or volatile, commodities turned into a powerful tailwind — and investors willing to look beyond the U.S. were rewarded.
Southern Europe's Long-Awaited Banking Comeback
Southern Europe added another unexpected chapter to the story. Countries like Spain and Greece — and even Italy, up 51% year-to-date — have benefited from a sharp rebound in their banking sectors after decades of underperformance.
In Greece, shares of National Bank of Greece, Eurobank and Alpha Bank — the three largest holdings of the GREK ETF — are up 85%, 68%, and 133% respectively in 2025.
Spain tells a similar story.
Banco Santander S.A. (NYSE:SAN), which carries roughly an 18% weight in the EWP ETF, has climbed an eye-catching 129% year-to-date.
Higher interest margins, improved balance sheets and renewed investor confidence combined to lift sectors many had written off for years.
How Did South Korea Take The Crown?
South Korea's rally came straight from technology.
Chipmakers tied to artificial intelligence drove nearly all the upside.
Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd (OTC:SSNLF) and SK Hynix together account for about 40% of EWY's portfolio. Their shares have jumped 123% and 250% year-to-date, respectively.
The move mirrors global demand for memory chips and AI infrastructure, but with far more leverage than U.S. megacaps.
The takeaway for investors fixated on a narrow group of American tech stocks is clear. Alphabet delivered a stellar year, yet global markets quietly proved that opportunity does not stop at U.S. borders.
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Image created using artificial intelligence via Gemini.