We are almost into a new year and a new decade. Diverse exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have proven to be strong performers in 2019, so which ones will do well in 2020?
2019 has been a strong year for the ASX with Vanguard Australian Share ETF (ASX: VAS) delivering excellent results due to Australia's interest rate sent lower by the RBA. The returns are unlikely to be repeated again, which is why I think these ETFs could be better buys for 2020:
BetaShares FTSE 100 ETF (ASX: F100)
The UK share market could be a good place to invest now that it seems Brexit is finally going to transition to the next step.
There are plenty of attractive UK-listed shares which could be good to get exposure to like Reckitt Benckiser, Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline, Diageo and so on.
Many of the businesses within this ETF don't just make earnings from the UK but multiple countries, perhaps globally. Brexit may not be that much of an earnings problem for many of the biggest positions.
The ETF has annual costs to investors to 0.45%, which isn't bad.
UK businesses are also known for paying good dividends, so the ETF could be an alternative idea for income as well.
Vanguard FTSE Asia Ex Japan Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAE)
Asia is another great place to find alternative investment ideas. Not many Aussies are invested in Asian businesses despite the huge economies and growth being generated there.
I think this ETF is a pretty exciting one with over 22% of the ETF invested in technology businesses like Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu and so on.
The trade war looks as though it's coming to an end, which should be a sizeable boost for the Asian share market. Despite the trade war troubles, the ETF has delivered returns of 10.6% per annum since inception in December 2015.
It has an annual management fee of 0.40% per annum, which is fairly cheap for a portfolio investing in Asian shares.
Foolish takeaway
Both of these ETFs are diversified, have attractive underlying businesses and look cheap on a price/earnings ratio basis.
