Hi everyone,
I'm french and i've got 90% of my investment on SP500 and world ETF. Since the begining of the year, i've lost 4% in my SP500. Yes, this year is still red for my sp500 etf.
It's red because i lost 14% just cause of euro/USD change. 1 euro past from 1,02 to 1,17 (1,18 in may).
So today, i've to be very patient. But you, american, could invest in european stocks. You would have gained 14% only thank to the dollar weakness ! Honestly, i'm not a big fan of european index etf, i prefer stock picking in european market. By the way, european index beat the US index before summer !
Imagine if you have invest in European Bank stocks or european defense stocks, lot of money you could have got !
But i don't know, american don't like something out of their country đ
Why don't american invest on European stocks ?
byu/SidonyD inStockMarket
Posted by SidonyD
34 Comments
I do invest in European stocks
Once in awhile I’ll even buy their bonds
They don’t because for the past 15 years American stocks have grown much faster than European. 2025 is the first year in a long time where international outperformed. So I think it’s less to do with nationalism and more to do with following current best practices.
For me, I barely have enough brain cells to navigate my own stock market
I mean Americans often do invest in European stocks I’ve got about a third of my investments in European indevs funds. Admittedly I’m doing it more as a hedge against the weak dollar then shall we say growth.
But it wouldn’t surprise me if a lot of active investors at least those who don’t have all their 401K money in it money market have chosen at least one foreign fund to help spread the risk and reduce volatility.
They do invest in international stocks. Most retirement plans split a percentage of the investment to stocks and bonds outside USA. What gives you the impression that they don’t?
I only keep ETFs that track European companies just for the sake of âhaving some greenery,â but Europe is a mess. Energy is expensive, thereâs a war right next door, and the economies are weak. There isnât enough population to keep the economy running, so theyâre dependent on migrants. The shining companies have mostly already been bought by American firms, or theyâve shut down and moved to the U.S. Those are probably the main reasons behind it.
I invest in a Euro ETF. I donât do individual stocks in general really and not for companies outside the US as I donât have confidence in my knowledge of their exchanges and rules:
Patriotism. For them Europenis only one small countrY
Fellow European here. With these rate cuts on the horizon I guess we will see 1.25(1.30??) by the end of the year. So its not over yet. If the market keeps running we end the years just flat. The exchange rate on top of Tariffs is actually making our goods even more expensive for the US, so thats all not looking so positive for our economy as a whole.
How is the economy in France? I read there is a huge protest organized for Wednesday.
Same For Germany. No future there.
Home bias. The risks are obvious but many Americans believe that they are an exception to the norm and that this exceptionalism will stay intact forever. I don’t mean this in a judgemental way, just my observation. I am European and for me investing globally (obviously including the US) is self-explanatory but plenty of Americans I’ve talked to feel it’s not necessary because of the unique position of the Dollar and the way global economy is designed. They ignore the warning signs and the unique challenges and think it will all sort itself out.
I only invest in European stocks. Though I live on this side of the ocean.
Fuck man, I do now. After the shitstorm and uncertainty going on in the US market this year⌠I changed my 401(k) to a mix of funds that, for the first time ever, includes one that is exclusively international stocks.
Most people have home country bias. Itâs a known thing
Rolls Royce is one of my best plays ever so idk why other Americans are sleeping on the euro stocks
Not even I, as an European, invest in the European stock market.
The whole union is a mess. High energy prices (which will get even higher thanks to ETS2 which will come into play 2027), geopolitic risks (the US is untouchable unless you think Mexic or Canada could invade them), the stupid green deal which is gonna kill the automotive industries (and others) in countries that highly rely on the automotive sector, overregulation, the saying that the US inovated, China replicates and Europe regulates is completely true, etc. Also 27 countries each with their own language and laws WILL NEVER beat a single superpower country.
On top of this, I already have my salary, my house, both my private and public pension, some deposits and bonds in my country. The last thing I wanna do is put even more money here.
European stocks did good this year thanks to the people who invest based on their emotions, not on facts, and also thanks to the defence industry which is being pumped right now to delay the economic disaster the green deal is. Both of these, I highly believe, are just short term pumps with no real underlying fundamentals to sustain long-term growth.
Oh and don’t even get me started on demographics..
Simple, the US invents and innovates, Eu regulates.
Look at the biggest companies of both. European companies are more established and older.
American giants, on the other hand, are relatively young and technology-focused; most were founded after 1975.
This difference also demonstrates the economic strength of the two continents. Heavy regulations in EU blocks companies from growing.
As an American, I can buy many European companies through stock and ETFs.
To buy shares on a European exchange in Euro gets involved. I have to buy the Euros, but my broker won’t pay interest on them while they sit as cash. Then I buy DB or something and get paid dividends in Euro. I can buy fractional US shares, but I don’t think I can do this for European stocks.I’m not sure how I can get the Euro to spend on a trip to the EU. I haven’t done that. There seem to be a lot of transaction costs including extra European government taxes to this approach. Maybe I need a different stock broker.
The people at r/Bogleheads advocate international investing through index funds.
The S&P500 is up 11% in dollar terms, but IEUR (MSCI European Index Fund) is up 24% in dollar terms.
In short, it is more complicated. Many people don’t want to take on exchange rate risk. It is hard to get and understand information on stocks that don’t trade in the US, and there’s a language barrier.
There are good European companies like SAP and Spotify and RACE and others.
Theyâre just not the fancy big names like NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, Netflix, Google and Meta etc etc.
Man these posts recentlyâŚ.
Sure there’s money to be made still in American stocks but the current El Presidente is laying the groundwork to turn the country into a shit hole so unless you want to be a bag holder then you have to start planning your exit from the US market (I am, and am also North American). But of course, no one has a crystal ball so choosing the right time to exit is just luck.
Hamburger brain.
Taxes are too high on foreign dividend payment. Taxes get paid first even if you are in a lower tax rate then have to do credit at tax filing time.
Also, i don’t believe productivity is as good in European countries with their generous vacation policies and lots of regulations.
I see this sentiment a lot and it makes just about zero sense. If you think the Euro is going to outperform, you should hold Euros. If you’re buying European stocks, you’re not holding Euros, you’re holding stocks.
home bias
patriotism
believe that past results of the last 20 years mean something for the future
(all 3 are fallacies)
Because anyone with any knowledge of Europe knows it’s not the place to invest. Productivity is low, sickness is high, and the EU is extremely anti-business – especially so with the artificially sky-high energy prices. It’s also doing barely anything over the bare minimum regards the russian invasion on its borders. Which you can be sure will lead to a wider conflict in the next 5-10 years. Which could be especially tricky for Europe given the US military is laser-focused on the Indo-Pacific currentlyÂ
Major powers in the world are the US and China, thus those are the best places to invest.Â
Because one stock in America Nvidia is worth more than the stock market of the UK or France or Germany lol
YTD +10%
1 Year +18%
I’ve had Siemens (SMAWF) in my “gambling” account since September of 2023. Up 66.92%
I am.
We do. Why do the french make such dumb assumptions?
Americans get favorable tax treatment for investing in stocks traded on a U.S. stock exchange. Although some European stocks trade on a U.S. exchange, overall, this incentivizes investing in U.S. stocks.
You deserve your losses. Don’t support fascism and direct threats to European democracy
Market access is the key issue. We have lots of easy access to NASDAQ and NYSE, but it’s harder and more costly to buy something traded on the LSE or any of the Euro exchanges.
I do have ETFs that give me general exposure to Europe, but it’s not like I can easy buy and sell individual stocks