The race to dominate country specific funds is in full swing. iShares recently filed with the SEC to create another six country-specific ETFs.

The six new funds are:

1. iShares MSCI Brazil Small Cap Index Fund

2. iShares MSCI Egypt Capped Investable Market Index Fund

3. iShares MSCI Ireland Capped Investable Market Index Fund

4. iShares MSCI Philippines Investable Market Index Fund

5. iShares MSCI Russia Capped Index Fund

6. iShares MSCI USA Index Fund

Similar to previous country-specific funds from iShares, all will track an MSCI index to generate returns for investors. iShares’ entry into Brazil is interesting, as the firm already operates a broad based fund that invests in the largest Brazilian companies. The small-cap blend will compete directly with Van Eck’s Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap Fund (BRF: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News), which took the markets by storm in 2009 and attracted more than $700 million in assets.

iShares will be the first ETF sponsor to track Egyptian and Irish stocks, two areas that are currently under-represented with ETF investors. Neither ticket symbols nor annual expense ratios have been released.

EGA Emerging Global Shares has filed for a new line of seven exchange-traded funds that would center on BRIC nations and their economies. Six of the funds target infrastructure and mid cap stocks, while the remainder is set to track a broader index of Asian companies.

The new funds filed with the SEC are:

1. Emerging Global Shares INDXX India Infrastructure Index Fund

2. Emerging Global Shares INDXX China Infrastructure Index Fund

3. Emerging Global Shares INDXX Brazil Infrastructure Index Fund

4. Emerging Global Shares INDXX India Mid Cap Index Fund

5. Emerging Global Shares INDXX China Mid Cap Index Fund

6. Emerging Global Shares INDXX Brazil Mid Cap Index Fund

7. Emerging Global Shares INDXX Growing Asia Large Cap Index Fund

All of the funds seek maximum diversification, opting to limit single companies to no more than 10% of the index. The goal of this strategy is to fix the common under-diversification problem prevalent among emerging ETFs. The infrastructure funds will be comprised of 50 stocks for the India fund and 30 for Brazil and China, according to the SEC filing.

The Mid-Cap variety funds will seek out companies headquartered in China, India and Brazil. The Indian fund will require that the companies are smaller than the smallest stock in the S&P CNX Nifty Index, while the Chinese fund will invest in companies ranging in size from $500 million to $5 billion. Brazil’s fund will be based upon slightly smaller companies that range between $400 million to $4 billion.

The Growing Asia Large Cap Index Fund seeks to track the returns of the top 50 large cap stocks in China, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines, and it will dedicate half the funds to Chinese and Indian stocks.

Barclays Bank has provided a diversified opportunity to invest in various currencies of the Asian region. According to the Mondo Visione article, Barclays has listed a new ETN on the NYSE Arca that gives access to eight different currencies within emerging markets of Asia. The new ETN, known as the Barclays GEMS Asia 8 ETN (AYT), will follow the Barclays Global Emerging Markets Strategy (GEMS) Asia 8 Index. Mondo Visione has listed the eight markets and associated currencies that are included in the new note: Indonesian rupiah, Indian rupee, Philippine peso, South Korean won, Thai baht, Malaysian ringgit, Taiwanese dollar, and Chinese yuan.

Barclays Global Investors has announced the launch of its newest iShares ETF to capture a broad and diversified piece of various Asian markets. Michael Latham, CEO of U.S. iShares at Barclays is quoted to say, “Since iShares launched the first pure mainland China ETF for U.S. investors in 2005, investors have continued to ask for deeper access to the Asian markets.” Market Wire explains that the new ETF, known as iShares MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan Index Fund ETF (AAXJ), will provide access to equity markets across Asia, such as China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. AAXJ is now listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market.

The Philippine Stock Exchange is taking the necessary steps with the countrys Securities and Exchange Commission to bring ETFs into their market for the first time. According to the Index Universe article, the Philippines is the only emerging market in Asia without a single ETF trading on its exchange. The Philippine Stock Exchange believes that adding ETFs will promote further growth of the countrys capital markets.

Heather Bell of Index Universe identifies six other surrounding countries that have at least ten ETFs trading on its exchanges, with Japan leading the way at 36 funds. With the Philippines in the final stages of the approval process, it will be able to join the likes of Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia. These three neighboring countries are all in the early stages of involvement with ETFs.