iShares MSCI Japan ETF (IJP) — Review & Analysis

IJP tracks the MSCI Japan Index — large- and mid-cap Japanese companies covering around 85% of Japan's investable equity market. AUM is $1.52 billion as at May 2026 with a 0.50% p.a. management fee — making this the largest Japan-focused ETF on the ASX. Compare IJP against hedged and small-cap alternatives on our Asia ETF page or use the Compare ETFs tool to put it side-by-side with HJPN or J100.

The currency call is the biggest differentiator. HJPN (BetaShares Japan Currency Hedged, 0.56%) returned +54.3% over one year to May 2026, while IJP returned +16.7% over the same period — a roughly 37 percentage point gap that reflects yen weakness against the AUD. J100 (Global X Japan Topix 100, 0.40%) is the cheapest Japan ETF but tracks Topix 100 rather than MSCI Japan and is a newer, smaller fund. IJP is the broadest and most liquid Japan vehicle on the ASX.

Structurally, IJP holds around 230 Japanese large- and mid-cap names — Toyota, Sony, Mitsubishi UFJ, Tokyo Electron, Keyence, and a broad sweep of Japan's globally competitive industrial and consumer companies. The unhedged construction means Australian investors benefit when the yen rises against the AUD and lose when it falls — a meaningful drag during periods of yen weakness like the current one. The choice between IJP and HJPN comes down to a single question: do you want pure equity exposure or equity-plus-currency exposure.

For most investors building a multi-decade Japan position, the unhedged route in IJP is the cleaner starting point. Read our hedged vs unhedged ETF guide for the framework on when to hedge currency exposure across each major region.