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Mirae Asset Global Investments has launched the Mirae Asset Horizons S&P Asia ex Japan Healthcare ETF on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It seeks to position itself to profit from a growing demand for healthcare products and services in Asia.

The Asia ex-Japan healthcare sector is expected to grow at a rate of 6.6% per annum by 2019.

The ETF tracks the S&P Pan Asia ex-JANZ Health Care 20 Index, a reference for the performance of healthcare companies listed in Asian countries excluding Japan.

The Asia ex-Japan healthcare sector is expected to grow at a rate of 6.6% per annum by 2019, according to David Tsoi, an ETF analyst at Mirae. The Indian and Chinese healthcare markets are of particular interest, as high growth of 16% and 8.8% respectively are expected in these two markets.

The index currently comprises 34% of India-listed companies, 25% of China-listed companies, 20% of Korea-listed companies and the remaining 21% in other countries within Asia.

There are 50 constituents with the largest being Sun Pharmaceutical (9.3%), Celltrion (8.8%), SinoPharm (5.2%), Lupin (5.0%) and CSPC Pharmaceutical (4.9%).

The fund’s ongoing charges is estimated to be 1.68% per annum of NAV.

An investment in healthcare-linked ETFs may suit investors looking to add defensive investments to their portfolio as the demand for healthcare services and products is relatively “less elastic” – people are unlikely to compromise on the price of healthcare even when the market is faring poorly.