The Nation's First Pet Fund Launches... 'KB Petcare Fund'

A pet shop in downtown Seoul / Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Junho] The first fund in Korea to invest in global companies related to pets is being launched.

KB Asset Management announced on the 22nd that it will launch the 'KB Global Pet Happiness Pet Care Fund.' This fund invests in pet care-related companies listed in the global market. Based on the expected portfolio, the highest investment proportions are in medical diagnostics (24%) and pharmaceuticals (21%). It also allocates funds to feed manufacturing (18%), online distribution (13%), and offline distribution (9%). By country, investments are planned in the United States (39%), the United Kingdom (14%), and Japan (7.4%), in that order.

Representative investment companies include 'Nestl?,' the world's largest pet food specialist company; 'Zoetis,' the world's largest pet pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturer, formerly a subsidiary of Pfizer; and 'Chewy,' an online pet shopping mall with a massive logistics center, often called the Amazon of the pet market.

Park Seunghyun, manager of the Global Operations Headquarters, stated, "We select core stocks by first applying quantitative criteria to companies with a market capitalization of over $1 million and an average daily trading volume of over $500,000, where pet-related sales account for more than 30% of total sales." He added, "Currently, a total of 31 stocks, including Nestl?, Colgate, and Merck, are included."

Meanwhile, according to a recent report released by Morgan Stanley, the U.S. pet care industry is expected to grow about threefold by 2030. The market is projected to reach approximately 380 trillion KRW. This fund can be subscribed to through KB Kookmin Bank, KB Securities, Korea Post Securities, and Kyobo Securities. It is also available for pension savings and retirement pensions.