Whats best way to invest in european companies?

I want to invest in europe and overseas. whats best way or a good mutual fund to do it with?

There are lots of options most of which are pretty simple once you have an online brokerage account.

1) You can buy some foreign companies as individual stocks using ADRs (American Depositary Receipts). For example you can buy the French oil company Total by just buying the ADR symbol TOT on the NYSE.

2) The most popular is the ETF (Exchange Traded Fund), symbol EFA. The index is also called EAFE which stands for Europe, Australia, & Far East. These are developed nation stocks & should be lower risk than emerging markets.

The emerging market versions has symbols EEM & EWZ & others. These ETFs are part of Barclay's iShares and trade like stocks.

I know of one ETF that is comprised exclusively high dividend paying Euro stocks. It is Wisdom Tree's DEW.

3) You can buy a good mutual fund such as DODFX, the Dodge & Cox International stock fund. Or an emerging market stock mutual fund such as T Rowe Price's PRMSX or PRLAX.

4) I believe that E*Trade now allows direct purchase of foreign stocks on many foreign exchanges. I've never tried this & I suspect it is more complex. I would guess that you would need to exchange your US dollars into the proper currency prior to making the stock trade.

E*Trade or Interactive Brokers.