Which fund is a better choice under current market conditions?

I am thinking abt 2 funds.
1) Vanguard Emerging Market Stock Index
2) T Rowe Price Emerging Market Stock

Is it better to invest in the index fund due to lesser expense ratio (0.42 compared to 1.26)? I looked at the two funds and comparison looks like they are both giving the same kind of returns.
Basically, I am wondering if an index fund is a better choice (a passive fund) compared to an active fund.
Any help will be appreciated. Thanks.

"The ability to ignore current market conditions is an investor's greatest weapon". - William Bernstein, The Intelligent Asset Allocator.

You should choose investments that help fulfill your goal asset allocation. Your allocation should be based on your time horizon and risk tolerance. The most important decision you will make is your stock to bond ratio. The specific stock funds and how much of each play only a minor role. At no time should you make investment decisions based on current market conditions.

Now, in regards to your specific funds listed above ... all other things considered equal, low costs trump high costs. Over periods of 10 years or longer, index funds beat about 70 - 80% of their "actively managed" peers.

Call the two fund families and ask about the after tax total return for the 2 funds.
If you pick Vanguard's and want to hold for many years, look into their Emerging Market ETF (VWO). It's expense ratio is an even lower 0.30%

At tax time you will find out exactly what the difference is. You will most likely receive a 1099 from T Rowe Price with a large amount of realized capital gains. At least you should be hoping that you do. With the index fund the 1099 will show a much much smaller amount because it is unmanaged meaning there are generally no or very few sales of investments. That in itself does not mean that the index fund is a better investment but it certainly should be taken into account. There are certain advantages to having a managed fund assuming the manager is worth his/her salt.