ETFs Gain $2.6B As Russia Rattles Markets

The outbreak of war in Europe threw markets into a deeply risk-off mood last week as U.S.-listed ETFs added just $2.6 billion in assets from Feb. 21 to Feb. 25. 

According to ETF.com data provider FactSet, the U.S. ETF industry has accumulated approximately $93.8 billion in new assets year-to-date and manages $6.7 trillion.

(Partial) Flight To Safety

The top gainers of the week were a mix of growth stocks and flights into the relatively safe world of bonds.

The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) led inflows with just over $2 billion, despite the technology benchmark index dropping 5.5% last week. The triple-leveraged ProShares UltraPro QQQ (TQQQ) added nearly $1.1 billion in the same period.

Semiconductors had a strong week on concerns that the Russia-Ukraine crisis would disrupt the supply of materials needed to produce sought-after chips, such as neon gas used to etch patterns into silicon. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) added $512.6 million, while the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares (SOXL) took in $437.6 million.

But while the U.S. equity asset class lost $2.2 billion on the week, U.S. fixed income funds took in nearly $2.6 billion as more cautious investors looked to pull out of the risk that the conflict in Europe poses. 

The iShares iBoxx USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD), which led bond funds with a $1.6 billion inflow, was the lone corporate debt fund in the top 10, followed by the iShares Short Treasury Bond ETF (SHV), with $1.4 billion in new assets. The iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF (IEF) added $565 million, while the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) took in $455 million. 

SPY, Corporate Debt Lose Out 

The biggest loser on the week was an outlier: the SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust (GLDM). The fund saw a massive $2.2 billion outflow last Wednesday after a quiet 12 months, amounting to almost half of its assets under management. That sale may have been a profit-taking move as the price of gold moved higher as a defensive asset in the first days of war. 

SPY continued to bleed assets by losing $1.9 billion on the week, while the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) lost $1.1 billion. 

Three sector-specific ETFs also appeared on the top 10 outflows list despite being well-positioned to benefit from additional inflation pressures stemming from the conflict or the Federal Reserve’s rate hikes. 

The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) lost $695.5 million, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) and iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF (IYR) lost $483.5 million and $456.9 million, respectively. 

Although the investment-grade LQD got plenty of love last week, investors ditched junk and short-term high quality bond funds en masse. The iShares iBoxx USD High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) lost just shy of $826 million, while the SPDR Bloomberg High Yield Bond ETF (JNK) and the Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCSH) lost almost $600 million and nearly $405 million, respectively. 
 

For a full list of last week’s top inflows and outflows, see the tables below:

Top 10 Creations (All ETFs)

Top 10 Redemptions (All ETFs)

ETF Weekly Flows By Asset Class

Asset Classes (Year-to-Date)

Top 10 Weekly Performers, Excluding Leverage/Inverse Funds and <1,000 Shares Traded

Top 10 YTD Performers

Disclaimer: All data as of 6 a.m. Eastern time the date the article is published. Data is believed to be accurate; however, transient market data is often subject to subsequent revision and correction by the exchanges.