ETFs See Rare Weekly Outflow Amid Tariff Jitters
A $10.5 billion pullback hit U.S.-listed ETFs last week as investors braced for sweeping Trump tariffs set to land in April.
U.S.-listed ETFs experienced a rare setback last week, posting $10.5 billion in net outflows as anxiety over a fresh wave of tariffs rattled markets. Despite the weekly dip, year-to-date inflows remain robust at approximately $295 billion, underscoring continued long-term investor interest in ETFs even amid short-term volatility.
The S&P 500 staged a strong rally early in the week before tumbling sharply in its final sessions. A surprise announcement of 25% auto tariffs shocked investors and shifted focus toward a broader set of Trump-era tariffs expected to be unveiled on April 2, which could impact virtually all major U.S. trading partners. By week's end, the index was once again flirting with its March 13 lows, the point at which it officially entered correction territory for the first time since 2023.
VOO Leads Redemptions; IVV Sees Inflows
The biggest drag on ETF flows came from the U.S. equity category, which shed $20.8 billion. Interestingly, that headline number was almost entirely driven by one fund: the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), which saw $22.6 billion in outflows. These redemptions are believed to be the result of tax-related "heartbeat" trades, essentially reversing the massive inflows the fund recorded just a few weeks ago. Even after the move, VOO remains the largest ETF in the world, managing $599 billion in assets.
Another notable outflow came from the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD), a fund also known to frequently see heartbeat-related flows around tax season.
On the flip side, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) brought in $22 billion in inflows, which appears to be the mirror image of a heartbeat trade—in this case, inflows reversing previous redemptions. The inflows were enough to push IVV past SPY in the rankings, making it the second-largest ETF globally, with $588 billion in assets under management.
Other funds that saw strong investor interest last week included the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), the Fidelity Investment Grade Securitized ETF (FSEC) and the iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV).
Outside the U.S., international equity ETFs remained a bright spot, attracting $4.2 billion in inflows and continuing a trend of global diversification among investors.
For the full list of last week’s top inflows and outflows, see the tables below.
Top 10 Creations (All ETFs)
| Ticker | Name | Net Flows ($, mm) | AUM ($, mm) | AUM % Change< |
| IVV | iShares Core S&P 500 ETF | 22,003.73 | 587,864.16 | 3.74 |
| QQQ | Invesco QQQ Trust Series I | 2,106.39 | 305,489.00 | 0.69 |
| SPLG | SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF | 1,371.52 | 59,442.34 | 2.31 |
| DIA | SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust | 1,014.62 | 37,336.13 | 2.72 |
| FSEC | Fidelity Investment Grade Securitized ETF | 720.47 | 3,430.86 | 21.00 |
| VEA | Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | 686.26 | 146,685.09 | 0.47 |
| FXU | First Trust Utilities AlphaDEX Fund | 620.51 | 1,015.08 | 61.13 |
| VGK | Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF | 614.43 | 22,054.84 | 2.79 |
| SGOV | iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF | 598.66 | 39,321.01 | 1.52 |
| VT | Vanguard Total World Stock ETF | 547.77 | 42,280.58 | 1.30 |
Top 10 Redemptions (All ETFs)
| Ticker | Name | Net Flows ($, mm) | AUM ($, mm) | AUM % Change |
| VOO | Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | -22,589.30 | 598,855.05 | -3.77 |
| SCHD | Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF | -6,735.47 | 70,226.58 | -9.59 |
| VYM | Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index ETF | -3,554.44 | 59,272.96 | -6.00 |
| VTV | Vanguard Value ETF | -2,454.87 | 134,280.57 | -1.83 |
| DVY | iShares Select Dividend ETF | -2,284.06 | 19,903.31 | -11.48 |
| VO | Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF | -2,179.84 | 74,161.83 | -2.94 |
| MOAT | VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF | -1,861.36 | 13,675.49 | -13.61 |
| VXF | Vanguard Extended Market ETF | -1,616.00 | 20,294.19 | -7.96 |
| VIG | Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | -1,177.75 | 86,732.76 | -1.36 |
| BIL | SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF | -1,127.60 | 41,050.28 | -2.75 |
ETF Weekly Flows By Asset Class
| Net Flows ($, mm) | AUM ($, mm) | % of AUM | |
| Alternatives | 376.44 | 9,747.36 | 3.86% |
| Asset Allocation | 146.89 | 23,457.98 | 0.63% |
| Commodities ETFs | 886.99 | 196,950.67 | 0.45% |
| Currency | 391.18 | 110,097.98 | 0.36% |
| International Equity | 4,152.10 | 1,662,937.42 | 0.25% |
| International Fixed Income | 1,410.63 | 280,223.52 | 0.50% |
| Inverse | 496.47 | 13,411.94 | 3.70% |
| Leveraged | 512.52 | 107,821.07 | 0.48% |
| US Equity | -20,765.99 | 6,516,277.50 | -0.32% |
| US Fixed Income | 1,925.70 | 1,627,889.81 | 0.12% |
| Total: | -10,467.07 | 10,548,815.25 | -0.10% |
Disclaimer: All data as of 6 a.m. ET the date the article is published. Data are believed to be accurate; however, transient market data are often subject to subsequent revision and correction by the exchanges.
