Weekly Inflows Slow To A Trickle
Inflows into U.S.-listed ETFs were positive, but they fell significantly from the lofty levels of the past few weeks.
After a few weeks of monster inflows, the pace of new money coming into U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds slowed to a trickle. According to FactSet, investors added only $1.4 billion in total to ETFs during the week ending Thursday, June 22.
A decent-sized outflow from U.S. equity ETFs was offset by a slightly larger inflow into international equity ETFs. At the same time, U.S. fixed-income ETFs, international fixed-income ETFs and commodity ETFs each saw small inflows.
Utilities And Health Care In Favor
About half the funds on the top 10 creations list were international equity ETFs. The iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA) led the pack, with inflows of $1.1 billion; followed by the iShares Japan ETF (EWJ), with inflows of $809 million.
However, there were some notable U.S. equity ETFs that also garnered favor. The Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU) had inflows of $593 million. There was some talk during the week about how some investors may be rotating out of the high-flying technology sector and into defensive sectors like utilities.
Meanwhile, the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was also popular this week, with inflows of $512 million. The ETF hit the highest level in 1 1/2 years as investors speculated that Trump's health care policies may be more favorable to the group than expected.
Another sector ETF on the top 10 was the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE), which took in $294 million even as oil prices fell to a 10-month low below $43 during the week.
The Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCIT) was the only fixed-income name on the list, with inflows of $369 million.
Investors Dump Junk Bonds
The outflows list for the week was chock-full of U.S. broad market equity ETFs, such as the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), with redemptions of $2.5 billion, and the Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF (VO), with redemptions of $1.3 billion.
One of the smaller funds to make the list was the First Trust Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index Fund (FDL), with redemptions of $431 million.
Two junk bond ETFs also saw hefty outflows, as the decline in oil prices fueled default worries. The iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) and the SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF (JNK) had outflows of $747 million and $426 million, respectively.
For a full list of this week's top inflows and outflows, see the tables below:
Top 10 Creations (All ETFs)
| Ticker | Name | Net Flows ($,mm) | AUM ($, mm) | AUM % Change |
| EFA | iShares MSCI EAFE ETF | 1,131.60 | 76,315.33 | 1.51% |
| EWJ | iShares MSCI Japan ETF | 809.21 | 17,163.99 | 4.95% |
| IWM | iShares Russell 2000 ETF | 635.48 | 38,734.84 | 1.67% |
| XLU | Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund | 593.17 | 8,086.10 | 7.92% |
| IBB | iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology ETF | 511.77 | 9,244.36 | 5.86% |
| IEFA | iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF | 450.33 | 27,081.88 | 1.69% |
| VEA | Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | 376.75 | 54,285.59 | 0.70% |
| VCIT | Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF | 368.54 | 14,969.26 | 2.52% |
| EZU | iShares MSCI Eurozone ETF | 304.61 | 13,218.54 | 2.36% |
| XLE | Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund | 293.76 | 15,747.07 | 1.90% |
Top 10 Redemptions (All ETFs)
| Ticker | Name | Net Flows ($,mm) | AUM ($, mm) | AUM % Change |
| IVV | iShares Core S&P 500 ETF | -2,534.99 | 116,151.22 | -2.14% |
| VO | Vanguard Mid-Cap ETF | -1,347.14 | 19,725.45 | -6.39% |
| VTI | Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | -1,201.81 | 80,019.68 | -1.48% |
| VUG | Vanguard Growth ETF | -1,085.31 | 27,709.16 | -3.77% |
| HYG | iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | -746.93 | 17,715.11 | -4.05% |
| SPY | SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | -644.11 | 240,861.81 | -0.27% |
| FDL | First Trust Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index Fund | -431.41 | 1,746.89 | -19.81% |
| JNK | SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF | -425.85 | 11,186.68 | -3.67% |
| VXF | Vanguard Extended Market ETF | -327.41 | 4,911.32 | -6.25% |
| VBR | Vanguard Small-Cap Value ETF | -285.89 | 11,042.81 | -2.52% |
ETF Weekly Flows By Asset Class
| Net Flows ($, mm) | AUM ($, mm) | % of AUM | |
| U.S. Equity | -5,255.79 | 1,672,001.70 | -0.31% |
| International Equity | 5,637.25 | 661,113.70 | 0.85% |
| U.S. Fixed Income | 379.45 | 474,607.47 | 0.08% |
| International Fixed Income | 151.61 | 51,951.64 | 0.29% |
| Commodities | 191.67 | 62,748.33 | 0.31% |
| Currency | 109.29 | 1,431.97 | 7.63% |
| Leveraged | 445.81 | 27,900.20 | 1.60% |
| Inverse | -340.59 | 16,384.29 | -2.08% |
| Asset Allocation | 32.74 | 7,142.24 | 0.46% |
| Alternatives | 65.27 | 3,867.35 | 1.69% |
| Total: | 1,416.70 | 2,979,148.89 | 0.05% |
Top 10 Volume Surprises, Funds >$50 mm AUM
| Ticker | Name | Average Volume (30 Day) | 1 Week Average Volume | % of Average |
| PBS | PowerShares Dynamic Media Portfolio | 56,054 | 292,835 | 522.42% |
| FRAK | VanEck Vectors Unconventional Oil & Gas ETF | 39,219 | 185,530 | 473.06% |
| VGLT | Vanguard Long-Term Government Bond ETF | 78,927 | 326,877 | 414.15% |
| VAW | Vanguard Materials ETF | 129,592 | 527,488 | 407.04% |
| VIOO | Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 ETF | 38,540 | 114,773 | 297.80% |
| FVL | First Trust Value Line 100 ETF | 5,842 | 15,299 | 261.87% |
| FIXD | First Trust TCW Opportunistic Fixed Income ETF | 5,491 | 9,078 | 165.31% |
| QXGG | QuantX Risk Managed Growth ETF | 1,625 | 3,143 | 193.42% |
| VGSH | Vanguard Short-Term Government Bond ETF | 133,581 | 279,354 | 209.13% |
| INXX | Columbia India Infrastructure ETF | 41,461 | 75,991 | 183.28% |
Top 10 Weekly Performers, Excluding Leverage/Inverse Funds and <1,000 Shares Traded
| Ticker | Name | Weekly Performance | Weekly Volume | AUM ($, mm) |
| NIB | iPath Bloomberg Cocoa Subindex Total Return ETN | 13.22% | 413,149 | 46.70 |
| DCNG | iPath Seasonal Natural Gas ETN | 13.22% | 7,400 | 0.63 |
| CHOC | iPath Pure Beta Cocoa ETN | 11.85% | 15,956 | 4.60 |
| MLPJ | Global X Junior MLP ETF | 8.33% | 23,345 | 7.11 |
| PSCE | PowerShares S&P SmallCap Energy Portfolio | 6.77% | 134,434 | 31.54 |
| OLO | DB Crude Oil Long ETN | 6.48% | 14,952 | 6.59 |
| XES | SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF | 6.46% | 4,180,974 | 244.57 |
| GAZ | iPath Bloomberg Natural Gas Subindex Total Return ETN | 6.15% | 158,242 | 2.56 |
| JO | iPath Bloomberg Coffee Subindex Total Return ETN | 5.90% | 981,573 | 132.36 |
| GXG | Global X MSCI Colombia ETF | 5.72% | 667,030 | 90.12 |
Bottom 10 Weekly Performers, Excluding Leverage/Inverse Funds and <1,000 Shares Traded
| Ticker | Name | Weekly Performance | Weekly Volume | AUM ($, mm) |
| BBP | BioShares Biotechnology Products Fund | -9.38% | 56,856 | 40.74 |
| XBI | SPDR S&P BIOTECH ETF | -9.28% | 23,171,313 | 3,590.94 |
| BBC | BioShares Biotechnology Clinical Trials Fund | -8.67% | 107,930 | 24.13 |
| SBIO | ALPS Medical Breakthroughs ETF | -8.11% | 192,255 | 114.63 |
| PTH | PowerShares DWA Healthcare Momentum Portfolio | -7.94% | 51,519 | 67.12 |
| CNCR | Loncar Cancer Immunotherapy ETF | -7.14% | 140,347 | 36.61 |
| IBB | iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology ETF | -7.05% | 10,794,422 | 9,244.36 |
| FBT | First Trust NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index Fund | -6.93% | 191,801 | 1,039.01 |
| ARKG | ARK Genomic Revolution Multi-Sector ETF | -6.41% | 96,777 | 19.25 |
| ORG | The Organics ETF | -6.31% | 20,207 | 5.76 |
Top 10 YTD Performers
| Ticker | Name | YTD Performance | Weekly Performance | AUM ($, mm) |
| VMAX | REX VolMAXX Long VIX Weekly Futures Strategy ETF | 124.54% | 2.33% | 2.71 |
| GAZ | iPath Bloomberg Natural Gas Subindex Total Return ETN | 101.71% | 4.24% | 2.56 |
| VIXY | ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures ETF | 85.35% | 1.31% | 154.98 |
| VXX | iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN | 85.30% | 1.56% | 1,056.73 |
| VIIX | VelocityShares Daily Long VIX Short-Term ETN | 85.01% | 1.39% | 12.65 |
| PSCE | PowerShares S&P SmallCap Energy Portfolio | 73.71% | 7.74% | 31.54 |
| SGG | iPath Bloomberg Sugar Subindex Total Return ETN | 64.78% | 3.36% | 38.13 |
| XES | SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF | 55.94% | 8.04% | 244.57 |
| VIXM | ProShares VIX Mid-Term Futures ETF | 47.01% | 2.12% | 30.40 |
| VXZ | iPath S&P 500 VIX Mid-Term Futures ETN | 46.84% | 2.26% | 30.31 |
Bottom 10 YTD Performers
| Ticker | Name | YTD Performance | Weekly Performance | AUM ($, mm) |
| XIVH | VelocityShares VIX Short Volatility Hedged ETN | -32.63% | -0.91% | 55.17 |
| ARKK | ARK Innovation ETF | -31.35% | -4.17% | 54.94 |
| ARKW | ARK Web x.0 ETF | -29.73% | -2.93% | 54.18 |
| EMQQ | Emerging Markets Internet & Ecommerce ETF | -28.59% | -2.87% | 149.00 |
| GAMR | PureFunds Video Game Tech ETF | -28.58% | -1.76% | 29.35 |
| KWEB | KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF | -28.21% | -3.59% | 546.35 |
| CXSE | WisdomTree China ex-State-Owned Enterprises Fund | -28.05% | -3.05% | 9.91 |
| SCIN | Columbia India Small Cap ETF | -27.50% | -1.01% | 29.55 |
| SCIF | VanEck Vectors India Small-Cap Index ETF | -26.97% | 0.31% | 339.45 |
| SMIN | iShares MSCI India Small Cap ETF | -26.26% | -0.02% | 197.68 |
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.
