Another day, another set of data showing record inflows into exchange-traded funds (ETFs), continuing the upward trend we’ve seen over the last few years.
We know that assets in exchange-traded funds have overtaken hedge funds - but an article by Eric Balchunas for Bloomberg last week pointed out that the amount of money flowing through ETFs has topped the U.S gross domestic product. Consider that in the last 12 months, US$18.2 trillion in ETF shares were traded -- the U.S. GDP stands at $17.4 trillion.
ETFs hit yet another new milestone: assets in the global ETF industry surpassed assets in global hedge funds at the end of the second quarter according to research firm, ETFGI. Since 2008 investors have been focused squarely on costs, liquidity and transparency. While ETFs have easily fit that bill, hedge funds have faced an uphill battle, especially as positive equity performance has made index investing more compelling.
To be honest, I wasn’t all that clear on precisely what Carl Icahn’s specific concerns about fixed income ETFs were - but his exchange with Laurence Fink continues a conversation that’s been going on for months about investors’ thirst for liquidity and their growing use of bond ETFs especially as the anticipated Fed rate hike draws closer.
Are exchange-traded funds (ETFs) a systemic risk? A debate is emerging between two of the biggest asset managers in the world: Janus' Bill Gross and BlackRock. No matter which side you're on, however, the debate points to the need for some important changes.
Global ETFs drew in US$20.8 billion with no thanks to bonds. In all, outflows from bond ETFs hit a nine-month low at US$2.9 billion, as investors fled from investment grade corporate and high yield bonds.
For the fifth month in a row, Canadian ETF flows have topped $1 billion, with all equity categories showing large creations in June, says the latest ETF report from National Bank’s Daniel Straus and Ling Zhang.
Heading into Canada Day, it doesn’t exactly look like it’s going to be a relaxing summer. For one thing, it’s turned cold and rainy here in Toronto which is a major bummer for local kids (including mine) as they try enjoy the first summer weekend. But it’s not the weather I’m worried about - it’s all the volatility cropping up in the markets. Greece aside, the big story last week came out of China, where investors are experiencing a major market slide.
The active versus passive debate is pretty black and white -- but as investors have discovered, there’s a whole lot of grey area in between. Cue the development of products like smart beta that aim to address the gap. Although popular, new research shows smart beta ETFs might not be delivering on their promise.
Investors are pulling out of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tracking U.S. corporate bonds - who are they and what does it mean for the fixed income space?