ETFGI reports assets invested in actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally attract inflows of US$628 million during December
Q4 hedge fund letters, conference, scoops etc
LONDON — January 30, 2019 — ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm covering trends in the global ETF/ETP ecosystem, reported today that actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally gathered net inflows of US$628 million during December. Total assets invested in the global actively managed ETF and ETP industry fell 2.39% by the end of the month, from US$109 billion at the end of November, to US$107 Bn, according to ETFGI’s December 2018 Active ETF and ETP industry landscape insights report, an annual paid-for research subscription service. (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.)
Highlights
- During 2018, assets invested in the Active ETF/ETP industry have increased 33.65%.
- Net new assets gathered by actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally were $628 Mn in December.
- Actively managed funds in the US and Canada continue to grow in popularity.
“The end of 2018 saw the trend in developed markets reverse, and although arguably predictable, the severity left many pundits scratching their heads. This end of year stress has widely been attributed to the disruption caused by trade disputes feeding into economic data, and the view policy makers are not going to be quite as accommodating as initially expected. The S&P 500 returned -9.03% during December, and down -4.38% for 2018. Developed markets ex-US fell -4.62% during December, led by Japan and Canada, bringing the yearly return to -13.21%. Relatively speaking, EM and FM fared the month better, returning -2.68% and -3.15%, finishing 2018 -13.53% and -11.82%, respectively” according to Deborah Fuhr, managing partner and founder of ETFGI.
At the end of December 2018, the actively managed ETF/ETP industry had 621 ETFs/ETPs, with 800 listings, assets of $107 Bn, from 128 providers listed on 20 exchanges. Following net inflows of $628 Mn and market moves during the month, assets invested in actively managed ETFs/ETPs listed globally decreased by 2.39%, from $109.40 Bn at the end of November, to $106.79 Bn.
Growth in actively managed ETF and ETP assets as of the end of December 2018
Equity focused actively managed ETFs/ETPs listed globally saw net outflows of $180 Mn in December, bringing net inflows for 2018 to $6.18 Bn, less than the $7.18 Bn in net inflows at this point last year. Fixed income focused, actively managed ETFs and ETPs listed globally saw net inflows of $757 Bn, growing net inflows for 2018 to $25.19 Bn, greater than the $17.15 Bn in net inflows at this point last year.
Substantial inflows during December can be attributed to the top 20 actively managed ETFs/ETPs by net new assets, which collectively gathered $2.91 Bn. The JPMorgan Ultra-Short Income ETF (JPST US) continued to attract the largest monthly inflows, holding its place at the top of the leader board for the 3rd consecutive month, gathering $719 Mn in December alone.
Top 20 actively managed ETFs/ETPs by net new assets December 2018
| Name | Ticker | Assets (US$ Mn) Dec-18 |
NNA (US$ Mn) YTD 2018 |
NNA (US$ Mn) Dec-18 |
| JPMorgan Ultra-Short Income ETF | JPST US | 5,129 | 5,065 | 719 |
| First Trust Enhanced Short Maturity Fund | FTSM US | 4,062 | 2,632 | 571 |
| iShares Short Maturity Bond ETF | NEAR US | 5,897 | 3,046 | 269 |
| Invesco Ultra Short Duration ETF | GSY US | 2,048 | 989 | 246 |
| iShares Liquidity Income ETF | ICSH US | 878 | 736 | 190 |
| First Trust Low Duration Mortgage Opportunities ETF | LMBS US | 2,041 | 1,093 | 132 |
| SPDR DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF | TOTL US | 2,968 | (497) | 115 |
| PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Strategy Fund | MINT US | 12,194 | 4,000 | 99 |
| PGIM Ultra Short Bond ETF | PULS US | 180 | 180 | 61 |
| First Trust TCW Opportunistic Fixed Income ETF | FIXD US | 415 | 170 | 54 |
| Hartford Total Return Bond ETF | HTRB US | 503 | 482 | 54 |
| First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | EMLP US | 2,099 | 133 | 52 |
| SPDR SSgA Ultra Short Term Bond ETF | ULST US | 156 | 133 | 48 |
| Janus Short Duration Income ETF | VNLA US | 844 | 645 | 47 |
| iShares Premium Money Market Fund | CMR CN | 252 | 181 | 46 |
| WisdomTree Managed Futures Strategy Fund | WTMF US | 258 | 99 | 46 |
| PIMCO Total Return Active Exchange-Traded Fund | BOND US | 1,989 | (118) | 41 |
| Innovator S&P 500 Ultra Buffer ETF | UJUL US | 44 | 44 | 39 |
| PIMCO Monthly Income Fund | PMIF CN | 585 | 414 | 39 |
| Aberdeen Standard Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF | BCI US | 196 | 146 | 39 |
Investors have tended to invest short duration, fixed income ETFs during December.
Article by ETFGI
