Fixed Income Dominates as Munis and Ultrashorts Surge

Issuer flows skewed heavily toward the largest brands, with iShares pulling in $5.24B on the day, extending a 30-Day haul of $48.63B and a YTD total of $314.80B against its $4.66T AUM base. Vanguard added $1.84B on the day despite a negative 5-Day reading of ($2.06B), while JPMorgan ($957.4M) and smaller shops T. Rowe Price ($526.3M) and PIMCO ($473.9M) rounded out the top absolute gainers. Invesco led outflows at ($1.41B) even as its 5-Day and 30-Day figures remain positive at $3.57B and $1.58B respectively, while ARK shed ($529.5M), equal to -3.33% of its $15.89B AUM. On a relative basis, smaller issuers PMV (15.02%) and Worth Charting (12.12%) posted the largest percentage inflows, while Horizons saw the steepest relative outflow at -12.02% of its $1.10B AUM.

Total ETF flows reached $10.01B on the day, well below the 5-Day pace of $54.11B but consistent with the 30-Day run-rate of $148.84B and a YTD total of $1,539.23B. Fixed Income was the standout asset class, gathering $8.17B on the day versus $20.87B over 5 days and $492.10B YTD, while Equity added a comparatively modest $372.3M against a $927.31B YTD total. Non-Traditional funds took in $1.55B, outpacing their own 5-Day figure of $1.81B, and Commodity funds lost ($328.7M), continuing a soft 1-Week trend of ($416.7M) despite a positive 30-Day figure of $4.79B. At the category level, Government Ultrashort ($2.78B) and Municipal Intermediate ($2.29B) fixed income led inflows, while Thematic Multi-Sector equity ($613.4M), Industrial ($506.0M), and Consumer Staples ($459.5M) sectors paced outflows.

U.S. size and style flows were led by the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) at $805.9M and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) at $669.2M, followed by the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) at $579.4M and the T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation Equity ETF (TCAF) at $470.6M. On the outflow side, the Invesco QQQ Trust Series I (QQQ) shed ($811.7M) and the Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) lost ($600.3M), with the State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) down ($384.5M).

International flows were comparatively modest, with the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) leading at $122.8M and the iShares Core MSCI International Developed Markets ETF (IDEV) close behind at $121.5M. The Avantis International Equity ETF (AVDE) and Capital Group International Focus Equity ETF (CGXU) added $90.8M and $85.4M, respectively. On the downside, the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) led outflows at ($393.0M), with the Horizon International Managed Risk ETF (SFTX) down ($113.6M).

Sector flows favored defensives and healthcare, with the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) gathering $527.6M, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) adding $227.0M, and the State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU) up $220.4M. Conversely, the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) led outflows at ($645.8M), followed by the Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF (PPA) at ($605.4M) and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) at ($326.7M), consistent with the broader Industrial and Information Technology category outflows of ($506.0M) and ($449.6M).

Regional flows favored Japan and the Pacific, with the iShares MSCI Japan ETF (EWJ) leading at $364.8M and the Vanguard FTSE Pacific ETF (VPL) adding $175.2M. Smaller inflows came into the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Canada ETF (BBCA) at $45.6M and the iShares MSCI Italy ETF (EWI) at $44.7M. On the outflow side, China-focused funds lagged, led by the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI) at ($107.0M) and the iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI) at ($41.8M).

Thematic flows were mixed, with the ARK Next Generation Technology ETF (ARKW) gathering $104.7M and the Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF (PAVE) adding $95.3M, while the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) brought in $69.2M. Outflows were led by the ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) at ($621.4M), far outpacing the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) at ($127.0M) and the iShares U.S. Infrastructure ETF (IFRA) at ($83.2M), reflecting the broader Thematic Multi-Sector category outflow of ($613.4M).

Fixed Income flows were robust across short-duration and municipal products, with the State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF (BIL) leading at $1.55B and the iShares 0-1 Year Treasury Bond ETF (SHV) adding $1.49B. The Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETF (VTEB) gathered $1.41B, consistent with the $2.29B category-level inflow into Municipal Intermediate, while the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD) added $644.7M. On the outflow side, the Vanguard Long-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCLT) lost ($391.9M), and the RBB Fund Inc F/m Accumulator Ultrashort Treasury Fund (SGVA) declined by ($243.9M), equal to -100% of its AUM (may be the result of a custom rebalance).

Commodity flows were negative overall at ($328.7M) on the day, with the SPDR Gold Minishares Trust of beneficial interest (GLDM) the lone notable gainer at $49.4M, alongside the United States Oil Fund LP (USO) at $43.1M. The SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) led outflows at ($229.0M), consistent with the Precious Metals category’s ($264.8M) decline, while the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) shed ($85.2M).

Digital Asset flows added $111.2M on the day, trailing the 5-Day pace of $1.32B, with the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) leading at $51.1M and the newly launched Bitwise NEAR ETF (NRR) gathering $36.0M. The ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) added $33.2M, while the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF Trust (BITB) saw outflows of ($18.1M) and the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) lost ($8.9M).

Non-Traditional funds gathered $1.55B on the day, with the JPMorgan NASDAQ Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPQ) leading at $152.8M, followed by several Tradr leveraged single-stock products including the Tradr 2X Long Innovation 100 Monthly ETF (MQQQ) at $98.5M and the Tradr 2X Long LITE Daily ETF (LITX) at $96.8M. The Goldman Sachs Nasdaq-100 Premium Income ETF (GPIQ) added $98.3M, consistent with the $859.6M inflow into the Leverage | Inverse Single Stock category. On the outflow side, the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF (SOXL) led with ($103.0M), while the Amplify CWP Enhanced Dividend Income ETF (DIVO) shed ($70.1M).

Recent launches spanned a range of categories and sizes, with the Bitwise NEAR ETF (NRR) already at $36.5M in AUM after a September 28 inception in the Cryptocurrency Altcoin category. The Longnook Uncommon Compounders ETF (LUNC) debuted with $32.2M in Global Large Cap Blend, while Putnam’s Focused U.S. Research ETF (PFRX) launched with no reported AUM yet. Several smaller, sub-$1M launches rounded out the list, including Portfolio Building Block’s sector-specific products in Industrials, Consumer Staples, and Financials, alongside niche entries like the T-Strive Digital Credit Preferred Income ETF (DCAP) and the VegaShares US Equity Autocallable Conservative Income ETF (VAIC).