Investors Shed U.S. Stocks in Favor of Treasuries and Gold

Issuer League Tables

Vanguard and State Street (SPDR) led the absolute flow leaderboard on January 16, 2026, recording net inflows of $2,435M and $1,497M, respectively. Conversely, First Trust experienced the heaviest outflows among major issuers, shedding ($2,176M) on a single-day basis, which contrasts with its positive 5-day flow trend of $647M. iShares followed as the second-largest laggard with ($1,865M) in daily redemptions, though it maintains a dominant YTD flow position of $6.90B. In the relative flow landscape, smaller brands like AGF and Neuberger Berman saw significant single-day gains of 7.94% and 6.29% of their total AUM, while Gadsden faced a relative decline of 12.44% of its AUM following a ($22M) outflow.

Issuer Flows (Absolute)

Issuer Flows (Relative)

Daily ETF Flow Analysis

Fixed Income was the primary destination for new capital on January 16, attracting $4,556M in net daily flows and bringing its 1-year total to $454,677M. This activity was countered by significant redemptions in the Equity asset class, which lost ($1,988M) on the day, although it remains the largest class by AUM at $10.62T. Commodity ETFs saw a robust daily increase of $1,959M, largely driven by Precious Metals which captured $1,828M. Non-Traditional ETFs faced substantial daily outflows of ($1,758M), led primarily by redemptions in Buffer and Leverage/Inverse categories.

Asset Class Flows

Top 10 Category Flows

Bottom 10 Category Flows

U.S. Size & Style

U.S. Size & Style flows were dominated by heavy redemptions in Large Cap Blend, with the category losing ($5,835M) on January 16. IVV and SPY were the primary laggards, shedding ($4,240M) and ($1,349M) respectively. In contrast, RSP recorded the highest daily inflow of $601M, highlighting a pivot toward equal-weighted structures within the large-cap space. Smaller cap segments were mixed, as U.S. Small Cap Blend saw a gain of $399M while U.S. Small Cap Value lost ($238M).

Size & Style ex-U.S.

Emerging Large Cap equities led the international segment with $1,050M in net daily inflows, significantly outperforming Global ex-U.S. Large Cap Blend which saw outflows of ($32M). IEMG and VWO were the primary beneficiaries, attracting $384M and $304M, respectively. Conversely, ESGD faced the largest redemption in the group, losing ($108M). The 1-year flow trend for the total international size and style category remains robust at $186.62B.

Sector & Industry

The Sector & Industry landscape saw significant dispersion, with Health Care and Communication Services leading inflows while Real Estate and Materials faced selling pressure. SMH stood out with $555M in daily inflows, bringing its 1-week total to $1,252M. In contrast, XLRE shed ($525M), contributing to a broader ($298M) daily loss for the Real Estate sector. Information Technology remains the largest sector by AUM at $353.6B, recording a net daily gain of $349M.

Region & Country

Region and Country ETF flows were heavily concentrated in Asia-Pacific, which captured $337M in net daily inflows, led by EWY with $128M. Latin America also saw positive traction, recording $148M on the day, primarily driven by EWZ which added $100M to its $7.27B AUM base. The Eurozone segment reported a modest daily gain of $20M, while Africa-Middle East experienced net redemptions of ($15M). Overall, total region and country flows for the day reached $543M, while the 1-year total sits at $4,204M.

Thematic

Thematic ETF activity was characterized by a massive $881M influx into Natural Resources, which has now captured $2,782M YTD. XME was the single largest beneficiary with $359M in daily flows, followed by GUNR at $190M. Conversely, Infrastructure themes saw significant selling, losing ($716M) on the day, primarily due to ($757M) in redemptions from AIRR. Industrial Revolution themes remain a strong performer YTD, with $6,738M in net new capital invested.

Fixed Income

Fixed Income ETFs attracted $4,556M in daily net flows, with Intermediate duration products leading the group at $2,893M. VGIT and VCIT captured $661M and $512M respectively, while SCHP added $314M in daily flows. Outflows were most prominent in LQD, which shed ($455M), and TLT, which recorded redemptions of ($141M). Government bond ETFs saw the highest aggregate daily inflows by type at $2,180M, while Preferred Stock experienced a slight daily decline of ($11M).

Commodity

Commodity ETFs were propelled by a massive $1,828M daily inflow into Precious Metals, with GLD capturing $1,611M, representing over 80% of total asset class flows. Energy commodities followed with $56M in daily gains, largely supported by $59M in new capital for UNG. Multi-sector broad market products saw a $35M daily increase, contributing to a YTD total of $398M for the category. Agriculture faced slight selling pressure, recording ($10M) in redemptions, with USO and DBA leading the laggard list.

Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency ETFs generated $309M in net daily flows, with Ethereum-focused products leading at $161M. IBIT was the top daily performer, capturing $316M, whereas FBTC faced the largest redemption with ($189M) in daily outflows. Bitcoin-specific products saw a combined $138M in daily inflows, contributing to a significant $1,459M YTD total. Multicoin strategies were the only laggard by category, shedding ($18M) on the day, primarily from BITW.

Non-Traditional

Non-Traditional ETF flows were heavily impacted by redemptions in Buffer Equity products, which lost ($1,618M) on January 16. FJAN and SOXL led the redemptions with daily outflows of ($976M) and ($779M), respectively. Conversely, Synthetic Income strategies continued to see strong adoption, recording $371M in daily inflows, led by QQQI and SPYI. The Leverage & Inverse category also faced net redemptions of ($515M) on the day, bringing its YTD flow total to ($4.64B).

Recent Launches

The ETF market continues to expand with 21 active and 6 passive launches recorded YTD, totaling $1.06B in new launch AUM. BNY Mellon has been the most prolific issuer by AUM in new products, bringing $4,873M to market through five new municipal and bond ETFs. The most recent daily activity included the launch of the FDRX and multiple single-stock leverage products from Leverage Shares. Unclassified and Non-Traditional categories continue to dominate the new issuance pipeline, with 19 and 17 launches respectively YTD.