- European-domiciled ETFs attracted $31.5 billion of assets in November, making it the best month of inflows YTD.
- Equity ETFs dominated the net inflows, garnering $30.3 billion in new assets, while fixed income exposures attracted $1.2 billion of inflows.
- The Vanguard UCITS ETF range captured net inflows of $2.8 billion in November, with the majority of ETFs in the range recording positive flows.
Monthly recap: Risk-on sentiment drives huge flows into equity ETFs
European-domiciled ETF inflows accelerated in November to $31.5 billion, with equity ETFs taking in $30.3 billion of that total – both of these figures are monthly highs year to date. While fixed income ETFs also saw positive flows, November’s $1.2 billion total marked the lowest monthly take in 2024. For the year, European-domiciled ETFs have already attracted $244.9 billion of net inflows, far ahead of the previous full-year record ($191 billion in 2021).
The strong equity inflows reflect broadly robust investor sentiment, which seemed to solidify as we gained clarity around the US presidential election. While there is still uncertainty relating to emerging policy risks, markets reacted favourably following the election; the S&P 500 index, for example, rose 5.9% in November, the highest monthly increase in 20241. Although the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England both cut interest rates, bond markets saw only small gains in November as there are concerns inflation could reignite in 2025.
In November, investors showed a strong preference for core US and developed market equity ETF exposures, with smart beta ETFs also seeing inflows. In fixed income, ultra-short maturity bond ETF exposures saw the highest inflows, with a geographic focus on global and euro area exposures. Emerging market bond ETF exposures, meanwhile, suffered heavy net outflows. Multi-asset and alternative ETFs both had net inflows in November, while commodity ETFs weathered net outflows.
Total ETF market flows
Equity ETF flows surge as fixed income ETF flows soften
European ETF cumulative flows – cumulative 12 months by asset class ($ billion)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024.
Equity ETFs
Core equity ETF flows surge in October
Equity flows by category: Month to date ($ million)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024. The ‘segment’ category includes equity exposures which target specific market capitalisation segments, such as small-cap, mid-cap and large-cap. The ‘market access’ category includes difficult-to-access markets such as emerging markets. The ‘basket’ category includes strategies that combine several stocks as the underlying exposure, such as FAANG stocks.
We saw net inflows across most of the equity ETF categories we track. Core equity ETFs added $17.8 billion in inflows, while smart beta and segment ETF strategies gathered $6.2 billion and $4.1 billion, respectively. Market access and thematic ETFs weathered net outflows of -$388 million and -$278 million, respectively. Year to date, equity ETFs overall have seen $184.0 billion of net inflows.
Investors flock to US equity ETFs
Equity flows by geographic exposure: Month to date ($ million)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024. The ‘world’ category excludes emerging markets.
US equity ETFs saw the highest monthly inflows by far, hauling in $23.8 billion. Developed market ETFs came in a distant second, capturing $8.4 billion of net inflows while global ETFs brought in $2.1 billion. Europe equity ETFs saw -$1.3 billion of net outflows, while UK and North America ETF exposures had outflows of -$680 million and -$360 million, respectively.
Fixed income ETFs
Ultra-short maturity ETFs lead fixed income flows
Fixed income flows by category: Month to date ($ million)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024.
Ultra-short maturity bond ETFs were the most popular with European investors in November as they attracted $1.0 billion in assets. Aggregate bond products also saw inflows, gathering $541 million. Conversely, corporate bond strategies saw outflows of -$681 million during the month. In total, bond ETFs have attracted $60.9 billion of net inflows so far in 2024.
Global and euro area bond ETFs capture highest net inflows
Fixed income flows by geographic exposure: Month to date ($ million)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024.
Global bond ETFs topped the table in November, collecting $1.4 billion in net inflows. Euro area and US bond exposures also saw demand, garnering $1.3 billion and $540 million of net inflows, respectively. At the other end of the spectrum, emerging market bond ETFs endured heavy net outflows of -$1.9 billion.
Vanguard UCITS ETFs
Vanguard range sees net inflows of $2.8 billion in November
Vanguard UCITS ETF net flows: Month to date ($ million)
Source: ETFbook, as at 30 November 2024.
The Vanguard UCITS ETF range captured net inflows of $2.8 billion in November, with the majority of ETFs in the range recording positive flows. Inflows were split between Vanguard’s equity UCITS ETF range ($1.5 billion) and fixed income UCITS ETF range ($1.2 billion), while the multi-asset UCITS ETF range saw net inflows of $60 million.
1 Source: S&P Global, total return in USD as at 29 November 2024.
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