ETFGI Reports ETFs And ETPs Listed In Europe Gather Net Inflows Of US$3.93 Billion During December 2018

ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm covering trends in the global ETF/ETP ecosystem, reported today that ETFs and ETPs listed in Europe gathered net inflows of US$3.93 billion during December, bringing 2018 net inflows to US$56.72 billion. Assets invested in the European ETF/ETP industry finished the month down 3.22%, from US$794 billion at the end of November, to US$768 billion, according to ETFGI’s December 2018 European ETF and ETP industry landscape insights report, an annual paid-for research subscription service.  (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.) 

Highlights

• December 2018 marked the 51^st consecutive month of net inflows.
• During 2018, ETFs/ETPs listed in Europe attracted $56.74 Bn in net inflows.
• Assets invested in the European ETF/ETP industry hit record highs of $858 Bn in January 2018.

“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 European ETF/ETP industry had 2,322 ETFs/ETPs, an 11.90% increase over 2017, from 70 providers listed on 28 exchanges. European Emerging and Frontier markets saw strong product growth throughout 2018, with 58 new ETFs/ETPs. 
Assets invested in ETFs/ETPs listed in Europe decreased by 3.22%, from $794 Bn at the end of November 2018, to $768 Bn at the end of December due to the market moves being greater than the $3.93 Bn in net inflows. By the end of the year, assets invested in the European ETF/ETP industry were down 4.25% compared to that of 2017, falling from $802 Bn to $768 Bn.
 
 
Growth in Europe ETF and ETP assets as of the end of December 2018


Equity ETFs/ETPs listed in Europe saw net outflows of $1.51 Bn in December, bringing net inflows for 2018 to $35.44 Bn, considerably less than the $71.03 Bn in net inflows equity products attracted in 2017. Fixed Income ETFs and ETPs listed in Europe saw net inflows of $5.05 Bn in December, bringing net inflows for 2018 to $19.67 Bn, less than the $25 Bn in net inflows seen in 2017.  

Substantial inflows during December can be attributed to the top 20 ETFs by net new assets, which collectively gathered $7.91 Bn. iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF-D (IWDG LN) gathered $1.02 Bn, the largest net inflow in December. 

Top 20 ETFs by net new assets December 2018: Europe
 

 


Similarly, the top 10 ETPs by net new assets collectively gathered $1.69 Bn by the end of December 2018. 

Top 10 ETPs by net new assets December 2018: Europe
 

 
Investors tended to invest in core fixed income and equity, emerging markets, market cap and lower cost ETFs in December.