Bears continued to rage through the markets, and the leading exchange traded funds (ETFs) for the month of November only further illustrate that point.

November’s top funds focused on gold, Treasuries and leveraged inverse oil. This makes a strong case that the turmoil isn’t over yet, and investors are still seeking shelter.

Trang Ho for Investors Business Daily reports that utilities, telecom, nuclear and wind energy were the few sectors to post modest gains of 4% or less. Coal, chips, solar energy and REITs were the biggest losers, as they all lost around 20% or more.

In general, ETF assets increased 4.4% to $393.7 billion for the month, and year-to-date pulled in $105.9 billion, up 26.8%, according to TrimTabs. Thirty-five new funds were launched in November, bringing the number of products to 840. No ETFs closed last month, but five are to liquidate by the end of the year.

This marks the first significant challenging time that people have turned to ETFs. When the market turns, ETFs are going to get more than their fair share of cash on the sidelines.

Tags: Alternative Energy, Coal, GDX, GLD, Gold, Green ETFs, Precious Metals, Real Estate, REITs, Sector ETFs, Solar, Telecommunications, Utilities, Wind