Stocks trading on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises Index continue to take a drubbing, prompting investors to pull massive amounts of cash from China exchange traded funds. That applies to both Asia and U.S-listed ETFs.
For the week ending March 19, investors pulled $1.5 billion from Chinese equity funds, $1.3 billion of which departed ETFs, according to Bloomberg, which cited EPFR Global data. Investors yanked $219 million the iShares FTSE A50 China ETF on March 17 while the CSOP FTSE China A50 ETF lost over $193 million on the same day, Bloomberg reported.
Some China ETFs trading in the U.S. are losing cash as well as. For the week ending March 19, the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (NYSEArca: FXI), the largest China ETF, lost $245.3 million while the iShares MSCI China ETF (NYSEArca: MCHI) lost nearly $13 million. [Pricey to Bet Against Big China ETF]
Hong ETFs have not been immune to the outflows trend as the iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF (NYSEArca: EWH) is lighter by $85.2 million since March 13. FXI and MCHI are off an average of 10% year-to-date while EWH is lower by 6%. [Bearish Call on Hong Kong ETF]
Slack economic data out of the world’s second-largest economy is hampering China ETFs. February exports declined 18%, compared to expectations of a 7.5% increase. Industrial production for the first two months of the year increased 8.6%, compared to forecasts for 9.5%. Retail sales over the first two months gained 11.8%, compared to a 13.5% anticipated rise. [Economic Malaise Threatens China ETFs]
China is currently implementing economic reforms, including reducing overcapacity and controlling pollution, breaking down corruption, enacting austerity measures to curb spending, and increasing transparency in shadow banking.