The more optimistic outlook, or at least lessening global market concerns, have brought investors back into the markets. While U.S.-listed exchange traded funds experienced record inflows, the neighbor to the North has also taken a greater interest in the ETF investment vehicle.
The Canadian ETF industry has attracted $49.1 billion in assets, or up 13.5% over the first quarter of 2012, primarily fueled by inflows from retail investors, writes John Gabriel, ETF strategist, for Morningstar. There are currently 247 Canada-listed ETFs. [Global ETFs Gather Record Q1 Inflows]
Canada-listed ETFs posted record inflows of $4.5 billion in new assets over the first quarter, bringing in about $1.5 billion in each of the first three months. In comparison, Canadian investors only put $1.76 billion in ETFs for the entire first quarter last year. To put this in perspective, the last record quarterly inflow was $2.7 billion in the Q3 of 2009 and Q4 of 2011.
Meanwhile, Canadian mutual funds brought in $6.4 billion over the first quarter. Over the past year, their mutual funds added $10.3 billion in net inflows.
It should be noted that 80% of Canadian financial advisors are registered with the Mutual Fund Dealers Association, which does not allow the sale of ETFs to their clients. Canadian investors working with an advisor and are interest in including ETFs to their portfolios will have to make sure their advisor is regulated with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada.
For more information on ETF fund flows, visit our ETF performance reports category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.
The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.