After the summer pullback, investors dived back into stock exchange traded funds over October, adding to the best monthly equity market rally in four years.
U.S.-listed stock ETFs attracted more inflows over October than the rest of the year combined, reports Eric Balchunas for Bloomberg.
Equity ETFs saw $10 billion in net inflows over October, compared to $6 billion for the year through September. [ETF Performance Report: October]
Potentially enticing investors back into the stock markets, the Federal Reserve maintained its loose, easy-money policy in September. Meanwhile, the European Central Bank, Bank of Japan and other emerging market central banks are also engaging in full-blown quantitative easing.
International equity ETFs attracted $5 billion in net inflows over October and saw $87 billion in inflows for the year ended September. [What Does The ECB’s Decision Mean For ETFs?]
Among stock ETFs that saw the largest inflows over October, the iShares MSCI Eurozone ETF (NYSEArca: EZU), which tracks European Union countries, added $1.5 billion. After 12 months of outflows that totaled $7.2 billion, the emerging markets took in $1.6 billion, with the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEArca: IEMG) bringing in $900 million. [ETF Asset Category With Killer Valuations]
Additionally, overseas volatility may have also pushed some investors back into what they knew best – stable U.S. equities.
The most popular U.S. stock ETFs for October include the PowerShares QQQ (NasdaqGM: QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100, attracted $1.1 billion, iShares Russell 1000 Value ETF (NYSEArca: IWD) saw $1.1 billion in inflows, Vanguard 500 Index (NYSEArca: VOO) experienced $874.8 million in inflows and iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: IVV) added $725.1 million, according to ETF.com.
For more information on asset flows, visit our ETF Performance Reports category.