Bonds Lead, US Bleeds, EM Bets Rise

Fixed income is the story of the week. Bond ETFs pulled in a net $23.3B over the past seven days. That dwarfs every other asset class. Equities added $6.5B — real, but modest by comparison. The week's flows signal caution, not confidence.

Geography: Non-US Markets Win

The US bled $5.0B in net outflows this week. That is the single largest negative geography flow. Over three months, the US has pulled in $264B — so the weekly reversal is a sharp break from trend.

Money is rotating outward. Global ETFs took in $3.0B in the week. Developed Markets added $1.9B. Emerging Markets gained $1.2B, with a flow imbalance of 88 — one of the strongest buying signals in the data.

Japan pulled in $937M this week. Over three months it has attracted $96.3B, second only to the US. That trend holds firm. Brazil saw $349M in fresh inflows this week — notable because it posted outflows over the three-month window (-$1.2B). That is a clear short-term reversal worth watching.

Sector Rotation: Tech Holds, Industrials Slide

Information Technology was the only sector with meaningful net inflows this week: $589M. Over three months, Tech leads all sectors by a wide margin at $38.9B. The 1-week flow imbalance sits at just 52, though — barely above neutral. Buying pressure is fading.

Consumer Discretionary bled $481M this week. Industrials lost $400M. Both are reversals from positive three-month trends. Industrials had attracted $2.0B over 90 days — this week's outflow is a notable change.

Financials added $329M on the week. Over three months, Financials has seen $4.1B in net inflows. That trend is intact. Energy scraped in $63M this week but sits at -$4.0B over three months. Short-term buying has not repaired the longer trend.

Asset Class & Strategy: Bonds and Active Surge

Fixed Income's $23.3B weekly haul dominates asset class flows. The flow imbalance hit 74 — strong buying pressure. Equities remain the largest asset class by AUM but look relatively flat this week.

Commodities added $914M. Alternatives took in $601M. Both show modest but positive buying signals, with imbalances near 60.

On strategy, the standout this week is Dividend ETFs. They pulled in $1.1B, with a flow imbalance of 84 — the highest among major strategies. Growth ETFs added $1.0B. Active ETFs gathered $962M, extending a powerful three-month run of $181.4B. Vanilla passive strategies shed $2.4B this week, a stark contrast to their $302B three-month total.

ESG strategies attracted $1.4B this week, with an imbalance of 70 — above trend.

The overall tone is defensive rotation. Money is leaving US equities and passive broad-market products. It is moving into bonds, dividend strategies, and select international markets. Risk appetite has not collapsed — but it has clearly cooled.