Fixed income pulled in $16.3B in the past week. That stands out against a $17B net equity outflow. The contrast is stark. Over three months, both asset classes attracted money — but this week's tilt toward bonds marks a clear near-term defensiveness.
US-focused ETFs bled $30.8B in net outflows this week. That is the largest single regional outflow by far. The flow imbalance reading of 43.9 confirms heavy selling pressure. The three-month picture tells the opposite story: US funds pulled in $147.5B over that stretch, ranking first globally.
The divergence is the week's biggest geographic signal. What was the strongest 3m destination has flipped to the worst 1w performer.
Global Ex-US funds are a bright spot. They drew $8.6B in the past week, with a flow imbalance of 98.1 — near-maximum buying pressure. Canada added $2.1B. Switzerland attracted $520M at a 96.0 imbalance score.
China tells its own story. Over three months, Chinese ETFs pulled in $48.3B — the third-largest global destination. This week it reversed to a $1.9B outflow. Short-term risk appetite for China is fading.
India saw almost no inflows this week. Its flow imbalance dropped to 1.4. That is near-total selling pressure, a sharp contrast to its mixed but more balanced 3m trend.
Tech and Industrials led sector outflows this week. Information Technology shed $1.7B net. Industrials lost $1.8B — the sector's biggest weekly net outflow. Yet over three months, Tech was the top sector globally, attracting $20.1B. Industrials were positive over 3m too. Both are reversing sharply.
Real Estate and Energy attracted fresh money this week. Real Estate pulled in $740M, Energy $532M. Utilities added $363M. These are classic defensive and income-generating plays. Over three months, Energy was actually in outflow at -$2B. This week's energy inflow is a notable reversal.
Health Care bled $251M this week after attracting $5.1B over the past three months. That shift is abrupt.
Fixed Income's $16.3B weekly inflow is the clearest defensive signal. Over three months, bonds also attracted a substantial $266B. The consistent bond buying suggests sustained demand, not just a one-week blip.
Commodities flipped negative this week at -$215M, reversing a $24.9B 3m inflow trend. Currency ETFs attracted $2.2B in the week, suggesting hedging activity.
On strategy, Momentum funds saw a massive $11.4B weekly outflow with a 1.4 flow imbalance — near-total selling. Multi-factor and Fundamental strategies also bled heavily. Active ETFs held up, pulling in $9.3B. Vanilla passive funds attracted $13.6B. Over three months, Active had $120.6B in net inflows, continuing a structural shift away from factor-based approaches.
Dividends and ESG both saw outflows this week despite being strong 3m performers, suggesting broad risk reduction rather than style-specific rotation.
The overall tone this week is defensive. Money is leaving equities, growth, and momentum — and moving into bonds, Real Estate, Utilities, and international diversification.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
