The week ending 30 September saw a sharp tilt toward equities and away from momentum-chasing strategies. $41.2B flowed into US-focused ETFs in a single week. That is the largest geography bucket by far, with a flow imbalance of 65, indicating buying pressure is decisively one-sided.
Global Ex-US funds attracted $9.7B this week, with an imbalance reading of 99, essentially all inflow, almost no outflow. That is a stark contrast to the 3-month picture, where US ETFs pulled in $198.9B but China was the second-biggest destination at $48.2B over that span.
Japan is the week's clearest loser. It shed $4.0B in 7 days, with a flow imbalance of just 19.9 out of 100. Over three months, Japan had attracted $16.9B. That reversal is abrupt. South Korea and India also saw net outflows on the week, despite Korea attracting $14.2B over 3 months.
Taiwan attracted a modest $163M net this week. Over 3 months it pulled in $15.5B. ORTEX Alt Data shows Taiwan's August export orders hit a record $103B, nearly double the prior year's figure. That trade backdrop helps explain sustained institutional demand for Taiwan exposure through the quarter, even as short-term flows balance out.
Canada attracted $2.2B on the week. ORTEX Alt Data records Canada's August employment and labour force figures as the largest on record since 1976, alongside the highest August CPI reading since 1914. Strong macro momentum is drawing inflows. Over 3 months, Canada has absorbed $9.4B.
Spain and Italy both posted modest but consistent inflows over 1 week and 3 months. ORTEX Alt Data shows Italian unemployment fell to 5.8% in July 2026, the lowest July reading since 1983. Spain's broadband subscriber base has risen for 95 consecutive months.
Industrials was the single biggest weekly loser across all sectors, bleeding $2.4B in 7 days. That is a sharp reversal from a broadly neutral 3-month position, where Industrials absorbed just $208M net. The flow imbalance this week was 15.7 out of 100. Selling pressure is heavy.
Real Estate led all sectors with $913M of inflows, followed by Energy ($548M) and Consumer Discretionary ($542M). Information Technology took in $501M on the week, but that number flatters: gross outflows were $4.5B, with gross inflows of $5.0B. Over 3 months, IT led all sectors with $19.7B net. The 3-month IT leader is now a near-balanced weekly flow.
Energy flipped the other way. It took in $548M this week but was a net loser over 3 months at minus $642M. Short-term buying has emerged where medium-term flows were negative.
Equities attracted $62.0B in 7 days. Fixed Income added $17.2B. Both are positive, but the equity-to-bond ratio is broadly risk-on. Over 3 months, Fixed Income gathered $271.3B, roughly half of equity's $503.9B. Alternatives saw $2.9B of net selling this week, reversing the 3-month trend where they attracted $5.2B.
Commodities recorded net outflows of $275M this week after pulling in $25.8B over 3 months. That is a meaningful short-term reversal.
On strategy, Active ETFs stood out with $16.9B inflows and an imbalance of 83 this week. Momentum funds were the hardest hit, losing $5.3B with an imbalance of just 2.3. Over 3 months, Momentum was also negative at minus $3.3B. That trend is accelerating to the downside.
The overall tone is risk-on but selective: investors are buying US equities, ex-US broad exposure, and active strategies, while cutting momentum, Japan, Industrials, and commodities in the near term.
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.
