Edited by Peter Hillerberg3 min readStories are generated from ORTEX data and reviewed by the ORTEX team. How we publish
The biggest story this week is the scale of equity buying. ETF investors pushed $113B net into equity funds in just seven days. That flow imbalance sits at 74, well above the neutral mark of 50. Over three months the same direction holds, with $518B in net equity inflows. The risk-on tone is broad and sustained.
The US absorbed $85B of net inflows this week. The flow imbalance reading of 74.7 signals clear buying pressure, not balanced two-way activity.
Japan was the standout international story. It drew $12B net this week, with a flow imbalance of 79.2. That is a sharp reversal from its three-month picture, where $7.6B of net inflow came on a near-neutral imbalance of 51. In other words, Japan was a slow-burn over 90 days. This week it accelerated hard. ORTEX alt data adds context: Japanese domestic machine tool orders rose 62% year on year in August, with the order backlog up 45%. That industrial momentum may be drawing attention.
Brazil collected $2.8B net this week with the highest flow imbalance in the geography table at 94.9. Selling was almost absent. Over three months the picture is also positive, at $3.1B net. The buying has been consistent rather than spiked.
Mexico is moving the other way. Outflows of $317M this week follow a three-month loss of $857M. Flow imbalance sits at 2.2, which means sellers dominate almost entirely. Israel shows a similar pattern: $207M out this week and $226M out over three months.
Korea airports handled a record September by passenger numbers, per ORTEX alt data. ETF flows reflect some of that regional optimism. Korea drew $1.6B net this week.
Financials is the largest sector story, and not in a good way. The sector shed $1.9B net this week on a flow imbalance of 30. Over three months, Financials is down $6B net with an imbalance of 45.3. Sellers have been in control for the whole quarter.
Information Technology flipped to positive this week, pulling in $745M net. That looks like a near-term reversal. Over three months, Tech is the biggest sector loser, with $11B of net outflows and a flow imbalance of 48. Buyers are returning, but the three-month trend is still negative.
Utilities attracted $701M net this week with a strong imbalance of 81.9. The three-month total is $3B. Utilities has been a consistent winner all quarter.
Industrials sits in outflow this week at $742M net negative. The imbalance of 38.2 confirms selling pressure. Over three months the sector is roughly flat, so this week is a deterioration.
Health Care added $641M net this week. Real Estate picked up $234M. Both have been positive over three months as well, suggesting a drift toward defensive positioning alongside the broad equity bid.
Fixed income added $24B net this week and $294B over three months. Equities and bonds are both pulling inflows simultaneously. That is a risk-on-and-cautious split rather than a clean either/or rotation.
Commodities swung into a small net outflow this week of $220M, despite pulling in $31B over three months. The short-term flow imbalance dropped to 48. Commodities demand has cooled at the margin.
Active funds dominated strategy flows this week with $82B net and a flow imbalance of 95. That is striking. Vanilla passive funds added $16.5B. Over three months the order reverses, with Vanilla leading at $221B net. Active is growing fast but passive still controls the longer-term picture.
Fundamental strategies pulled $15B net this week on an imbalance of 97.1, the cleanest buy signal in the strategy table. Dividends shed $146M this week. That contrasts with the three-month picture, where dividends attracted $12.2B. The rotation away from income plays is a fresh development.
The overall tone is risk-on. Equity and bond flows are rising together. The US dominates but Japan is the week's sharpest international acceleration.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data and reviewed by the ORTEX team. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
