Taiwan and Tech Lead the ETF Flow Story

China topped the geography table this week. It pulled in a net $12.0B over seven days, beating the US at $8.2B. The flow imbalance reading of 76.1 for China signals strong buying pressure. Taiwan was third with $5.6B, driven by near-unanimous inflows and a 96.4 flow imbalance score. Taiwan's record-breaking export performance adds context here. Export orders hit $114.2B in September, the largest September total since 1984, according to ORTEX Alt Data. The product-group sub-index rose to $95.7B from $55.1B a year earlier. The surge in semiconductor-related orders is consistent with the weight of ETF money flowing into Taiwan-focused funds.

Geography Flows

Japan reversed sharply over the 1-week window, attracting $4.7B after running at a $6.5B net outflow over three months. That is the most notable trend shift in the geography table. Brazil added $821M on the week with a flow imbalance of 92.9, indicating nearly one-directional buying. North America, however, swung to a net outflow of $679M this week, despite being the dominant 3-month destination at $303B. Israel bled $342M on the week, extending a weak three-month run where it shed $606M. India also remained under pressure, with outflows of $40M this week and $1.2B over three months.

The three-month picture shows the US still towering over every other geography. $303B in net inflows dwarf second-place Global at $62B. China's 3-month net is $22.4B, well behind its current weekly pace, suggesting fresh money accelerated into China in recent days.

Sector Rotation

Information Technology absorbed the most sector money this week, pulling in $5.1B net. That headline masks a reversal: over three months, IT's net flow dropped to $11.9B, but its flow imbalance compressed to 52.3, barely above neutral. Short sellers remain active in the space. Energy attracted $524M on the week with a 69.9 imbalance, building on a $2.1B three-month trend. Health Care added $344M this week and $2.9B over three months, a steady bid.

The sharpest reversal is in Industrials. This week it saw $1.2B in net outflows, a flow imbalance of just 30.4. Over three months, outflows from Industrials reached $1.5B. Selling pressure has been consistent. Utilities also swung from a $2.7B three-month inflow to a $493M outflow this week, its imbalance dropping to 27.1. That is a clean defensive-to-cyclical rotation signal, consistent with a risk-on tone.

Financials tells the biggest three-month story. It shed $9.7B over three months, the largest sector outflow by far. Yet this week it attracted a $283M net inflow. Whether that marks a turn or just a pause is unclear.

Asset Class and Strategy

Equities dominated both timeframes. This week ETF equity flows hit $38.4B net, versus $14.1B into fixed income. Over three months, equities drew $535B and bonds $290B. Both asset classes are attracting money, but equities are running at roughly double the pace. Commodities added $1.8B this week, maintaining a consistent 3-month trend of $35.5B in inflows.

Active strategies are pulling well above their long-run share. Over three months, active ETFs attracted $163B, a flow imbalance of 73.4 versus passive vanilla at 55.6. This week the gap widened further. Value and growth both attracted flows, with value taking $1.1B at a 73.4 imbalance. Dividends, however, flipped to a $183M outflow this week after a solid $11.4B over three months. Equal-weight strategies shed $1.6B on the week after three months of net buying.

The overall tone is risk-on. Money is rotating from defensives and equal-weight into active growth-oriented equity, with Taiwan and China as the preferred geographic expression of that trade.