EPFR in the news – May 2023

May, 29

Australian Financial Review – Traders are duped by bear market rally, warns Morgan Stanley
Global copper funds saw a net outflow of $150 million in April after a net inflow of $1.3 billion for the first three months of 2023, EPFR’s data shows. “If there’s a bellwether commodity tied to perceptions of forthcoming Chinese growth, it’s copper,” said Cameron Brandt, EPFR’s director of research. “There’s a real sense that this Chinese rebound might not be the kind of broad catalyst for global growth that previous iterations have been.”

 

May, 28

Australian Financial Review – ASX primed for debt ceiling relief rebound; Wall St closed
Equity funds saw $6.6 billion of outflows in the week, the largest weekly outflow in nine weeks, Bank of America said, in a Friday note, citing EPFR data.

 

May, 26

Financial Times – Yield-hungry investors push US money market assets to record $5.4tn
Money Market Funds have so far absorbed roughly $146 billion in May, putting this month on track to have had the second-highest inflows since April 2020, according to EPFR data.

Reuters – Investors have poured $756 billion into cash funds this year, Bank of America says
Equity funds saw $6.6 billion of outflows in the week, the largest weekly outflow in nine weeks, Bank of America said, in a Friday note, citing EPFR data.

Reuters – Analysis: Inflows into unloved European telecoms signal brighter future
Redemptions from global stock funds reached $6.6 billion in the week through May 3 — the most in more than two months. Inflows into cash funds surged to nearly $60 billion, while $11 billion entered bonds, EPFR data reports.

 

May, 25

MarketWatch – ETF investors are following Warren Buffett and betting big on Japan. But here are key risks to consider
EPFR’s Director of Research, Cameron Brandt, discusses how flows into Japan Equity Funds have seen more outflows than inflows this year ($3.4 billion of outflows in April alone) and how Japan ETFs are trending in the right direction but investors should beware of risk in Isabel Wang’s MarketWatch article.

 

May, 24

The Wall Street Journal – Share Buybacks Continue at Torrid Pace While Investors Sit on Sidelines
EPFR analyst, Winston Chua, discusses how US stock buybacks are running at historically high rates, which is bullish for the prices of the companies offering them in Jack Pitcher’s Wall Street Journal article.

 

May, 20

Bloomberg – A $518 Billion Rally Shows Japan Stocks Are All the Rage in 2023
According to EPFR data, Japan equity funds lured $800 million the week ending May 10th, the most in seven weeks. On the other hand, US and Europe equity funds saw outflows.

 

May, 19

Financial Times – Investors snap up local currency bonds as dollar debt loses allure
The week leading up to May 10th saw $3.8 billion channeled into technology stocks, marking the largest inflow since December 2021, based on EPFR data.

 

May, 18

MarketWatch – German stocks near fresh record on growth and energy cost optimism
ETFs were developed during the 1990s and were first traded in London in 2000. Since then, they have enjoyed plenty of interest from investors worldwide. According to EPFR data, more than £7 trillion was invested globally in ETFs in 2021.

Forbes – How To Invest In Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs)
Some $87 billion has flowed of out US equity mutual funds and ETFs since mid-year 2022, according to EPFR data. Meanwhile, the significant recent inflows to bond and money market funds suggest the household rotation away from equities and toward alternatives is well underway.

 

May, 14

Goldman Sachs – US households have found there is an alternative to stocks
Some $87 billion has flowed of out US equity mutual funds and ETFs since mid-year 2022, according to EPFR data.

Bloomberg – Dip Buyers Scorched by Cratering Bank Stocks Rush for the Exits
By the end of the first quarter investors had pulled $34 billion from US equities funds so far this year, according to recent EPFR data. Europe, in contrast, had seen $10 billion of inflows.

 

May, 12

Zacks – Seek Quality ETFs if Recessionary Worries Mount
In the first four months of the year, investors withdrew a net $2.65bn from funds holding so-called hard currency — predominantly dollar-denominated — emerging market bonds, but added $5.23bn to local currency bond funds, according to EPFR data.

 

May, 9

Bloomberg – Vanguard’s Trillion-Dollar Man Leads a Fixed-Income Revolution
The gap between passive and active net flows reached a record of $1.04 trillion in 2022, EPFR data reports. This is almost triple than any other year.

Bloomberg Japan – Vanguard managers make huge profits with passive investing – Leading a revolution in fixed income investing
Japan equity funds lured $800 million in the week ended May 10, the most in seven weeks, while those in the US and Europe saw outflows, according to EPFR data.

    • Original title in Japanese: バンガード運用者、パッシブ投資で巨額利益-債券投資の革命を主導

Fortune – Wall Street’s $1 trillion man: The bond guru who made $1 billion every day of March’s historic market rally
According to EPFR data, US$39 billion has been invested in Emerging Market equities year to date, and a more modest US$2 billion into EM fixed income.

 

May, 8

CNBC – Why the regional bank crisis could help fuel a shift to active ETFs
According to EPFR data, ETFs are showing strong inflows despite price decline; this could be seen as a ‘buy’ signal for investors to switch to an active fund.

 

May, 5

Seeking Alpha – What Does A Fed Pause Mean For Investors?
Money market funds have so far absorbed roughly $146bn in May, putting the month on track to have had the second-highest inflows since April 2020, when panicked investors flooded in, EPFR data reports.

Indian Express – Amid banking crisis, nervous investors dump stocks and hold cash, says BofA
Stocks saw outflows of $3.9 billion in the week through May 24 — a third straight week of redemptions that means that flows are now flat for the asset class in 2023, according to EPFR data.

Bloomberg – Fed Rate-Hike Pause No Reason to Buy Stocks, BofA Says
The rush into money market funds continued in the week to Wednesday, with $23.1 billion flowing into the cash-like instruments, according to Bank of America, EPFR data reports.

Reuters – Nervous investors dump stocks and hold cash – BofA
So far in 2023, telecom sector funds have seen $1.8 billion worth of net inflows, recovering more than 80% of last year’s outflows, EPFR data showed.

 

May, 4

Nikkei Asia – Copper loses shine for investors on China’s mixed recovery
Director of Research, Cameron Brandt, discussed China’s growth on commodities prices and whether this could act as a catalyst for global growth.

ZeroHedge – Futures Rise Ahead Of Payrolls To End Week Of Bank Turmoil
According to EPFR data, redemptions from global stock funds reached $6.6 billion despite the Fed signaling its willingness to pause rate hikes.

Related Posts

Better, More Actionable Insights

Let us show you how EPFR can create value for your specific strategy