ETF Assets Decrease in May

June 7, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - ETF industry assets fell $22.7 billion for the month of May - down 2%, according to State Street Global Advisors’ latest ETF Snapshot report.

ETF flows were negative in May, down $218 million, the first month of outflows since August of 2010. The Size – Large Cap category had the most outflows, losing $8 billion, after posting $6.7 billion in inflows in April. The Commodity category also had a large amount of outflows, with $3.4 billion leaving the category.   

After a strong April, Commodities retreated 6.9% in May, the report said. International – Developed and Emerging Markets also gave back, falling 2.8% and 2.6%, respectively. Domestic Large Cap, Mid Cap and Small Cap markets all regressed approximately 1%, while the US Aggregate Bond, the US Treasury Bond, and the US Corporate Bond markets returned approximately 1.5%.   

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash daily newsletter.

The top three managers in the U.S. ETF marketplace at the end of May were BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard. Collectively, they account for approximately 83% of the U.S. listed ETF market.   

The top three ETFs in terms of dollar volume traded for the month were the SPDR S&P 500 [SPY], iShares Russell 2000 [IWM], and iShares Silver Trust [SLV]. The top three ETFs in terms of assets for the month were the SPDR S&P 500 [SPY], SPDR Gold Shares [GLD], and Vanguard Emerging Markets [VWO].

«