Thematic Market Watch: Infrastructure Leads as FinTech Falters

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Weekly Channel Summary

As of February 6, 2026, the Thematic ETF channel encompasses 408 ETFs managed by 103 brands, representing a massive $310B in assets under management (AUM). The channel saw a net weekly inflow of $192M, continuing a trend of strong investor appetite that has driven $17.47B in year-to-date (YTD) flows and a staggering $65.12B over the past 12 months. While short-term volatility affected several tech-heavy segments, the long-term momentum in the space remains robust as thematic investing continues to mature.

This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards

It was a divided week for thematic performance. Infrastructure led the way with a 2.95% weekly return, bolstered by industrial reshoring and green electrification trends. Conversely, FinTech was the primary laggard, dropping -8.38%, a sharp contrast to its otherwise positive one-year growth. Year-to-date, Precious Metals and Natural Resources remain the standout performers with gains of 13.08% and 12.43%, respectively.

Category Performance Snapshot

Category WTD 1 Month 3 Month 6 Month YTD 1 Year
Infrastructure 2.95% 6.98% 10.35% 17.86% 10.11% 29.52%
Midstream & MLPs 1.84% 10.46% 12.19% 10.02% 9.22% 8.22%
Sustainability 1.62% 5.51% 6.79% 31.56% 10.25% 48.68%
Precious Metals 0.87% 5.86% 46.28% 86.89% 13.08% 159.11%
Industrial Revolution -0.26% 1.45% 9.76% 21.44% 8.09% 35.13%
Natural Resources -0.56% 5.43% 23.28% 41.75% 12.43% 60.07%
Health Innovation -1.93% -2.00% 8.95% 28.07% 0.15% 18.30%
Multi-Sector -1.94% -4.27% -0.56% 7.08% -0.23% 13.16%
Evolving Consumer -2.13% -6.65% -3.73% -1.44% -5.36% 4.69%
Disruptive Tech -3.71% -6.79% -6.19% 2.82% -3.71% 8.72%
Alternative Equity -4.96% -8.41% -1.70% -9.77% -6.06% -10.39%
FinTech -8.38% -13.78% -20.41% -3.89% -5.47% 6.97%

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance

The single best-performing fund this week was the RSHO (Tema American Reshoring ETF), which surged +9.81%. On the downside, crypto-centric funds faced significant headwinds, with CRPT (First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF) and URNJ (Sprott Junior Uranium Miners ETF) falling -15.86% and -15.42%, respectively.

Ticker Fund Name WTD Performance
Top Performers
RSHO Tema American Reshoring ETF 9.81%
PKB Invesco Building & Construction ETF 8.39%
HWAY Themes US Infrastructure ETF 8.26%
XHB State Street SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF 8.20%
PAVE Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF 7.83%
Bottom Performers
CRPT First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF -15.86%
URNJ Sprott Junior Uranium Miners ETF -15.42%
OWNB Bitwise Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETF -13.03%
URNM Sprott Uranium Miners ETF -11.76%
SATO Invesco Alerian Galaxy Crypto Economy ETF -11.64%

Analyzing the Weekly Flows

The Thematic channel pulled in $192M in net new money this past week. The Natural Resources category was the clear favorite among investors, capturing $662M in weekly inflows to bring its total AUM to $55.5B. Other notable interest was seen in Thematic Multi-Sector, which added $385M. On the flip side, Disruptive Tech faced the largest rotation out of the segment, with -$628M in weekly outflows.

Category Flows Summary

Category Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day YTD 1 Year
Natural Resources 56 $55.5B $662M $6,873M $7,132M $12,886M
Multi-Sector 43 $26.2B $385M $799M $624M $8,230M
Precious Metals 15 $56.5B $350M $2,765M $2,882M $3,820M
Sustainability 27 $7.4B $62M $353M $371M $868M
Midstream & MLPs 17 $23.5B $43M $204M $188M $1,419M
Health Innovation 23 $2.3B $18M $131M $133M $91M
Industrial Revolution 37 $18.9B $1M $2,458M $2,588M $7,686M
Alternative Equity 9 $2.2B $0M $33M $34M $672M
Evolving Consumer 46 $14.7B ($60M) ($104M) ($160M) ($2,317M)
FinTech 26 $4.0B ($304M) ($157M) ($142M) $218M
Infrastructure 42 $47.6B ($338M) $2,020M $2,384M $11,284M
Disruptive Tech 63 $51.1B ($628M) $1,373M $1,398M $20,228M

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow

The GDX (VanEck Gold Miners ETF) dominated the leaderboard for inflows, bringing in $774M. On the other end of the spectrum, Global X’s PAVE (U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF) and AIQ (Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF) saw the largest redemptions of -$650M and -$467M, respectively.

Ticker Fund Name 5-Day Flow
Inflows
GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF $774M
COPX Global X Copper Miners ETF $369M
XOVR ERShares Private-Public Crossover ETF $304M
AIRR First Trust RBA American Industrial Renaissance ETF $159M
GRID First Trust Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart GRID ETF $158M
Outflows
PAVE Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF ($650M)
AIQ Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF ($467M)
GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF ($244M)
MAGS Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF ($206M)
SIL Global X Silver Miners ETF ($165M)

Issuer League Table Update

Global X remains the dominant force in the Thematic space with a 19.33% market share, followed by iShares at 16.00%. This week, VanEck led the issuer league table in gathering assets, securing $544M in net weekly flows. Conversely, the market leader Global X saw the largest rotation out, with -$1,079M in 5-day outflows as investors shifted away from heavy tech and infrastructure positions.

Top 5 Issuers by AUM

Brand Fund Count AUM AUM Market Share
Global X 36 $59.92B 19.33%
iShares 33 $49.61B 16.00%
VanEck 18 $49.53B 15.97%
First Trust 30 $41.22B 13.29%
ARK 7 $12.10B 3.90%

Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow

Brand 5-Day Flow
Inflows
VanEck $544M
First Trust $366M
ERShares $304M
Outflows
Global X ($1,079M)
Roundhill ($210M)
ARK ($142M)

For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth Thematic ETF reports in the right side panel of this page.

Disclosures

This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.

This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.