Thematic ETFs See $6.5B Weekly Outflow as Space Tech Soars and ARK Slides

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Weekly Channel Summary

The EQ: Thematic channel currently spans 439 ETFs from 107 issuers, managing a combined $370B in total assets. This week saw a notable net outflow, with the channel shedding $6.57B in 5-day flows. Despite the recent pullback, longer-term momentum remains strong, having accumulated $47.05B in Year-to-Date inflows and $94.13B over the trailing 1-year period.

This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards

Disruptive Tech and Industrial Revolution led the thematic pack this week, posting solid Week-to-Date (WTD) returns of 4.00% and 3.86%, respectively. Both categories are sitting on impressive Year-to-Date (YTD) gains north of 23%. Conversely, Precious Metals was the primary laggard, dropping 4.04% WTD, dragging its YTD return down to just 0.69%.

Category Performance Snapshot

Category WTD 1 Month 3 Month 6 Month YTD 1 Year
Disruptive Tech 4.00% 13.97% 26.63% 30.56% 23.59% 47.80%
Industrial Revolution 3.86% 7.22% 11.12% 35.08% 23.85% 58.38%
Health Innovation 2.86% -1.97% -1.45% 2.31% -0.54% 36.51%
Thematic – Multi-Sector 2.37% 5.83% 13.06% 18.79% 13.85% 36.43%
Sustainability 2.04% 7.91% 13.36% 32.75% 27.54% 77.27%
FinTech 1.60% 4.83% 22.05% 17.37% 13.28% 39.28%
Infrastructure 1.50% 2.92% 6.12% 26.74% 22.03% 40.67%
Midstream & MLPs 1.39% 8.41% 9.44% 26.75% 25.48% 30.71%
Evolving Consumer 1.32% -3.98% -0.16% -1.56% -7.61% 9.14%
Natural Resources -0.26% -3.70% -1.82% 26.74% 14.31% 67.78%
Alternative Equity -0.87% -4.29% -2.20% -5.58% -10.82% -8.44%
Precious Metals -4.04% -9.90% -19.19% 26.02% 0.69% 94.86%

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance

The Global X Space Tech ETF (ORBX) was the standout performer this week, surging 12.91% WTD. On the downside, junior miners took a hit, with the Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF (SGDJ) and the Global X Gold Explorers ETF (GOEX) dropping 5.64% and 5.43% respectively to mark the bottom of the weekly performance list.

Ticker Fund Name WTD Performance
Top Performers
ORBX Global X Space Tech ETF 12.91%
WQTM WisdomTree Quantum Computing Fund 12.62%
MARS Roundhill Space & Technology ETF 12.34%
NASA Tema Space Innovators ETF 11.75%
SPRX Spear Alpha ETF 9.85%
Bottom Performers
SGDJ Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF -5.64%
GOEX Global X Gold Explorers ETF -5.43%
NIKL Sprott Nickel Miners ETF -5.33%
SLVR Sprott Silver Miners & Physical Silver ETF -5.24%
GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF -4.85%

Analyzing the Weekly Flows

The Thematic channel experienced $6.57B in net outflows over the past five days. Infrastructure defied the broader trend, attracting the most capital with $534M in inflows, lifting its AUM to $62.2B. Evolving Consumer also gathered positive flows, taking in $105M. At the other end of the spectrum, the Thematic – Multi-Sector category endured the heaviest redemptions, losing a massive $5,996M.

Category Flows Summary

Category Fund Count AUM 5 Day 30 Day 90 Day YTD 1 Year
Infrastructure 43 $62.2B $534M $4,187M $8,454M $12,279M $21,411M
Evolving Consumer 43 $13.5B $105M $116M ($1,339M) ($1,572M) ($1,618M)
Midstream & MLPs 17 $26.6B $80M $334M $883M $1,203M $2,098M
Alternative Equity 9 $2.4B ($2M) $25M $309M $300M $760M
Health Innovation 23 $2.3B ($26M) ($22M) ($89M) $44M $56M
FinTech 25 $5.5B ($38M) $64M $258M $54M $527M
Sustainability 27 $9.7B ($54M) $660M $792M $1,238M $2,109M
Industrial Revolution 43 $24.9B ($172M) $1,784M $4,142M $6,867M $11,244M
Disruptive Tech 64 $83.5B ($286M) $10,302M $14,102M $15,376M $31,578M
Natural Resources 57 $59.1B ($376M) $867M $3,064M $10,406M $17,746M
Precious Metals 15 $49.3B ($466M) ($1,079M) ($3,247M) ($964M) $2,472M
Thematic – Multi-Sector 45 $31.0B ($5,996M) $415M $1,563M $1,547M $5,480M

Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow

At the fund level, the Tema Space Innovators ETF (NASA) was the biggest winner, pulling in a massive $594M in net new assets over the last five days. Conversely, ARK products faced intense selling pressure, with the ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) seeing a dramatic $5,661M outflow, and the ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF (ARKQ) losing $897M.

Ticker Fund Name 5-Day Flow
Inflows
NASA Tema Space Innovators ETF $594M
GRID First Trust Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart GRID In.. $235M
SLX VanEck Steel ETF $192M
ITB iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF $128M
DRAM Roundhill Memory ETF $125M
Outflows
ARKK ARK Innovation ETF ($5,661M)
ARKQ ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF ($897M)
ARKW ARK Next Generation Internet ETF ($581M)
THRO iShares U.S. Thematic Rotation Active ETF ($406M)
SILJ Amplify Junior Silver Miners ETF ($323M)

Issuer League Table Update

Global X and iShares continue to dominate the Thematic ETF market, controlling 18.27% and 16.94% of the channel’s AUM, respectively. In terms of weekly flow activity, Tema led all issuers by gathering $594M. Meanwhile, ARK suffered the most severe weekly outflows, bleeding $7,175M across its thematic suite.

Top 5 Issuers by AUM

Brand Fund Count AUM AUM Market Share
Global X 38 $67.66B 18.27%
iShares 33 $62.73B 16.94%
First Trust 30 $50.85B 13.73%
VanEck 19 $46.81B 12.64%
Roundhill 11 $17.46B 4.72%

Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow

Brand 5-Day Flow
Inflows
Tema $594M
First Trust $395M
Corgi $124M
Outflows
ARK -$7,175M
Amplify -$340M
iShares -$256M

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.