Bond market sentiment improved markedly in July, as funds to the tune of $32.5bn flowed into fixed income exchange-traded vehicles over the month, with a notable uptick in the purchase of credit.
According to BlackRock's latest monthly global ETP survey, fixed income accounted for the bulk of inflows over the month, recovering to $32.5bn after slipping to $3.2bn in June.
Investors bought into investment grade ($9.9bn) and high yield credit ($3.9bn), with European-focused funds recording their highest inflow month since April 2020, with $2.2bn added.
The majority of investment grade flows went into US products ($7.7bn), while the US also accounted for $3.7bn of the $3.9bn flowing into high yield.
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BlackRock noted the latest figures continued a "trend of inconsistent flows this year".
Rates ETPs remained constant over the month, taking in $17.3bn, while inflation-linker flows turned negative (-$1.9bn).
Flows into equity funds dropped to $17bn as US buying slowed to $12.4bn, down from $25.9bn in June. Emerging market flows were flat after a positive month in June, while funds continued to flow out of European funds, with outflows climbing to $3.9bn.
Healthcare continued to lead flows into equity products, totalling $2.6bn in July. Healthcare remains the second-most popular sector this year behind technology, which took in $1.2bn over the month and $18bn over the year, while healthcare added $14.6bn YTD.
After peaking in March at $9bn, flows into energy products slowed markedly, now up just $400bn on the year.
WisdomTree survey: UK investors continue to shun ETPs
Elsewhere, commodities ETPs had their worst month on record. The survey read: "The $11.2bn of outflows from commodity ETPs in July was not only the largest monthly outflow on record, it also marked a third consecutive month of selling for the first time since February to April 2021. The figure also surpasses the combined $9.7bn of outflows across May and June 2022."
Gold outflows increased from $1.7bn in June to $4.3bn in July, while funds flowing out of broad commodity ETPs also worsened, from $700m in June to $4.2bn in July.
Sustainable ETP flows soared in July, with $9.6bn added in total, compared to $2.3bn in June. EMEA-listed products accounted for most of the buying activity ($9.2B), while US-listed sustainable flows came in at just $300m over the month.
