Global ETP inflows break records in October: BlackRock
BlackRock writes that a record month for ETP flows in October marked the largest inflow month on record for global ETPs, with USD393.1 billion added, edging above the previous record set in July this year (USD372.9 billion).
Flows into equity ETPs lead the charge (USD281.9 billion), more than doubling the USD134 billion added in September, but fell shy of the July record (USD299.6 billion). Fixed income ETPs took in USD107 billion – the highest ever – beating the previous record of USD97 billion in September.
No single category dominated flows in fixed income in October, but the common theme was the tilt to quality, with rates (USD19.3 billion), munis (USD19.5 billion), multi-sector (USD19 billion) and investment grade (IG, USD18.5 billion) buying effectively neck-and-neck. EMD buying also continued, with a further USD10.7 billion added, taking the 2026 cumulative amount to USD43 billion – on track to be the second-highest inflow year on record, albeit some way short of the 2025 total (USD107 billion).
Within rates, flows into US-listed products nearly halved to USD13.4 billion from USD25.5 billion, while flows into EMEA-listed counterparts rose from USD4.3 billion to USD6.4 billion – the largest inflow month since August 2016 (USD7 billion).
Investors have been moving out of cash-like bills into moderate duration, while avoiding the long end: short-term rates exposure (USD8 billion), in line with the trend this year, was the most popular exposure, but intermediate-term exposures (USD5.3 billion) also saw their highest inflows since November 2025 (USD7.7 billion).
It was a quieter start to the quarter for long term exposures (USD700 million), after a solid Q3 that saw USD16 billion added. Q3 marked the largest inflow quarter since October 2023 (USD20.9 billion) – bucking the trend we’ve seen since October 2024, where quarterly flows into long-term rate ETPs have largely been negative/flat.
Equity momentum picks up
US (USD124 billion) and EM (USD94 billion) drove equity flows in October, but Japanese equities also stood out, with USD12.7 billion added – the highest since November 2016 (USD18.2 billion), largely driven by APAC investors (USD10.5 billion). US equity buying was again driven by US listed ETPs (USD106.3 billion).
EMEA-listed products gained USD9.5 billion – up from USD3.2 billion in September but still continuing a broader trend lower from the June peak (USD14.4 billion). Despite this trend lower, 2026 EMEA-listed US equity buying has been elevated versus 2025 levels. Within EM, investors sought single-country exposure, with Chinese equities dominating (USD57.6B), followed by South Korea (USD4.3 billion). Flows into European equities were positive (USD1.9 billion), but down from USD5.8 billion in September.
EMEA investors remained net buyers (USD2.6 billion), while US investors sold European equities ( USD1 billion), after buying c.USD5 billion from June to September. Tech flows remained buoyant (USD38.6 billion – the second-highest this year, behind July’s USD60.6 billion). Momentum in broad healthcare appears to be strengthening (USD3.3 billion), driven by net buying in US (USD3 billion) and global (USD300 million) exposures. Beneath the hood, US healthcare ETPs have registered five consecutive inflow months since June – their best streak since March-July 2022.
Precious metals lead
Flows into commodity ETPs fell to USD3.3 billion in October – a sharp drop versus the previous month (USD10.4 billion), as buying across broad market and precious metal ETPs pulled back. In line with the prior four months, gold drove the majority of commodity buying in October (USD2.5 billion), with EMEA-listed products capturing 72 per cent of the inflows (USD1.8 billion). Interest in broad commodities dropped off (USD450 million in October versus USD1.4 billion in September), while silver ETP flows picked up (USD530 million versus USD230 million prior).
After a strong Q1 for energy equity ETP flows (USD21.4 billion), Q2 (-USD5 billion) and Q3 (-USD1.2 billion) were lacklustre. We’ve seen a tentative return at the start of Q4, with net inflows of USD2.7 billion in October, driven entirely by US energy exposures (USD2.9 billion).
EMEA snapshot
Flows into EMEA-listed ETPs rose in October (USD49 billion versus USD42.7 billion previously), driven by a pickup in fixed income (USD15 billion versus USD9.7 billion previously) and equity buying (USD32.5 billion), while commodity flows continued to tail off (USD1.5 billion in October versus USD3 billion in September).
Within EMEA-listed fixed income flows, rates (USD6.4 billion) and IG exposures (USD4.9 billion) drove the buying. However, but the overall credit complex stood out: flows into EMEA-listed IG ETPs were 2.1x the previous month and 2.5x the average monthly inflow this year; high yield (HY) flows also picked up (USD1.3 billion – the third highest inflow month this year behind June’s USD1.6 billion).
EMEA-listed equity flows edged higher in October, up from USD29.8 billion to USD32.5 billion, driven by a pickup in US equity buying (USD9.5 billion versus USD3.2 billion previously). Broad DM buying remained steady (USD9.4 billion) as European (USD2.6 billion) and EM equity (USD1.5 billion) buying tailed off from September levels, when flows were USD4.1 billion and USD2.1billion, respectively.