Canadian ETF Industry Assets Near 50$ Billion

TORONTO, April 18, 2012 /CNW/ - According to the Canadian ETF Association (CETFA), Exchange Traded Fund assets continued their growth through March 2012 to reach a new record high of $49 billion; if assets continue to grow at their current pace, the ETF industry could surpass $50 billion in the very near future. Assets have grown by 18.1 per cent since last March when they hovered at just over $41.5 billion.

Each month, the CETFA compiles the sales data for the entire Canadian ETF industry with the help of Investor Economics. In order to determine net sales, the CETFA looks at the amount of money that is used for net creations, or the creation of new ETF units. If any ETF experiences net creations, it means more units of that ETFs are being bought than sold. If the industry is in net creations, positive sales are occurring. If it is in net redemptions, money is flowing out of the industry. This data is updated monthly on the CETFA website at www.cetfa.ca

According to Investor Economics, net creations for Canadian-listed ETFs amounted to $1.6 billion for the month, which represents roughly 3.4 per cent of beginning assets. Net creations were also highly concentrated amongst the 25 best-selling ETFs, with this group accounting for 81.2 per cent of net creations in March. Though a variety of mandates are present among these 25 ETFs, nine ETFs in the ranking provide exposure to fixed income securities, while eight have underlying exposure to common equities.

Canadian equity ETFs were the best selling asset class with $522 million in net creations, with ETFs providing exposure to investment grade fixed income securities backed by corporate issuers placing second after attracting $340 million.

Concentration within the ETF industry remains high with the largest 25 ETFs accounting for 75% of the industry, with the remainder dispersed among 219 ETFs.

Top 10 ETFs

ETF Name	Ticker Symbol	Current Month Sales ($ in millions)
iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index Fund	XIU	$215
iShares DEX All Corporate Bond Index Fund	XCB	$114
iShares U.S. High Yield Bond Index Fund (CAD-Hedged)	XHY	$84
iShares DEX HYBrid Bond Index Fund	XHB	$66
BMO Dow Jones Canada Titans 60 Index ETF	ZCN	$64
BMO Aggregate Bond Index ETF	ZAG	$53
Horizons BetaPro NYMEX Natural Gas Bull Plus ETF	HNU	$53
Horizons BetaPro S&P/TSX Global Gold Bull Plus ETF	HGU	$52
iShares S&P/TSX Canadian Preferred Share Index Fund	CPD	$52
iShares 1-5 Year Laddered Corporate Bond Index Fund	CBO	$51

Only three asset classes sustained net redemptions; each provides exposure to equities. North American equity ETFs sustained net redemptions of $15 million, while both agriculture and financial sector equity ETFs experienced net redemptions of $9 million.

About the CETFA

The Canadian ETF Association is the national body of exchange traded fund providers. Canadian investors have almost $50 billion invested in more than 200 Canadian-listed ETFs. As ETF usage continues to grow in Canada, the CETFA will seek to educate Canadians on the appropriate usage of ETFs, as well as work proactively with members and regulators to ensure the ETF industry adopts best practice standards.

CETFA membership includes: BMO ETFs, BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited, First Asset and Horizons Exchange Traded Funds Inc. Membership in CETFA is open to all Canadian ETF providers.

Pat Dunwoody, General Manager, Canadian ETF Association
Email: [email protected]
Phone: [phone]