US ETFs drew $189B in July, putting 2026 on pace

State Street Investment Management reported that US-listed exchange-traded funds drew $189 billion in July, bringing year-to-date inflows to $1.2 trillion and putting 2026 on pace for a record year. The firm said these inflows occurred as macroeconomic risks and concerns about AI-driven crowding outweighed strong corporate earnings, leaving global stocks and bonds lower for the month.

Active ETFs captured $58 billion in July, pushing total active ETF assets past $2 trillion for the first time. The report projects the current pace would put 2026 on track for roughly $800 billion in annual active ETF flows.

Fixed-income ETFs received $52 billion in July and have accumulated $352 billion in inflows year-to-date. At that rate, the bond ETF category is on pace to exceed 2025’s record $433 billion in inflows.

Equity ETFs took in $134 billion in July. U.S.-focused equity exposures accounted for $92 billion, international equities added $35 billion and single-country ETFs set a monthly record with $8 billion of inflows.

Sector-focused ETFs drew a record $25 billion in July. Technology-led products attracted $19 billion even though the technology sector averaged about a 10% decline for the month. Financials and Health Care registered inflows of roughly $3 billion and $2.2 billion, respectively.

The monthly figures show investors continued to allocate capital into ETFs across strategies and regions despite market volatility and the increased attention on crowded trades tied to AI themes, the report notes.