ETFs Were Rocking in September

The Goldman Sachs research showed that much of the increase in activity was in QQQs (tracking the NASDAQ 100 index), as investors sought access to the momentum-driven market with average daily QQQs volume 35% higher at 90.7 million shares per day.   Other ETF activity was also strong, with style-based ETF activity increasing by 44%, according to the report.

Meanwhile, ETFs tracking the S&P 500 index have lost some steam and now represent only 22% of total ETF volume, according to the research. S&P 500 ETFs have waned in terms of daily activity versus other ETFs.

However, in terms of assets, ETFs only saw slight September growth mostly due to strong performance rather than creations. Small-cap growth and emerging market ETFs were the only two ETF breeds with significant inflows with both ETF categories expanding by 15% in terms of shares outstanding versus their August performance.

One of the newest players in the ETF field is theFidelity Nasdaq Composite Tracking Stock, which isbased on the Nasdaq Composite Index and kicked off trading October 1 – Fidelity’s first ETF.  Since inception, the Fidelity ETF traded on average 1.4 million shares per day and has $334 million assets under management.

Shares of exchange traded fund trade intraday on stock exchanges at market determined prices. Investors may buy or sell ETF shares through a broker just as they would the shares of any publicly traded company (See   Exchange-Traded Funds ).