Best and worst ETFs of 2020 revealed
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Lithium battery and energy storage-themed fund ACDC, operated by the firm chaired by former Rich Lister Graham Tuckwell, was the best performing ETF in the year to March 31, according to analyst Stockspot.
Technology sector exchange traded funds have outperformed over the past year, with the ETFS Battery Tech & Lithium ETF (ASX: ACDC) managed by ETF Securities ranked first, with a 96 per cent return over the 12 months to March 31.
Analysis of 200 ASX-listed funds â representing 90 per cent of the booming $100 billion Australian ETF market â by former UBS portfolio manager Chris Brycki, founder of robo-adviser Stockspot, and his team found âbroad technology and niche technology themes were the best performersâ over the past year.
2020 was a record year for Australian ETFs Emma Rapaport | 08 Feb 2021Text size
If you d told me in March that 2020 was going to be a record year for Australia s ETF industry I d tell you to pull the other one. Assets under management fell sharply in the covid-19 market sell-off, with several major asset classes in decline.
But investors defied expectations, exploiting the free-fall in March to boost their allocation to Australian equities ETFs. A dash to safety also attracted inflows to products with exposure to physical gold, while massive rebounds in US growth companies saw a renewed interest in technology-themed products. In all, 2020 was a standout year for Australian ETFs, which attracted $20 billion in new money. The $100 billion milestone is in sight.
Real estate investment trusts lost 7.6% during the year, and commodities lost 15%.
However, the first week of January saw commodities at the top of the pack with returns of 3.4%, followed by MSCI emerging markets at 1.9%, MSCI EAFE at 1.4%. and gold at 0.9%.
High flows into gold continued during the first week at US$1.5 billion which BofA said was the largest inflow since August, 2020.
However, the largest flow last week went to cash at US$29.1 billion, followed by US$14.9 billion into bonds, and US$11.2 billion into equities.
According to latest data by FE Analytics, within the Australian Core Strategies universe, since the start of 2020 to 30 November, 2020, BetaShares Global Gold Miners ETF Currency Hedged was the top performing gold fund at 20.29%.