ETF market hit record high


Growth in the Australian exchange-traded fund (ETF) market is continuing to rise as it hit a record high of $12.4 billion in assets under management in August, according to BetaShares.
The latest BetaShares Australian ETF Review, showed that the ETF market increased by 1.9 per cent (or $234 million) in August, while the share market remained stagnant.
The review showed that the EFT market had thrived over the last 12 months, with market cap growth rising by $3.9 billion.
BetaShares managing director, Alex Vynokur, said that part of the attraction the ETFs hold was that they are "a convenient way to build sensibly diversified portfolios that include a wide range of asset classes".
"Their attraction is independent of the fluctuations in the Australian share market," he said.
"The recent development of the ETF market suggests that larger numbers of investors are becoming involved, investing money into established products.
"We expect continued inflow into existing products, however, we additionally expect industry growth to be assisted by new and innovative investment solutions that are anticipated to become available on the ASX (Australian Securities Exchange) through the last four months of 2014."
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