UK equities main focus for ETF investors, reveals Barclays Stockbrokers

Apr 17th, 2014 | By | Category: Equities

The latest data from Barclays Stockbrokers, a UK-based execution-only broker, reveals ongoing retail client interest in UK focused exchange-traded funds (ETFs) during the 2013/2014 tax year end period, with 70 per cent of the top purchased ETFs in an ISA for Q1 2014 having a UK focus.

The iShares FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (Inc) (ISF) was the top purchased ETF by Barclays Stockbrokers’ ISA clients, followed by the iShares FTSE 250 UCITS ETF (MIDD) in second place and the ETFS FTSE 100 Leveraged (Daily 2x) GO UCITS ETF (LUK2) from ETF Securities in third.

The iShares UK Property UCITS ETF (IUKP) appeared in tenth place, as investors sought to take advantage of the buoyant UK property market. These ETFs were joined in the top 10 purchases by two other ETFs tracking the FTSE 100 – the Vanguard FTSE 100 UCTIS ETF (VUKE) and ETFS FTSE 100 Super Short Strategy (Daily 2x) GO UCITS ETF (SUK2) – as well as the iShares UK Dividend UCITS ETF (IUKD).

UK equities main focus for ETF investors, says Barclays Stockbrokers

UK equity markets remain the main focus for ETF investors at retail execution-only broker Barclays Stockbrokers.

The remaining top purchased ETFs in an ISA highlight some appetite from investors for diversification, with equity market ETFs focused on the US, Japan and Turkey rounding out the top 10 for Q1 2014.

UK focused ETFs remained popular across the rest of Barclays’ Stockbrokers’ ETF clients, with half (50 per cent) of the top 10 purchased ETFs for March having a UK focus. The iShares FTSE 100 continues to be the top purchased ETF by clients, having held this position for over 12 months.

The ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold ETC (SGLN) featured in fifth and tenth places respectively in the top 10 purchases for March, as investors took advantage of the opportunities provided by the ongoing gold price volatility. The top 10 purchased ETFs for March was completed by ETFs focusing on emerging markets, Japan and the US.

Chris Stevenson, Barclays Stockbrokers, said: “It is encouraging to see our ISA clients captialising on the investment opportunities offered by ETFs. Both our ISA and ETF clients are placing increased emphasis on equity markets, particularly the UK, and are reducing their interest in income focused ETFs, as global economies return to growth.”

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