Australian exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that invest in Asian companies went gangbusters in October.
Local ETFs were on fire last month, breaking the industry's all-time record for incoming money and reaching a historic-high for total funds held.
But popularity doesn't equate to performance, so it's interesting to see which products fared the best for its investors.
The latest Betashares report showed 3 of the top 5 performing funds in October were Asia-themed.
5 best-performing Australian ETF in October 2020
| ETF | October performance |
| Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA) | 8.3% |
| iShares China Large-Cap ETF AUD (ASX: IZZ) | 7.2% |
| Vaneck Vectors Australian Banks Etf (ASX: MVB) | 7.1% |
| Vaneck Vectors Ftse China A50 ETF (ASX: CETF) | 6.6% |
| BetaShares S&P/ASX Australian Technology ETF (ASX: ATEC) | 6.5% |
| Source: Betashares; Table created by author | |
Betashares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA) rose 8.3% for the month, on the back of a calmer COVID-19 environment compared to the western world.
The fund has gained 67% for the 12 months ending 31 October, according to Betashares head of strategy Ilan Israelstam.
"During the pandemic, Asian technology stocks have benefited both from the strong showing of Asian stocks in general, and from the outperformance of the technology sector," he said.
"Asian economies have demonstrated a greater ability to gain control of COVID-19 outbreaks than their American and European counterparts, while technology stocks have been the leading performers around the world as the world increasingly went online as the virus took hold."
Australian investors are buying even more Chinese stocks this month as a new US president is poised to reset a now-toxic trade relationship.
The Australian ETF industry generally had an excellent October, adding $2.3 billion of funds. This is the highest-ever monthly inflow.
Vanguard and Betashares are dominant among the suppliers, each racking up more than $4 billion of investor money this year.
