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Platinum ETPs See Largest Inflows in 6 Weeks as Mine Strike Positions Harden
Platinum ETPs See Largest Inflows in 6 Weeks as Mine Strike Positions Harden. Over the past week attention has been focused on platinum group metals as London hosted its annual Platinum Week activities. Platinum ETPs also saw increased attention with ETFS Physical Platinum seeing its largest inflows in six weeks. The ongoing strike action in South Africa is driving interest in the metal as the stalemate looks like it will persist for some time to come. Gold traded in a very tight range as US Fed minutes revealed little urgency in tightening policy while the Ukrainian crisis continued to drive safe haven buying.
ETFS Physical Platinum (PHPT) sees highest inflows in six weeks. With the strike in South Africa showing little sign of resolution, the platinum price rose 1.4% and US$6.1mn flowed into PHPT. Despite the three largest miners in South Africa using the Labour Court to mediate the wage dispute with Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), Impala’s CEO conceded that the strike could go on for longer. Johnson Matthey, published its latest forecast for the industry, projecting a 1.2mn oz supply deficit for platinum (from 0.9mn oz deficit last year) and a larger 1.6mn oz supply deficit for palladium (from 0.4mn oz last year). Even after the pay dispute is resolved there will be a lag before production can be ramped up to full capacity, prolonging the delay in getting supply to the market. It is clear that secondary supply is unable to catch up with the primary deficit, keeping the market very tight.
Profit-taking drives US$4.5mn of outflows from long WTI crude oil ETPs. US$3.5mn flowed out of ETFS WTI Crude Oil (CRUD), the highest in 13 weeks, while a further US$1mn withdrew from ETFS Daily Leveraged WTI Crude Oil (LOIL), the most in 5 weeks as WTI prices rose 2.2% over the week. Against analysts’ expectations, total crude oil inventories in the US dropped sharply by 7.2 million barrels, the largest drawdown since early January. Last week’s withdrawals could potentially mark the beginning of the seasonal drawdown ahead of the US summer driving season. An earlier-than-expected pick-up in oil demand would provide further support to the WTI price currently at around US$104/bbl.
Broad agriculture ETP sees largest outflows in a month as grain supply expectations rise. As most agricultural prices slipped, investors withdrew $5.6mn from ETFS Agriculture last week. The USDA’s corn surplus forecast for 2014/15 and rain assisting US wheat production led to price declines of 1.5% and 2.8% respectively. Some investors saw the price moves as a buying opportunity, with US$3.1 of inflows into long corn ETPs (a 10 week high) and 2.5mn into long wheat ETPs (13 week high). The coffee price continued to fall last week (dropping 6.6%) as more market participants digested the report from Conab (Brazilian National Agricultural Supply Company) that showed that damage from the drought earlier this year was not as bad as feared.
US$3.4mn flowed out of long copper ETPs, the most in 11 weeks, driven by profit taking. Copper rose 0.3% last week, bringing its monthly gain to 4.1%. Last week’s better-than-expected HSBC Chinese manufacturing PMI helped bolster the metal as the outlook for China’s industrial demand improves. Given the heavy net short speculative positioning in the futures market we believe that copper has significant upside potential we target US$7500/MT as industry expectations of supply surplus this year will likely need to be trimmed.
Key events to watch this week
A relatively quiet will see focus placed on the US durable goods orders as a gauge for the strength of consumer demand for big-ticket items.
Note: All flow and AUM data in this report are based on ETF Securities ETPs to 22 May 2014 and are denominated in USD unless otherwise indicated.
Important Information
This communication has been issued and approved for the purpose of section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 by ETF Securities (UK) Limited (”ETFS UK”) which is authorised and regulated by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (”FCA”).
• Top Performer: Defence (+$7.87 billion)
• Emerging Themes: Cybersecurity (+$318 million), Uranium (+$253 million)
European thematic UCITS ETFs posted a dramatic resurgence in the first half of 2025, with net inflows of $8.73 billion year-to-date, according to ARK Invest Europe’s latest quarterly update detailing H1 2025 European thematic ETF flows.
The turnaround marks a decisive reversal from the muted flows of 2024 ($308 million net outflows for the whole of 2024), as investors rotate back into forward-looking, innovation-driven themes with clearer earnings visibility.
Defence remains the dominant thematic allocation, capturing $7.87 billion in combined net inflows between Global ($4.81 billion) and European ($3.05 billion) defence ETFs underscoring its evolution from a tactical trade to a structural portfolio allocation. Maintaining its position as the defining technological theme, AI ETFs saw $904 million in net inflows, with investor appetite fuelled by relentless innovation in large language models, robotics, and autonomous systems.
In the same period, Cybersecurity ETFs continued to rebuild momentum after significant outflows in 2024 ($311 million net outflows for H1 2024), drawing $318 million, reflecting growing investor conviction in cybersecurity as a structural necessity amid rising digital threats.
Clean Energy ETFs saw outflows of $307 million. As policy momentum stalls in key markets, investors are increasingly selective within the energy transition space. Capital is rotating toward subsectors with clearer economic moats, such as nuclear and grid infrastructure. Supporting this sentiment, Uranium ETFs rank fifth at $253 million, reflecting growing investor interest in the nuclear sector as a potential solution to global energy needs.
Healthcare Innovation ETFs recorded net outflows of $279 million. The drawdown reveals investor caution around legacy biotech firms with uncertain drug pipelines and reimbursement risks. Interest is shifting toward AI-driven healthcare platforms offering faster innovation cycles and more scalable business models.
Electric Vehicles and Battery Tech ETFs saw net outflows of $203 million as investor enthusiasm cools amid subsidy rollbacks and plateauing EV demand in major markets. Persistent concerns around battery raw materials and production bottlenecks have further weighed on the theme.
Rahul Bhushan says, “After a cautious 2024, it’s evident that investors are re-engaging with innovation themes that offer clearer earnings visibility and resilience in an increasingly complex macro landscape. We’re seeing investor conviction in megatrends with structural tailwinds, particularly defence, AI, and energy security. Thematics are no longer just tactical bets, they’re core strategic exposures.”
2025/2024 Comparative Study
Thematics are back
After a weak 2024, investor appetite for thematic risk has returned in force:
• H1 2025 total net inflows: +$8.74B
• That’s a sharp reversal from -$791M in H2 2024 and only +$483M in H1 2024
• The rotation is clear: capital is moving back into forward-looking themes with stronger earnings visibility.
Defence is now a structural trade
• Global and Europe Defence saw a combined $7.87B in inflows in H1 2025 and $1.59B in June alone.
• This continues a multi-quarter surge as geopolitical tensions, rising military budgets, and renewed industrial policy drive long-term allocations.
• Defence is no longer a tactical trade—it’s becoming a core exposure.
AI inflows normalise, but conviction remains
• Artificial Intelligence ETFs drew $904M in H1 2025, following $1.47B in H1 2024.
• Inflows may be slowing, but investor conviction is holding firm.
• With earnings delivery now catching up to narrative, AI remains a centrepiece of thematic portfolios.
Cybersecurity shows signs of stabilisation
After brutal outflows in 2024 (-$311M H1, -$260M H2), cybersecurity ETFs finally saw inflows:
• $318M in H1 2025, including $67M in June.
• This rebound suggests investors are once again prioritising digital resilience in an AI-driven world.
Infrastructure themes are quietly regaining traction
• Global and Europe Infrastructure ETFs pulled in $284M in H1 2025, following modest gains in H2 2024.
• Infrastructure is benefiting from government stimulus, defence modernisation, and the reshoring trade.
Uranium’s steady climb continues
• $253M in H1 2025, after $216M in H2 2024 and $67M in June alone.
• Indeed, the $67M in June alone nearly matches the $66M pulled in during the entirety of H1 2024.
• A rare clean energy theme that’s bucking the downtrend, reflecting growing recognition of nuclear as a pragmatic decarbonisation solution.
Clean Energy sentiment is so bad, it might be investable
• Outflows across all periods: -$307M (H1 2025), -$505M (H2 2024), -$409M (H1 2024)
• June 2025: A mere -$8M
• Sentiment is arguably as negative as it’s ever been—yet structural drivers remain in place. The setup for a contrarian rebound is building.
About ARK Invest Europe
ARK Invest International Ltd (”ARK Invest Europe”) is a specialist thematic ETF issuer offering investors access to a unique blend of active and index strategies focused on disruptive innovation and sustainability. Established following the acquisition of Rize ETF in September 2023 by ARK Investment Management LLC, ARK Invest Europe builds on over 40 years of expertise in identifying and investing in innovations that align financial performance with positive global impact.
Through its innovation pillar and the ”ARK” range of ETFs, ARK Invest focuses on companies leading and benefiting from transformative cross-sector innovations, including robotics, energy storage, multiomic sequencing, artificial intelligence, and blockchain technology. Meanwhile, its sustainability pillar, represented by the ”Rize by ARK Invest” range of ETFs, prioritises investment opportunities that reconcile growth with sustainability, advancing solutions that fuel prosperity while promoting environmental and social progress.
Headquartered in London, United Kingdom, ARK Invest Europe is dedicated to empowering investors with purposeful investment opportunities. For more information, please visit https://europe.ark-funds.com/
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