Rising oil prices prove hard to ignore

The third week of July ended with oil prices heading back towards $100 a barrel, artificial intelligence (AI) stocks under renewed pressure and policymakers moving to stabilize Chinese mainland capital markets. In the face of these trends, flows to EPFR-tracked Technology Sector Funds fell to a fourth of the previous week’s total, Chinese Mainland Equity Funds posted their biggest inflow since the first week of 2Q25 and Inflation Protected Bond Funds extended a run of inflows stretching back to the beginning of February.

The possibility that (re)intensifying conflict between the US and Iran’s impact on energy prices will prompt the US Federal Reserve to hike interest rates when it meets at the end of the month also colored flows during the latest reporting period. Flows into High Yield Bond Funds were less than half the $1.4 billion weekly average the group maintained during May and June while Municipal Bond Funds posted their smallest inflow since the second week of April.

Among groups tied to the AI story, Data Center Funds posted a third consecutive outflow for the first time in over 13 months, Software & Services Funds experienced record setting redemptions and Semiconductor Funds, which had absorbed $32 billion during the previous three weeks, netted only $67 million.

Overall, the week ending July 22 saw Equity Funds chalk up a collective inflow of $30.4 billion while Bond Funds absorbed $14.8 billion and Alternative Funds attracted over $6 billion for the first time since late February. Investors pulled another $33.8 billion out of Money Market Funds and Balanced Funds experienced their heaviest redemptions since late March.

At the single country fund level, redemptions from Russia Equity Funds hit a 40-week high and Russia Bond Funds extended their longest outflow streak since early 4Q25, Greece Money Market Funds posted their second largest inflow year-to-date and outflows from UK Equity Funds climbed to a 37-week high.