CITI PREDICTS FIRST RATE CUT OF THE YEAR IN MAY INSTEAD OF MARCH DUE TO JOBS DATA

Economic Forecast: CITI expects to deliver the first rate cut of the year in May, indicating a shift in monetary policy.

Job Market Insights: This forecast follows recent jobs data, suggesting changes in employment trends that may influence economic decisions.

Record Inflows into ETFs: U.S.-listed ETFs saw $49.7 billion in inflows last week, bringing the year-to-date total to a record $1.33 trillion, although much of this activity was driven by quarter-end mechanics rather than new risk-taking.

Contrasting ETF Performance: The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) experienced a significant inflow of $40.5 billion, while the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) faced a $51.8 billion outflow, highlighting the complexities in interpreting ETF data.

Tech Sector Pullback: Investors reduced exposure to technology and semiconductor ETFs, with notable outflows from the Invesco QQQ Trust and the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3x Shares, indicating a more selective approach to tech investments.

Emerging Demand for Diversification: The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF and Schwab International Equity ETF attracted substantial inflows, suggesting a shift towards diversification and a cautious stance against concentrated market leadership.

ETF Outflow Details: The OSCG ETF experienced the largest outflow, losing 20,000 units, which equates to a 40.0% decline in outstanding units compared to the previous week.

Market Impact: The significant outflow from the OSCG ETF highlights potential shifts in investor sentiment and market dynamics.

Video Content: A video segment discusses the outflows of SOXL and OSCG ETFs, providing further insights into the market trends.

Author's Perspective: The opinions expressed in the article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of Nasdaq, Inc.

52-Week Range of SOXL: SOXL's share price has a 52-week low of $7.225 and a high of $50.76, with the last trade recorded at $40.05.

Understanding ETFs: Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) function like stocks, where investors buy and sell "units" that can be created or destroyed based on demand.

Monitoring ETF Flows: Weekly monitoring of shares outstanding helps identify ETFs with significant inflows (new units created) or outflows (units destroyed), impacting the underlying holdings.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent Nasdaq, Inc.

Comparison of SOXL and SSO: SOXL offers 3x leverage focused on the semiconductor sector, resulting in higher risk and volatility compared to SSO, which provides 2x leverage on the broader S&P 500, leading to more diversification and stability.

Performance Metrics: Despite SOXL having a lower expense ratio, it has experienced a significantly deeper max drawdown of -90.46% over five years compared to SSO's -46.73%, indicating greater risk for investors.

Investment Strategy: Both ETFs are designed for short-term traders seeking magnified daily returns, but SOXL's concentrated approach in technology hardware limits diversification, while SSO spreads risk across multiple sectors.

Long-term Considerations: The daily leverage reset feature in both ETFs can affect long-term compounding, making them more suitable for short-term investments rather than long-term holds.