Market confidence off the back of President Trump’s victory in November persisted for the most part through December and January up until the week of his inauguration.
A $500bn pledge to invest in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure sent big tech stocks, like the ‘Magnificent 7’, soaring.
But the unverified claims from Chinese startup DeepSeek, that you can accomplish for millions what cost the big tech companies billions, saw US tech stocks tumble just a week later.
It’s been a rollercoaster start to the year for the US stock market so far, but the shaky start hasn’t been enough to knock US ETFs out of the most bought ETFs list.
This article has been written independently of our investment research team to offer some inspiration but isn't personal advice, or a guide on how or where to invest.
If you’re not sure if an investment’s right for you, ask for financial advice. Investments can fall as well as rise in value, so you could get back less than you invest.
An exchange traded fund is a basket of investments that usually includes shares or bonds. They tend to track the performance of an index, like the FTSE 100, and trade like shares on stock exchanges. This means their prices fluctuate throughout the day.
Where were HL clients investing in January?
The table below shows the most bought ETFs by HL's investors in January.
This is by number of trades (minus any sales) and without any investments by monthly direct debit.
ETFs typically operate as either accumulation (any income is reinvested into the ETF – usually designated by ‘acc’ as part of their name) or distributing units (any income is paid out to the investors).
How to pick investments
Investing in ETFs isn’t right for everyone. Investors should only invest if the ETF’s objectives are aligned with their own, and there’s a specific need for the type of investment being made. You should understand the specific risks before investing, and make sure any new investment forms part of a diversified portfolio.
As ETFs trade like shares, both a buy and sell instruction will be subject to share dealing charges within your Hargreaves Lansdown account, except online in a Junior ISA.
If you're looking for some ETF inspiration from our investment research team, take a look at our 5 ETFs to watch for 2025 and beyond.
Or if you’d prefer to invest in a fund, you can use our Wealth Shortlist.
It's designed to help investors build and maintain a well-balanced and diversified portfolio. We've put funds under the microscope to make sure the list only contains the funds that our in-depth analysis shows have the greatest long-term performance potential.
If you want a team of experts to look after the day-to-day investment decisions, you could consider an HL Ready-Made fund.
You can choose from investing for growth, income or to save for retirement, which let you choose how to balance risk and potential returns.
All you'll need to do is check in on your investment from time to time to make sure it still meets your needs and objectives.