Retail investors have leaned into this year’s market gyrations, pumping cash into US equities even as share prices have tumbled from the historic highs recorded at the start of January.
Small-time investors have been net buyers of US equities and exchange traded funds every trading day this month, according to data from VandaTrack. The scale of daily inflows stood above the 2021 average on all but two days since the start of the year.
The inflows have come even as Wall Street’s S&P 500 has fallen 9.7 per cent from the record high reached in early January. High flyers favoured by amateur traders, such as electric carmaker Tesla, have fared even worse.