Exchange traded funds (ETFs) continued to grow in popularity in the fourth quarter of last year, as assets invested increased 31 per cent year-over-year and global ETF assets reached $1 trillion, says Barclays Stockbrokers – the brokerage and investment unit of Barclays Wealth.

The rapid growth of the ETF market has been well documented and this latest data suggests it will continue as investors – and wealth management firms – are increasingly attracted to their low costs, transparency and liquidity.

ETF trading at Barclays Stockbrokers was up 13 per cent from the previous quarter in Q4 2009 and 14 per cent compared with the same period of the previous year. It was dominated by the FTSE 100, which attracted 23 per cent of all sales.

Other popular products were the ETFS FTSE 100 Super Short (x2), which entered the top ten buys and sales table for the first time and emerging markets ETFs: emerging markets ETFs account for 18 per cent of purchases and 10 per cent of sales, with a focus on Brazil and China (iShares MSCI Brazil, iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25, iShares MSCI Emerging Markets).

“It is interesting to see emerging markets ETFs growing in popularity. As the emerging market story becomes increasingly mainstream, ETFs present an efficient low-cost way to gain exposure to what were previously difficult markets to access,” said Barbara-Ann King, head of investments at Barclays Stockbrokers.