BlackRock's AUM Improving With Rising Equity Markets, but ETF Flow Competition Remains Stiff

For much of the past decade, we've bemoaned the fortunes of the traditional US-based asset managers, noting that they would face significant secular headwinds (from aging baby boomers to the growth of passive investing) and cyclical headwinds (leading to more-volatile equity and credit markets) that would pressure their top and bottom lines.