The total assets under management of the Asia-Pacific exchange-traded fund space hardly budged in the first four months of 2014, staying at around the US$170 billion mark, according Cerulli Associates.

According to Cerulli Associates, one big challenge that some ETF providers face in many Asia Pacific countries is that some brands are generally not as well known in the retail space.

A US$2.7 billion gain in ETF AUM in Japan in the January to April period was offset by falls of US$2.5 billion, US$0.2 billion, and US$2.2 billion in China, Hong Kong, and Korea, respectively.

The sluggish performance in ETF AUM is likely more due to uncertain global market conditions than investors losing faith in ETFs as viable investment options in a portfolio.

As ETFs can be bought and sold like stocks, they tend to be subject to the vagaries of stock markets. “A high level of conviction is needed to hold an ETF for the longer term,” said Thusitha de Silva, Asia editor for Cerulli.

One big challenge that some ETF providers face in many countries in the region is that some names are generally not as well known in the retail space.

“So, to establish a retail presence, efforts are needed to build brand awareness and to get retail investors to understand the investment philosophies of ETF providers,” added de Silva.