SPY leads $30 billion trading day as leveraged tech funds dominate volume
Data from Yahoo Finance shows SPY and QQQ accounting for the bulk of daily turnover, with SOXL and TQQQ highlighting the appetite for amplified exposure to the AI trade.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) recorded the highest daily trading volume among exchange-traded funds on Thursday, 6 August 2026, with nearly $30 billion in dollar volume changing hands. The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100, followed as the second most actively traded fund with nearly $24 billion in volume.
Despite holding over $1 trillion in assets, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) ranked outside the top 10 by daily trading volume. VOO is the only fund to surpass the trillion-dollar mark, having overtaken SPY as the largest ETF by assets in 2025, yet it remains a distant runner-up in terms of daily turnover compared to its peers.
Leveraged and inverse semiconductor and technology funds dominated the lower half of the top 20 list, reflecting intense speculative interest in the artificial intelligence sector. The Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X Shares (SOXL) recorded $7.6 billion in trading volume, a significant figure for a fund with only $22.5 billion in assets. The ProShares UltraPro QQQ (TQQQ) also saw heavy activity, with $4.4 billion traded.
Unleveraged semiconductor funds also drew substantial attention, with the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) each trading roughly $4 billion. Bearish versions of these instruments, including the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3X Shares (SOXS) and the ProShares UltraPro Short QQQ (SQQQ), also landed in the top 20, indicating active hedging strategies alongside long positions.
Activity extended beyond US-listed tech giants, with the iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (EWY) trading $2.9 billion and the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) recording $2.8 billion. Both funds cracked the top 15, underscoring the market’s focus on Korean memory makers central to the AI supply chain. Outside of technology, the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) stood out with $4.9 billion, marking it as the most actively traded small-cap fund.
Fixed income and gold ETFs also featured prominently in the daily rankings. The iShares iBoxx Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD) traded $3.4 billion, while the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) recorded $2.3 billion. The SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) saw $4.3 billion in volume, and the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) traded $2.1 billion, despite the metal having a tepid year. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) rounded out the top 20 with almost $2 billion traded.
