RJ and Makay

Morgan Stanley, like other investment banks, has had a tough time in the fixed-income, currency, and commodities trading markets recently. Making a profit in those markets has been more difficult, largely because trading activity declined so much as a result of the financial crisis and recession.

But that's not stopping Morgan Stanley's CEO James Gorman.

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) — mutual funds that trade like stocks — continue to be a growing force in the securities industry, a new report by State Street Global Advisors shows.

Holdings in domestic ETFs rose 28% last year to $994.7 billion, says State Street. ETF assets grew as investors flocked to dividend/fundamental ETFs (up 99%), commodity ETFs (up 46%), and emerging markets ETFs (up 43%). In dollar terms, emerging markets ETFs gained $43.9 billion compared with $31 billion for commodity ETFs and $28.8 billion for fixed-income ETFs.