Australian shares roared back to life in March, despite some weakness at the beginning of the month. The ASX 200 gained 6.4%, representing the market best monthly result since November, 2020.

Investors have cast aside concerns around inflation, rising interest rates, and the war in Ukraine to focus on some of the sectors that have been leveraged to other macroeconomic factors like rising commodity prices. That meant iron ore, lithium, oil and gas, plus gold stocks were all standouts last month.

However, there was also a strong rebound in the tech sector as risk-on sentiment followed through from the US, where the Nasdaq reached its highest level since mid-January. Every sector across the ASX finished in the green last month, allowing the ASX to chart as three-and-a-half month high.

Which shares and ETFs are the most held?

There were no changes among the top-six names on the list of the most-held ASX stocks, with dependable blue-chip stocks from the bank sector, as well as CSL (ASX: CSL) and BHP (ASX: BHP) all remaining extremely popular. In fact, across these names, the collective value of shares in these companies across the Selfwealth platform increased by more than $60 million versus February.The iron ore rally also played a key role in spurring Fortescue Metals Group (ASX: FMG) to move higher up the list, now sitting in position seven as the most-held ASX stock by value. Iron ore prices have hit a near seven-month high as commodity traders bet on the prospect of further policy support out of China that might arrest concerns of slowing growth in the world second-largest economy.

By far the biggest trend across the Selfwealth community last month was the uptake in lithium stocks. While sentiment towards the sector soured in February and the start of March, things quickly reversed course as a rally in Tesla shares and optimism around lithium demand provided the impetus for critical minerals suppliers to follow suit. Lithium prices also set a fresh record during the month.

For the first time, both Lake Resources (ASX: LKE) and AVZ Minerals (ASX: AVZ) made the cut for the most-popular ASX stocks among Selfwealth members, ranking 13th and 18th respectively. They were also joined by Pilbara Minerals (ASX: PLS) and Liontown Resources (ASX: LTR), which have increasingly appeared on the radars of long-term investors in recent months. Each of these four companies have hit key milestones in recent weeks, and with news the US will invest in Australian critical minerals projects, momentum has only continued to build.In the meantime, the lithium stocks are stepping in to fill the void left by the departure of growth-oriented stocks that were one-time market darlings, like Zip (ASX: Z1P) and Afterpay (now Square), which haven't been sighted since November last year.  They also replace a couple of the more conservative' investment options like Woolworths (ASX: WOW) and Argo Investments (ASX: ARG), which although still very popular, don't have the same passionate following as some of the ASX lithium miners.  ASX StockCompany1CBACommonwealth Bank2WBCWestpac3CSLCSL Limited4BHPBHP5NABNational Australia Bank6MQGMacquarie Group7FMGFortescue Metals Group8AFIAustralian Foundation Inv9ANZANZ10TLSTelstra11NEUNeuren Pharmaceuticals12IHLIncannex Healthcare13LKELake Resources14WESWesfarmers15PLSPilbara Minerals16RIORio Tinto17WPLWoodside Petroleum18AVZAVZ Minerals19LTRLiontown Resources20FLTFlight Centre

Selfwealth members continue to back the same ten leading ETFs, with no changes last month. The top ten ETFs represent 27.6% of all ASX securities held under HIN on the Selfwealth platform, indicating high conviction in these funds as part of our members' portfolios.

ASX ETFsCompany1VASVanguard Australian Shares Index ETF2VDHGVanguard Diversified High Growth Index ETF3VGSVanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF4IVVIshares S&P 500 ETF5VTSVanguard U.S. Total Market Shares Index ETF6A200BetaShares Australia 200 ETF7NDQBetashares Nasdaq 100 ETF8VEUVanguard All-World ex-U.S. Shares Index ETF9VHYVanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF10DHHFBetaShares Diversified All Growth ETF

ASX share trading activity

In keeping with the long-term interest in lithium and battery metals stocks, we also saw significant trading volumes in these names among short-term traders. Pilbara Minerals, Lake Resources and AVZ Minerals all featured among the most actively-traded stocks, and they were also joined by Core Lithium (ASX: CXO), which saw more than $36 million worth of shares exchanged across nearly 2,400 trades. While the ASX has previously been the focal point for a battle between those eyeing leveraged ETFs to bet on a rise or fall in the market, last month saw this focus drift to the Nasdaq index. That meant both the ETFS Ultra Short Nasdaq 100 Hedge Fund (ASX: SNAS) and the ETFS Ultra Long Nasdaq 100 Hedge Fund (ASX: LNAS) chalked up an appearance inside the top 20 most-traded securities. This is their first appearance as well, and the value of units traded in these two ETFs nearly hit $60 million. Adding to the fold, there were more than 1,600 trades in the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ), suggesting Nasdaq bullishness' is still very much the majority view.Oil prices rocketed higher during March in response to the war in Ukraine and concerns about oil supply across the world. However, it was selling activity that dominated trading in Australia best-known oil stock, Woodside Petroleum (ASX: WPL), with 59% of all trades (by value) being sell orders. This could be attributed to profit taking, and by virtue of the fact that short-term traders may have actually made money and sold larger parcels than they started with thanks to the stock rally throughout the month.Other names that saw heightened trading activity last month included Brainchip (ASX: BRN), with interest still resonating in the AI chip-maker amid a turnaround in the tech sector, and Nickel Mines (ASX: MIN), which was at the heart of a commodity short-squeeze saga. 

Nickel Mines' major shareholder, Tsingshan, was short-selling nickel on the London Metal Exchange, and when prices spiked to an unprecedented US$100,000 per tonne, the LME suspended trading and unwound market trades. Shares in NIC slumped on concerns whether its major shareholder would sell its stake in the company to cover its losses, but Selfwealth members saw the price dip as a buying opportunity, with 70% of all NIC trades last month being buy orders.

Top 20 stocks traded by valueCode SecurityBuy-Sell Ratio1FMGFortescue Metals Group49.4%2WBCWestpac48.0%3ANZANZ59.0%4VASVanguard Australian Shares Index ETF52.7%5PLSPilbara Minerals41.4%6CBACommonwealth Bank52.9%7BBOZBetashares Australian Equities Strong Bear Hedge Fund43.8%8BHPBHP51.1%9SNASETFS Ultra Short Nasdaq 100 Hedge Fund49.0%10CXOCore Lithium48.3%11RIORio Tinto78.8%12VGSVanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF55.1%13Z1PZip41.1%14LKELake Resources77.7%15VDHGVanguard Diversified High Growth Index ETF52.6%16CSLCSL41.0%17WPLWoodside Petroleum42.7%18AVZAVZ Minerals53.8%19LNASETFS Ultra Long Nasdaq 100 Hedge Fund62.1%20NDQBetashares Nasdaq 100 ETF49.4%

That all for this Trade Trends report, stay tuned for the next edition this time next month!