18/05/2011
UCITS funds suffer net outflow of EUR9.4bn in March
In the month of March, the volatility of the financial markets due to uncertainties surrounding the disasters in Japan and turbulences connected with the “Arab spring” triggered a major wave of redemptions, which resulted in a net outflow of EUR9.4bn, where the month of February had seen a net inflow of nearly EUR27bn, according to the most recent statistics from the European fund and asset management association (EFAMA). Long-term UCITS funds (excluding money markets) saw a net outflow of EUR3.4bn, the first outflow since May 2010, compared with inflows of EUR19.2bn in February. Equities funds posted a net outflow of nearly EUR11bn, following a net inflows of EUR3.7bn in February, while bond funds saw redemptions of nearly EUR300m, following over EUR4bn in subscriptions in February. Only diversified funds resisted the general trend, with net inflows of EUR6.6bn, compared with EUR8.8bn one month earlier. Money market funds, which had attracted EUR7.6bn in February, in March underwent a net outflow of EUR6bn, possibly related to end-of quarter redemptions. Net inflows to non-UCITS funds fell to EUR7.3bn in March, from EUR9.3bn the previous month, largely due to a lower level of inflows to dedicated funds (EUR6.6bn in March, compared with EUR8.6bn in February). As of the end of March, assets in UCITS funds totalled EUR5.838bn, down 1.4% compared with February. Assets in non-UCITS funds, for their part, were up 0.3%, to EUR1.956trn.
