Of the 243 advisers surveyed by the platform in May, three quarters said they were optimistic on UK growth prospects, with over half (58%) preferring UK Equity Income funds over Global Equity Income equivalents.
UK Growth funds were the second most popular UK sector for a third (31%) of advisers, while the UK Smaller Companies sector was in third place with 21% of the vote.
UK Equity Income was also the most popular sector in the IMA leader board in March 2014 – the first time it appeared within the top-five sectors since September 2011.
However, the data may already be out of date. According to the latest IMA sales figures for May, it was the resurgent Property sector which topped the rankings having achieved its highest retail inflows since December 2009.
Graham Venn, head of commercial at Cofunds, said: “Recent statistics from The Office of National Statistics reveal the UK economy is growing at its fastest rate since 2007. This is the fifth consecutive period of growth, the longest positive run since the financial crisis.
“This is certainly reflected in the increasingly optimistic outlook amongst advisers on the opportunities offered through investing in the UK. The rise in popularity of the UK Equity Income Sector can most certainly be linked to the much anticipated launch of the CF Woodford Equity Income Fund in June, which created a considerable amount of interest in this sector.
“With the UK’s economic outlook expected to remain positive and UK growth set to continue, we envisage client interest in the UK will continue to remain high, and especially within the UK Equity Income sector as investors are attracted by the prospect of strong and stable returns.”
