In an extension of its longest outflow-streak since the third quarter of last year, the region’s main sectors all witnessed redemptions during the week, with Asia ex-Japan equity funds posting a $606m loss and Global Emerging Market equity funds losing $136m.
While the eurozone crisis remains the biggest short-term concern for investors, the dearth of yield and uncertainty about the true state of China’s economy are also shaping fund flows, EPFR Global said.
Despite the general mood of pessimism in the markets, equity funds as an asset class still managed to post net inflows of $6.2bn – albeit mainly into US corporates, with half of the total flowing into a single S&P 500 index fund.
"Redemptions still haven’t hit the levels seen last August," said Cameron Brandt, research director at EPFR Global, "That may be due in part to the fact that flows are currently dominated by institutional investors. The retail investors who fled during the third quarter of last year have stayed away."
The continued slump in yields for the safest bond funds saw inflows into the asset class continue to lose momentum as May came to a close.
Total inflows into bond funds were the lowest in 24 weeks as investors pulled more money out of high yield and emerging market bond funds and slowed the pace of their commitments to US bond funds.
