Fund managers have more positive equities outlook
More international fund managers are adopting an overweight view on equities while taking a more neutral view on bonds, according to the latest HSBC Fund Managers’ Survey.
The survey analysed 12 of the world’s leading fund management houses, which experienced a 4.75 per cent drop in funds under management at the end of the second quarter to US$161.6 billion, led by a decline in equity funds.
However, some 50 per cent of fund managers surveyed had an overweight view on “selective” equities for the third quarter of this year, up from 40 per cent in the previous quarter. It also found that despite strong inflows to bond funds in the second quarter, more took a neutral view on bonds in the third quarter (88 per cent) as they saw more opportunities in certain equities going forward.
Going forward fund managers were taking a more positive view towards fast-growing markets, particularly Asia, that have managed a sustained economic recovery and have stimulated economic activity globally, said HSBC Australia’s head of wholesale distribution, Geoffrey Pidgeon. Some 44 per cent were bullish on Asia-Pacific ex Japan equities, up from 38 per cent in the last quarter.
The survey also showed a less enthusiastic view of China in light of policy risk concerns, with fewer bullish on Greater China equities, down to 50 per cent in the third quarter from 71 per cent in the second quarter.
“The quantitative tightening and austere property measures taken by the Chinese Government impacted upon investor sentiment and market performance in the second quarter,” said Pidgeon. “Nonetheless, the Chinese economy remains resilient and a market pullback may create interesting opportunities for investors.”
The fund managers surveyed included AllianceBernstein, Allianz Global Investors, Baring Asset Management, BlackRock, Fidelity Investment Management, Franklin Templeton Investments, HSBC Global Asset Management, Investec Asset Management, JP Morgan Asset Management, Prudential Asset Management, Schroders Investment Management and Société Générale.
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