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Written by: Emma Wall | Hargreaves Lansdown
- Investment Association data reveals 2022 was the worst annual outflow on record from retail funds of £25.7 billion
- December was the 10th month of net outflows in 2022
- Second worse year on record for fund flows was 2008 which saw inflows of £4.2bn
- Responsible funds and tracker funds were the only sectors to record inflows of £5.4bn and £11bn respectively
It is no surprise to see investors turned off markets in 2022, a year of extreme economic and political turmoil. But the scale of the outflows is eye-watering. Outflows of more than £25bn illustrate the wall of fear investors had to climb to see through the news headlines last year.
It wasn’t just the atrocities in Ukraine, but the associated inflation and rising cost of living, the disastrous mini-budget from the short-lived Liz Truss prime ministerial leadership, and the lingering spectre of coronavirus which weighed heavily on investors’ minds – and trading.
2023 has got off to a more optimistic start, with the FTSE 100 flirting with record highs, and the US market being led by better-than-expected results from a number of the tech giants, and falling inflation. HL clients have responded to the rally by buying into global equity funds – though more cautious money market and total return funds also hit the top 20 for January. Perhaps those investors recognise we’re not out of the woods yet, and know to expect more volatility through the year, as markets digest jobs figures, inflation outlook, central bank policy – and the ongoing war in Eastern Europe.
Related: Investors Buy Income Funds as Confidence in Global Markets Dips