Investment - Articles - Highest selling month for global equity fund sales

 The Investment Management Association today publishes its monthly fund statistics for August 2011.

 Key findings:

 * Net retail sales of £1.1 billion
 * Net ISA sales of £177 million
 * Global the top selling IMA sector in August, the highest month on record

 Jane Lowe, Director of Markets at the Investment Management Association (IMA), comments:

 "Despite volatile markets in August, net retail sales of funds remained steady, with investors adding £1.1 billion to their portfolios. Interestingly, investor appetite for equities was strong in August, with net retail sales of £515 million.

 "Equity investment occurred in several sectors. Sales of global equity funds were the highest on record in August. However, the UK Equity Income and UK All Companies sectors were also popular, with UK Equity Income reporting its highest sales since May 2007."

 SUMMARY UK DOMICILED   FUNDS UNDER MANAGEMENT  RETAIL SALES(NET)   ISA SALES(NET)

 August 2011                           £561.5 billion                                     £1.1 billion                   £177 million

 August 2010                           £522.1 billion                                     £2.6 billion                   £145 million

 UK DOMICILED FUNDS

 SALES

 August saw net retail sales of £1.1 billion, an increase on July's £938 million but below the monthly average of £2.2 billion for the previous twelve months. Year to date net retail sales totalled £15.1 billion compared with £18.6 billion in the same period last year.

 Both gross sales and repurchases were higher in August than in recent months, indicating higher turnover of funds by investors than usual.

 ISA sales

 August saw £177 million in net ISA sales, above the monthly average of £156 million for the previous twelve months, excluding the ISA season of March and April. Year to date net ISA sales totalled £3.0 billion, compared with 2010's £3.6 billion for the same period.

 FUNDS UNDER MANAGEMENT

 Funds under management in August totalled £561.5 billion, down 5.8% on July.

 Funds under management for ISAs totalled £100.6 billion in August 2011, down 6.5% on July.

 ASSETS

 In contrast to July's outflow, Equities was the highest selling asset class in August, with net retail sales of £515 million, below the monthly average of £606 million for the previous twelve months.

 The second highest selling asset class was Balanced, with net retail sales of £347 million in August, below the monthly average of £552 million for the previous twelve months.

 Net retail sales of Bond funds totalled £108 million in August, the lowest level since January 2011 and well below the monthly average of £495 million for the previous twelve months.

 Property funds saw a net retail outflow of £52 million in August, the first outflow since March 2009.

 In August net retail sales of money market funds totalled £84 million, their highest sales since March 2006, when inflows totalled £102 million.

 Net sales of ISAs were concentrated in Bond and Balanced funds, indicating that ISA investors were more cautious than non-ISA investors in August.

 SECTORS

 Global was the best selling IMA Sector, with net retail sales of £337 million in August, the highest selling month on record, though only slightly ahead of June's £332 million. Year to date net retail sales of the IMA Global Sector totalled £1.8 billion.

 UK Equity Income was the second most popular IMA Sector with £211 million in net retail sales, the highest level since May 2007 and compared with a monthly average of £53 million over the previous twelve months.

 Cautious Managed was the third most popular IMA Sector in August, with net retail sales of £198 million, below the average of £319 million over the previous twelve months.

 Net retail sales of Balanced Managed, the fourth most popular IMA Sector, totalled £156 million in August.

 UK All Companies, the fifth highest selling sector, reported net retail sales of £142 million, up from last place in July and the highest level since December 2010.

 The IMA Absolute Return UK sector saw a net retail outflow of £122 million in August, the largest outflow since the sector's formation in April 2008 and compared with a monthly average inflow of £162 million over the previous twelve months.

 RETAIL DISTRIBUTION

 Gross retail sales for 'Other Intermediaries' - which includes Wealth Managers and Stockbrokers - totalled £5.0 billion for August, taking the largest market share in August, with 48% of total sales.

 Gross retail sales through Fund Platforms* totalled £4.1 billion in August. Platforms' market share was 40% in August.

 Direct channels' gross retail sales totalled £1.2 billion in August. Sales through direct channels accounted for 12% of total sales.

 FUND PLATFORMS

 Funds under management for Fund Platforms** were £107 billion in August 2011.

 Gross sales across all products (ISAs, Insurance Bonds, Personal Pensions, Unwrapped) sold through Fund Platforms increased from July to August 2011.

 Gross sales through UK fund platforms totalled £3.4 billion, while total repurchases were £2.6 billion, both higher than levels seen over the previous twelve months when excluding the ISA season of March and April. The high gross sales and repurchases seen in August indicate high turnover in funds by investors.

 INSTITUTIONAL FUNDS

 Institutional funds saw net sales of £325 million in August 2011.

 OVERSEAS DOMICILED FUNDS

 Overseas domiciled funds saw net retail outflows of £195 million in August 2011, compared with the monthly average inflow of £139 million for the previous twelve months.