30/11/2011
By Ilonka Oudenampsen
Ucits witnessed net outflows of €83bn in the third quarter of 2011, compared to net inflows of €18bn in the second quarter, the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) revealed at its annual Investment Management Forum.
In its latest quarterly statistical release, EFAMA found that long-term Ucits (Ucits excluding money market funds) experienced net outflows of €78bn during the quarter, the first quarterly outflow since the first quarter of 2009. Total net assets of Ucits decreased by 7.1 per cent to €5,472bn at end September 2011.
Net assets of equity funds fell by 16.1 per cent, the highest asset decrease, making equity funds responsible for 80 per cent of the fall in total net Ucits assets during the quarter. Bond funds experienced a 1.1 per cent decrease in net assets, while money market funds recorded an increase in net assets of 1.5 per cent.
Non-Ucits net assets decreased by 0.9 per cent to €2,195bn at end September 2011. Assets of special funds reserved to institutional investors increased from €1,425bn to €1,428bn, an increase of 0.2 per cent.
Assets of the European investment fund market (both Ucits and non-Ucits) fell by 5.4 per cent to €7,667bn, compared to net assets of €6,171bn at end 2008, €7,154bn at end 2009 and €8,142bn at end 2010.
EFAMA’s president Claude Kremer said: “Last year, European investment funds experienced a 14 per cent increase in their assets to reach €8.1 trillion. UCITS continued to attract net inflows during the first quarter of this year. But the tragic earthquake in Japan, unrest in North Africa and the Middle East, and tensions in sovereign debt markets triggered volatility in financial markets and unnerved investors in the spring. These events have created a vicious circle with a slow-down in global economic growth, losses in worldwide stock markets, and rising investors’ risk aversion. These developments have had a severe negative impact on our industry during the summer.
“The fund and asset management industry is still managing today €1.7 trillion in assets more than in March 2009. This figure allows us to put the developments so far this year into perspective. This is not to say, however, that we are not worried. Today it is clear that the crisis that started in 2007 will have a much more profound effect on our economies than expected only a few months ago. In the meantime, our industry remains committed to playing a key role in restoring the confidence of its consumers.”
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