Investment fund assets worldwide increased 7.3 per cent during the first quarter to stand at EUR23.78trn at the end of March 2013, compared to EUR22.17trn at the end of 2012, according to figures released by The European Fund and Asset management Association (EFAMA).
In US dollar terms, worldwide investment fund assets totalled USD30.45trn at end March 2013.
Worldwide net cash inflows remained at a high level in the first quarter at EUR320bn, compared to EUR369bn in the previous quarter. This result can be attributed to record net inflows into long-term funds and large net outflows from money market funds during the quarter.
Long-term funds, all funds excluding money market funds, registered record net inflows of EUR402bn during the first quarter, up from EUR263bn in the previous quarter. This is the highest level of net inflows ever recorded into long-term funds.
Worldwide equity funds registered their highest level of net inflows since 2006, attracting EUR109bn, up from EUR14bn in the previous quarter.
Bond funds continued to enjoy net inflows amounting to EUR143bn, albeit down from EUR163bn in the previous quarter.
Balanced funds more than doubled net sales during the quarter to EUR74bn, compared to EUR33bn in the fourth quarter.
Money market funds registered net outflows of EUR82bn during the first quarter, compared to net inflows of EUR106bn in the fourth quarter of 2012. Large net outflows in the US of EUR76bn accounted for much of the worldwide outflows. Net flows in European money market funds remained relatively flat during the quarter.
At the end of the first quarter, assets of equity funds represented 38 per cent and bond funds represented 24 per cent of all investment fund assets worldwide. The asset share of money market funds was 15 per cent and the asset share of balanced/mixed funds was 11 per cent.
The market share of the ten largest countries/regions in the world market were: US (49.5 per cent), Europe (27.9 per cent), Australia (5.7 per cent), Brazil (5.6 per cent), Canada (3.6 per cent), Japan (3.5 per cent), China (1.4), Rep. of Korea (0.9 per cent), South Africa (0.5 per cent) and India (0.3 per cent).
