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March Sees Biggest Equity Sell-Off Since November
8 Apr
Summary
- Nearly £1.5 billion exited equity funds in March due to investor worries.
- Outflows surged from £927 million in February to £1.44 billion last month.
- This marks the seventh worst outflow month on record, extending a ten-month withdrawal streak.
Investor anxiety over the conflict with Iran spurred a significant withdrawal from equity funds in March, with nearly £1.5 billion being pulled. This substantial sell-off marks the heaviest outflow since November of the previous year, when pension concerns led to a similar investor reaction. The figures, reported by Calastone, reveal a surge from £927 million in February to £1.44 billion in March.
This trend of withdrawals has now persisted for an unprecedented ten consecutive months. The sell-off was widespread across various fund types. UK-focused funds experienced the largest outflows, amounting to £592 million, a slight increase from February's figures. The FTSE 100 also reflected this investor sentiment, losing nearly 7 percent of its value last month.
Beyond the UK, investor optimism saw its sharpest decline in European, Asia-Pacific, emerging markets, and Japanese funds. North American equities were the only sector to record inflows, though these were modest at £99 million, a decrease from £371 million in the preceding month. The cumulative outflows in March placed it among the seven worst months on record for investor selling.
