Global equity funds attract inflows for sixth week on earnings optimism

Global equity funds drew inflows for a sixth straight week through April 29, as optimism over strong first-quarter earnings outweighed investor concerns about the Middle East conflict and higher oil prices.

According to LSEG Lipper data, global equity funds attracted a net US$18.91 billion (HK$147.5 billion) during the week, following a hefty US$48.67 billion of net inflows the previous week.

The MSCI World Index hit a record high of 1,084.69 last week after several major U.S. tech companies and South Korean chipmaker Samsung Electronics reported robust results.

LSEG data covering 525 MSCI World constituents showed that about 72 percent of companies beat analysts' average profit estimates for the first quarter.

Asian equity funds saw a record US$10.82 billion weekly net inflow, driven by US$8.27 billion into Japanese funds and US$2.31 billion into South Korean domestic funds.

European and U.S. equity funds recorded net weekly inflows of US$5.83 billion and US$911 million, respectively.

The tech sector attracted a net US$3.48 billion over the week, lifting total monthly inflows to a net US$22.9 billion.

Global bond funds were popular for a fourth successive week, drawing a net US$14.19 billion.

Government bond funds attracted a net US$3.07 billion, the largest inflow in three weeks, while high-yield bond funds took in a net US$2.44 billion.

Money market funds posted a third straight week of outflows, with investors withdrawing a net US$36.5 billion.

Investors also pulled a net US$1.46 billion from gold and other precious metals commodity funds, snapping a four-week run of inflows.

In emerging markets, equity funds saw net outflows of US$372 million after three weeks of gains, while bond funds attracted a net US$999 million for a fourth consecutive week of inflows, data for 28,889 funds showed.

Reuters

 

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