Net sales of UCITS and alternative investment funds (AIFs) amounted to €221 billion in 2018, compared to €940 billion in 2017, according to The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA).
EFAMA also found UCITS net sales reached €115 billion, compared to €738 billion in 2017.
Long-term UCITS net sales totaled €125 billion, compared to €669 billion in 2017 and equity funds recorded net inflows of €108 billion, down from €158 billion in 2017.
EFAMA highlighted AIFs recorded net sales of €105 billion compared to €202 billion in 2017, while net assets of UCITS and AIF decreased by 2.7 percent to €15,204 billion, a difference from €15,625 billion at end 2017.
EFAMA said last year was a “challenging year for the investment fund industry”.
It stated: “The US global trade war, Brexit, political uncertainties in Europe, monetary policy tightening and concerns about economic growth, led to stock market volatility and investor nervousness. This resulted in a sharp decline in net sales of UCITS and AIFs and a small decline in net assets of UCITS and AIFs.”
Bernard Delbecque, senior director for economics and research at EFAMA, commented: “2018 can only be judged in the light of the net sales of UCITS reached in 2017, which were truly exceptional and followed several good years of net sales. Investors have grown more cautious in 2018, and this caution has been reinforced by the sentiment that stock markets might have reached exceedingly high levels and that monetary policy had reached a pivotal point.”
He added: “The good news, however, is that UCITS and AIFs continued to record positive net sales in 2018. This confirms that investment funds remain attractive investment products even during turbulent times because they possess proven qualities in terms of transparency, risk diversification, investor protection and net returns.“
