Equity net sales continue to exceed £1 billion in August 2013

Equity continued as the best-selling asset class for the fifth successive month, with net retail sales of over £1 billion

Net retail sales remained strong at £1.8 billion
Funds under management stood at £732 billion
Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares remained the best-selling sector

Daniel Godfrey, IMA Chief Executive, said:

"Investor confidence was demonstrated by another strong month for fund sales - net retail sales of £1.8 billion in August were a little lower than July but well above the 12 month rolling average. Equity funds were again favoured by retail investors - it's been the best-selling asset class for five months in a row. Mixed asset, property and targeted absolute return funds also did well in August."

Funds under management were £732 billion at the end of August 2013.

Net retail sales were £1.8 billion for August 2013 - down from £2.2 billion in July but well above the £1.3 billion average for the previous 12 months  (See Table 3 and Chart A).

Net sales to institutional investors were £284 million in August 2013.

ASSET CLASSES

Equity funds saw net retail sales of £1.1 billion in August 2013, compared to £1.4 billion in July 2013 and an average of £650 million over the last 12 months.

Mixed Asset was the second best-selling asset class with net retail sales of £407 million.

Property funds saw a continued increase in net retail sales for the seventh consecutive month, reaching £151 million in August 2013 - the highest level since June 2010.

Equity Fund Net Retail Sales by Region*

UK equity funds were the best-selling in August 2013 with net retail sales of £416 million - continuing the strong trend seen in recent months.

Global equity funds were the second best-sellers in August 2013 with net retail sales of £273 million.

European equity funds were the third best-sellers with net retail sales of £262 million, the second best result over the last 12 months.

IMA SECTOR RANKINGS

The top five best-selling IMA sectors for August 2013 were:

    Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares with net retail sales of £273 million.
    UK Equity Income with net retail sales of £225 million.
    Europe Excluding UK with net retail sales of £190 million, well above its monthly average for the previous 12 months (£56 million).
    Targeted Absolute Return with net retail sales of £173 million.
    Property with net retail sales of £151 million - the highest since June 2010 and well above the monthly average of £58 million for the previous 12 months.

The worst-selling IMA sector for August 2013 was £ Corporate Bond with a net retail outflow of £151 million.

 RETAIL DISTRIBUTION

In August 2013, UK fund platforms continued to see the highest gross retail sales at £5.0 billion, representing a 49% market share (47% in August 2012).

Gross retail sales for Other Intermediaries (includes Wealth Managers, Stockbrokers and IFAs) totalled £4.3 billion in August 2013, a market share of 42% (44% in August 2012).

Direct gross retail sales in August 2013 were £935 million, representing a market share of 9% (same as August 2012).

FUND PLATFORM PRODUCT SALES

For the five fund platforms that provide data to the IMA, funds under management for August 2013 were £151 billion, compared with £124 billion a year earlier. The five fund platforms are Cofunds, Fidelity, Hargreaves Lansdown, Skandia and Transact.

Net sales via the same five platforms were £750 million. Unwrapped products were the highest at £416 million, followed by ISAs (£190 million) and Personal Pensions (£144 million) and Insurance Bonds (£1 million).

ISAs**

For August 2013, ISA funds under management in fund companies and the five fund platforms that provide data to the IMA totalled £126 billion. The five fund platforms are Cofunds, Fidelity, Hargreaves Lansdown, Skandia and Transact.

Net sales for ISAs in August 2013 totalled £26 million through fund companies and the same five fund platforms, compared to an outflow of £132 million this time last year.

The top three best-selling sectors for ISAs based on the five fund platforms were:

    UK Equity Income (£38 million net)
    Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares (£32 million net)
    £ Strategic Bond (£25 million net)

FUND OF FUNDS

Net retail sales for funds of funds in August 2013 were slightly lower than recent months at £299 million, £226 million of which was invested into funds managed by different asset management firms and £73 million was invested into funds run by the same firm.

Funds under management for funds of funds were at a record £83 billion as at the end of August 2013, accounting for 11.3% of industry funds under management, compared with 10.7% a year earlier.

TRACKER FUNDS

Tracker funds saw net retail sales of £329 million in August 2013, broadly in line with recent months.

Funds under management for tracker funds were £71 billion as at the end of August 2013. Their overall share of total funds under management was 9.6%, compared with 7.9% a year earlier.

ETHICAL FUNDS

Net retail sales of ethical funds were £18 million in August 2013.

Funds under management for ethical funds were £8.6 billion at the end of August 2013. Their share of total funds under management was 1.2%, the same as this time last year.

OVERSEAS DOMICILED FUNDS

In August 2013, net retail sales for overseas domiciled funds were £273 million.