Investors remain bullish on returns

The findings come from Legal & General Investments' annual What Matters Investment Index which aims to investigate the future expectations of the everyday investor, and track how sentiment and behaviour changes over time.

The index also shows that investors have seen an average net level of return of 5.25% on their investment in the last year and, despite current volatility, are expecting to see an average net return of 4.34% over the next six months.

Of those investors surveyed, 6% made a net return of 10% per annum or more, down from 10% who made this level of return in 2010. 

Encouragingly, only 11% of investors saw a return of less than 2.5% in comparison to nearly one in five (19%) who achieved this low level of return in 2010.

With regards to asset class, it appears investors in equities have most confidence in their investment returns, with 36% expecting positive returns over the next six months.  Of those invested in fixed income by comparison, slightly less - 32% - are foreseeing positive returns for the next six months.

Simon Ellis, Managing Director, Legal & General Investments, said:

"While things obviously change quickly these days, it's encouraging to see that people have recently told us that they are still foreseeing positive returns for the next six months. 

"This year's index shows that the average net return expected from investments is 4.34%, far above the returns which could be generated from a savings account.

"It is also interesting to see that a larger proportion of investors in equities are predicting positive returns than those investing in other asset classes. 

"As always, regardless of the state of the market, the best way to safeguard against market volatility is to develop a balanced portfolio so exposure is spread across sectors and asset classes."