Net outflows hit Sweden in August
The Swedish investment fund industry was hit by net withdrawals of some SEK4.5bn (€482m) in August as turmoil hit global financial markets, according to data from the Swedish Investment Fund Association.
The value of total assets fell by SEK175bn (€18.75bn) taking it to some SEK3.185trn (€341bn) by the end of August.
Equity funds recorded the biggest net withdrawal of some SEK10.7bn. This took the total net withdrawal from equity funds in Sweden since the beginning of 2015 to SEK30.6bn.
Bond funds also saw marginal net withdrawals overall of some SEK0.2bn. However, year to date the sector has attracted some SEK11.1bn on a net basis.
Money market funds did best in August, attracting SEK5.3bn (€567m) through the month. But withdrawals experienced earlier in the year mean that this sector is up just SEK3.5bn overall since the start of 2015.
Balanced funds have attracted most net new money so far in 2015 – SEK57.7bn since the start of the year – and added another SEK0.7bn in August on a net basis.
Fredrik Pettersson, chief analyst at the Association said: “The turmoil in global equity markets affected net sales of investment funds in August. Savers have reduced the risk of their new savings throughout the year and in August this trend was strengthened even further. Savers chose mainly money market funds, while taking money out of equity funds.”
Swedish fund investors tend to be sensitive to the direction of the local stock market. The Stockholm Stock Exchange lost nearly 6% of its value through August, excluding dividends, which impacted the Sweden equity funds that are so popular with local investors.
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