Investors return to equity funds – green shoots or end-of-tax-year blip?

Equity funds saw net inflows in March for the first time in over three years. What’s driving this behaviour, and which regions are proving most popular?

Stock price chart and trading board
(Image credit: Yuichiro Chino)

The UK fund market saw inflows of £446 million in March, as investors tentatively returned after withdrawing £2.7 billion in February. That’s according to the latest data from the Investment Association (IA).

Fixed income funds saw the biggest inflows (£809 million), followed by equities (£149 million). This is the first time equities have been positive since December 2021. All other asset classes were in outflows.

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Swipe to scroll horizontally
Asset classQ1 totalMarch flowsFebruary flowsJanuary flows
Fixed income£154m£809m-£231m-£424m
Equities-£1,610m£149m-£259m-£1,500m
Money markets-£116m-£16m-£1,200m£1,100m
Property-£180m-£67m-£41m-£72m
Others-£113m-£157m£56m-£12m
Mixed asset-£1,462m-£272m-£975m-£215m
Swipe to scroll horizontally
RegionQ1 totalMarch flowsFebruary flowsJanuary flows
Global£314m£753m-£370m-£69m
North America£1,538m£654m£821m£63m
Japan£213m£145m£46m£22m
Asia£1m-£71m£115m-£43m
Europe-£122m-£158m£56m-£20m
UK-£3,300m-£1,300m-£1,000m-£1,000m
Katie Williams
Staff Writer

Katie has a background in investment writing and is interested in everything to do with personal finance, politics, and investing. She enjoys translating complex topics into easy-to-understand stories to help people make the most of their money.

Katie believes investing shouldn’t be complicated, and that demystifying it can help normal people improve their lives.

Before joining the MoneyWeek team, Katie worked as an investment writer at Invesco, a global asset management firm. She joined the company as a graduate in 2019. While there, she wrote about the global economy, bond markets, alternative investments and UK equities.

Katie loves writing and studied English at the University of Cambridge. Outside of work, she enjoys going to the theatre, reading novels, travelling and trying new restaurants with friends.