Signs of nervousness in the world of EM-dedicated funds, with flows to bond funds and equities funds both slowing down in the week to Wednesday, according to data supplied to banks by EPFR, the Boston-based fund watcher. Continue reading »

A fascinating week for followers of fund flows, with both bonds and equities showing signs of a renewed taste for EM risk against the backdrop of the US presidential election. Continue reading »

For a world supposedly in the grip of crisis and uncertainty, it has been a remarkable run for EM dedicated funds. In the week to October 17, EM bond funds had their 19th straight week of inflows according to EPFR, the fund flow monitor – indeed, of the past 40 weeks, only three saw outflows, bunched together in late May and early June when the Greek crisis was at its scariest.

Equities, as ever, have been more volatile but the year-to-date tally is also strongly positive. In the sample monitored by EPFR – about a sixth of the total, analysts reckon – EM dedicated equity funds have taken in $25.2bn and bond funds, $29.5bn.

Koon Chow at Barclays reckons the flows will keep coming – for a while. Here’s why. Continue reading »

No end in sight to the money flowing into emerging market funds, bond funds in particular.

Boosted by QE3 and bouyed by hopes of some stability, if not calm, returning to markets, fund managers have reported net inflows into both bonds and equities for the fifth week in a row. Continue reading »

Another solid week of flows to emerging market funds, with bond flows looking respectable for the fourth straight week despite a gradual slowdown, and more volatile equity flows still looking buoyant.

The QE rally seems to be intact, for now. Continue reading »

The promise of floods of money is still having an effect on fund flows, as shown by data for the week to Wednesday from EPFR, the fund monitor. But the data also reflect the fact that the northern hemisphere summer is over and the eurozone crisis and other associated woes are back on investors’ minds.

It was the third consecutive week of solid flows into EM bond funds, though the size of flows has fallen for the past two weeks. On the equities side, though, things were decidedly mixed. Continue reading »

Flows of money out of developed markets and into emerging ones have often been explained as a “search for yield”. As DM yields have fallen, the argument goes, investors looking for big returns have had to take more risk and put their money into EM assets.

But this year, things have changed. Rather than buying risky equities or almost as risky local currency bonds, EM investors have put their money into relatively safe, hard currency bonds. Why? Pablo Goldberg of HSBC argues in a report on Tuesday that the search for yield is giving way to a search for safety. Continue reading »

Say what you like about the downsides of QE, it sure gets the funds flowing. The latest figures from EPFR, the Boston-based fund watcher, suggest it gets the animal spirits flowing, too. Not only did investors take the promise of fresh liquidity as a signal to fill their boots. They also threw caution to the winds, moving heavily into equities and, on the bond side, putting more of their money into riskier local-currency bond funds than they have done for months. Continue reading »

Last week, we noted that Mario Draghi’s big bazooka had come too late to influence the latest data on fund flows from EPFR, compiled each week to Wednesday. The blast is pretty evident in this week’s numbers – and they were compiled before Helicopter Ben followed Super Mario with the promise of a third round of QE.

The prospect of more liquidity from the US Federal Reserve was already buoying up sentiment before Thursday’s announcement. But Ben Bernanke’s apparent commitment to spend as much as it takes – following a similar pledge from the European Central Bank – was not fully priced in. For fund flows, the odds are that this will be more than a one-week rally. The question is, how much more? Continue reading »