Culture

 

British Queen celebrates

 

British investors have withdrawn a record £7.4 billion ($9.9 billion) from equity funds since June, marking the longest streak of monthly outflows since the aftermath of the 2016 Brexit vote,

according to new figures from fund network Calastone.

Edward Glyn, Calastone’s head of global markets, said the sell-off reflects mounting unease over lofty global stock valuations and uncertainty surrounding potential changes to investment tax rules in the UK government’s upcoming budget.

The shift away from equities mirrors a broader international trend. Bank of America reported last week that its private clients had offloaded $12 billion in equities over the past eight weeks — the fastest pace of withdrawals in a year.

October proved particularly turbulent for UK investors, who shed a record £3.6 billion in equities. Many redirected their cash into safer assets, driving record inflows of £955 million into money market funds and £589 million into fixed income products.

Calastone, which has tracked fund flows since 2015, said every major equity category — including global, North American, technology and UK-focused funds — experienced net selling during the period.