IMA: tracker fund sales highest on record
Tracker fund sales in Q1 outstrip the same period in 2011 to hit record high as fund of funds net sales slow.
Net retail sales of tracker funds reached the highest level on record in the first quarter, according to the IMA.
According to the IMA’s quarterly statistics, net retail sales of tracker funds reached £661m, £133m more than the same period in 2011.
Tracker funds under management were £43.3bn at the end of March 2012, compared with £40.3bn in the first quarter of last year.
The IMA said of the 81 tracker funds, 39 track the main UK indices, mainly the FTSE 100 and FTSE All Share. The remainder track a wide spread of other equity indices, including European, Global, Asia Pacific and the US.
The statistics, which report net retail sales for fund of funds (FoFs) and ethical funds in addition to trackers, reported that FoF assets under management grew to £64.2bn at the end of the first quarter, compared with £58.8bn last year, while ethical funds held steady at £7.2bn.
Net retail sales for fund of funds totalled £396m, the lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2008 and below the average for the previous four quarters of £1.3bn.
Net retail sales of ethical funds totalled £26m, following an outflow in the previous quarter. This is still well below the quarterly average of £50m for the previous four quarters.