Specialist emerging markets asset manager Ashmore suffered a fall in assets under management (AUM) in the first quarter of 2015 as investors sold out of emerging market assets.
The firm’s total AUM fell by 4.1 per cent to $61.1bn between the end of December 2014 and March 2015.
Ashmore said the drop in assets was driven mostly from net outflows, which totalled $2bn in the past quarter, while negative investment performance took off a further $0.6bn.
However, the firm said outflows had slowed compared to the second half of 2014 as investors began to tentatively move back into emerging markets, particularly Ashmore’s speciality of emerging market debt.
Mark Coombs, chief executive officer of Ashmore, said many investors were still wary of the effect of a US interest rate rise, which is expected to hurt emerging market debt.
But he said: “Those investors willing to look beyond short-term price volatility and to focus on fundamentals are benefiting from the recent recovery in markets.”
