Investors withdrew £156m from North American equity funds and £202m from UK equity funds in December, according to Investment Association data.
Global equity funds were the main beneficiaries, with £340m deployed into those mandates during the month.
The withdrawals from UK funds continues a pattern, with an average of £189m per month pulled from UK equity mandates during 2017.
But the negative flows for US funds was a new development, with an average of £120m per month having been deployed into the funds in 2017.
Funds that invest in European equities were the main beneficiaries, with £297m on inflows in December, compared with an average monthly inflow over the previous year of £196m.
Total net sales for funds in the Investment Association universe were £63bn.
Fixed income continued to be the best selling asset class of 2017, with net sales of £14.3bn.
Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said: “If you knew in advance that 2017 would feature rising inflation and the first UK interest rate hike in ten years, you wouldn’t have predicted a great deal of investment in bond funds, nonetheless these vehicles were the surprise winners when it came to attracting money last year.
"The precise reasons for this phenomenon still remain elusive. Some cash savers may have moved up the risk spectrum in search of a better rate of return, other investors may have sought diversification from strongly rising equity markets. Others yet may simply have been expressing a negative view on the UK economy."
He said the UK "remains a notable pariah on the global stage", with money leaving UK equity funds throughout the end of last year.
"Brexit and a weak government do of course give pause for thought, however the phobia towards the UK looks overdone, and this presents a contrarian buying opportunity," he said.
"While there are clearly risks, the UK stock market offers investors a healthy level of income, and is home to a wealth of talented fund managers.”
David.Thorpe@ft.com
