The latest Investment Fund Industry Fact Sheet for February, published by the European Fund and Asset Management Association, shows a continuing trend of investors’ strong demand for long-term funds and their gradual exit from money market funds.

Over the last six months, long-term UCITS attracted EUR 148 billion, whereas net outflows from money market funds totalled EUR 103 billion.

The main developments in February in the reporting countries can be summarised as follows:

• Net inflows into long-term UCITS (UCITS excluding money market funds) remained strong in February, totalling EUR 28 billion, compared to EUR 35 billion in January and an average of EUR 24 billion in the second half of 2009.
  
• Money market funds suffered net outflows (EUR 16 billion) for the sixth consecutive month.
  
• Reflecting the combined effect of these trends, total net inflows into UCITS slowed down to EUR 12 billion in February, compared to EUR 32 billion in January.
  
• Among long-term UCITS, bond funds led the sales ranking, gathering EUR 15 billion in net new money – the same level as in January. Balanced and equity funds ranked second and third, with net inflows of EUR 7 billion and EUR 5 billion respectively.
  
• Net inflows into special funds reserved for institutional investors fell to EUR 6 billion in February, compared to EUR 17 billion in January.

• Total assets of UCITS and non-UCITS funds increased by 1.1 percent in February, compared with the value of assets by end of January.