Fund managers cut European growth expectations on Covid concerns

Bank of America European fund manager survey

Less than half of fund managers expect the European economy to improve over the next 12 months, down sharply from 80% in the previous month, as concerns about the spread of coronavirus dampen optimism, the latest Bank of America (BofA) European fund manager survey shows.

The 17 August survey of 232 participants representing $702bn AUM showed 44% of participants expect the EU macro cycle to improve further, the least optimistic outlook for the bloc's prospects since June 2020 and marking a substantial decline from the March 2021 peak of 94%. Sick man on the mend? Europe could finally be about to shine BofA attributed the decline to coronavirus-related concerns, with 19% of investors citing the Delta variant as the biggest tail risk facing markets, up from 9% in May, closely behind inflation concerns (20%) and worries about a taper tantrum (22%). ...