Global investors are becoming more confident in their risk appetite, led by North American investors where economic and earning outlook concerns are starting to diminish.
State Street Associates’ monthly Global Investor Confidence Index found confidence had increased from 71.2 in March to 72.9 points during April.
The survey measured investor confidence by analysing the buying and selling patterns of institutional investors where the greater the percentage allocation to equities, the higher the investor confidence.
During April, confidence increased most among North American investors with confidence rising from 68.3 to 71.1. However, it fell by 6.7 points to 92.9 in Asia and by 1.5 points in Europe to 86.7.
Rajeev Bhargava, managing director and head of Investor Behaviour Research at State Street Associates, said: “While equity markets demonstrated strong performance in Q1, institutional investors continue to show limited change in their risk appetite and have remained largely reluctant to jump back into risky assets.
Kenneth Froot, founding partner at State Street Associates, added: “In April, US markets have continued to rise as concerns about the economic and earnings outlook started to diminish. It appears, however, that neither the rebound in equity prices nor the Federal Reserve’s dovish shift are sufficient drivers to bring investors’ confidence into the risk-seeking territory.”
