Survey: Global Fund Manager Cash Levels Rise to 4.3%, Highest Hedge Mentality Since Pandemic

BlockBeats News, March 17th. The latest March Global Fund Manager Survey released by Bank of America showed that against the backdrop of Middle East geopolitical tensions and rising inflation expectations, global asset managers are increasing their cash holdings at the fastest pace since the 2020 pandemic, with a significant decrease in market risk appetite.

The survey found that the average cash position of the surveyed fund managers rose from 3.4% in February to 4.3%, and overall investor sentiment hit a near six-month low. At the same time, the net percentage of those optimistic about global economic growth dropped sharply from 39% to 7%.

Regarding inflation expectations, 45% of respondents expect the global Consumer Price Index (CPI) to continue rising in the next year. As a result, market expectations for a Fed rate cut have significantly cooled, with only 17% of fund managers currently expecting a rate cut within the year, compared to 46% in February.

Furthermore, the survey revealed:

34% of investors are overweight commodities, the highest level since April 2022;
53% of investors are overweight emerging market stocks, hitting a new high since February 2021;
Non-essential consumer goods stock allocation fell to the lowest level since December 2022.

This survey was led by Michael Hartnett and conducted from March 6th to 12th, with a total of 181 fund managers participating, managing a combined total of approximately $529 billion in assets.