Administration December 14, 2010
Mood Brightens Among Money Managers
December 14, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Money managers participating in a new Russell Investments poll appear confident in the global economy and its ability to sustain the U.S. equity markets in their ascent from the deep lows of the global financial crisis.
Reported by Fred Schneyer
A news release said 88% of the managers responding expect U.S. equity markets to rise over the 12 months ending December 2011. Forty percent expect the markets to increase by 10% or more in 2011.
Fifty-two percent of managers believe the markets to be fairly valued, compared to September 2010 when 57% of managers saw the markets as undervalued. Thirty-eight percent of managers responding to the latest survey believe the markets to be undervalued.
Additional findings include:
- Managers once again favor the technology sector above all others, marking the eighth survey in a row that technology has held the top spot. Eighty percent of managers are bullish on technology, compared to 69% in September 2010. Manager bullishness for the energy sector also rose considerably, from 51% in the previous survey to 68%.
- Manager sentiment for the consumer discretionary and consumer staples sectors changed substantially and in opposite directions. Manager bullishness for consumer discretionary rose 17% from the last survey to 47%, while bullishness for consumer staples fell 10% points to 35%, making the sector the least favored after utilities (18% bullishness).
- Real estate has been among the least-favored asset classes throughout the history of the Investment Manager Outlook survey, but in the latest iteration manager bullishness for real estate reached an all-time high at 31%, up 10%.
More than 200 managers participated in the survey. More information is here.