UK retail sales fell £12.1bn in 2016 as investors flee equities

Targeted Absolute Return best-selling sector

Net retail sales of UK investment funds fell by more than £10bn year-on-year in an "extraordinary and challenging" 2016, with equities suffering a reversal of fortunes, according to the Investment Association's figures for the year.

The UK funds industry took in net retail inflows of just £4.7bn in 2016, down from £16.8bn in 2015, but strong performance led total funds under management to breach the £1trn landmark, up from £928bn at the end of the previous year. Despite lower overall flows for the UK funds industry, the IA Target Absolute Return sector emerged as the strongest seller over the year, with net retail sales of £5.1bn. It was followed by the IA Global sector, which took in £2.5bn, and the IA Short Term Money Market sector, which sold £1.8bn. Money market funds overall saw a record-breaking year, takin...