The proportion of cash in asset managers’ portfolios hasn’t been this high since September 2021, according to the May Bank of America survey. The average level of cash in their portfolios reached 6.1% against 5.5% in April. Another sign of their great caution, asset managers have not been underweight equities as much since May 2020. They are 13% net underweight this asset class, compared to 6% overweight it last month. The two main risks are aggressive (hawkish) central banks and a global recession.
The most popular positions are bullish bets on oil and commodities, but also bearish bets on US rates markets.
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