NET sales of unit trusts slumped 79 per cent in the first nine months of the year compared with same period last year, says Hong Kong Investment Funds Association.
Gross sales topped US$3.15 billion while redemptions were about $3.05 billion, leaving a net inflow of about $94 million, the association said yesterday.
Investors flooded into the funds during the first quarter as the stock market soared to record highs but the level of increase more than halved over the following six months.
The first and third quarters registered net sales of $156 million.
But this was offset by the outflow of about $61.68 million during the second quarter as the Hang Seng Index plunged to a 1994 low of 8,249.
Association chairman Roger Pyrke said: 'In the first three months of 1994, the industry was able to maintain last year's fourth-quarter strong sales which had been triggered off by the rally in the region's markets.
'However, corrections in the regional equity markets, largely caused by weakness in the world equity and bond markets, and repeated United States interest rates rises and weak US dollar, caused the momentum to falter.