Investors dump bonds and gold, pile into equities: BofA

LONDON (Reuters) - Investors piled into equities, while pulling money out of gold and bonds in the week up to March 10, data from BofA Global Research showed.

BofA's weekly flows report showed investors put $31.5 billion into equities, while taking $1.8 billion out of gold and $15.4 billion out of bonds. Bond yields spiked higher last week on inflation fears, while high-flying tech stocks sold off as investors rotated into cheaper value stocks.

Citing data from EPFR Global, BofA said last week saw the third-largest flows into emerging market stocks ever, and second-largest into value stocks.

"We believe 2020 marked a secular low point for inflation and rates," BofA said in the report, noting the big outperformance of the Russell 2000 index versus the tech-heavy NASDAQ.

Graphic: NASDAQ vs. Russell - https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/oakvelqrapr/Pasted%20image%201615541715392.png

BofA also said the U.S. government will spend $879mn every hour in 2021 causing either a rise in bond yields, or a fall in the dollar to "fund fiscal excess". U.S. debt sustainability will cause higher volatility when higher yields combine with a lower U.S. dollar.

Quantative easing and yield curve control in the G7 group of economies are "no longer pushing rates/spreads/vol lower", BoFA said, noting that interest rates and volatility are "no longer anchored". Financial conditions are well past “peak easy", the report said.

(Reporting by Ritvik Carvalho; editing by Carolyn Cohn & Simon Cameron-Moore)

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