Amundi’s Q2 net inflows beat estimates on Asian contributions

PARIS (Reuters) – Amundi, Europe’s biggest fund manager, posted better-than-expected quarterly inflows on Friday, driven by its Asian joint ventures amid a sustained demand for risk-averse products.

Amundi’s total assets under management (AUM) rose by 15.5 billion euros ($16.8 billion) in the second quarter to 2.16 trillion euros at end of June, setting a new record and reflecting growth of 9.9% from a year earlier.

Analysts had expected net inflows over the period of 8.8 billion euros on average, according to a consensus compiled by Amundi.

The contributions in net inflows from Amundi’s Asian joint ventures, including those in India and China, came in a context of “fierce competition” from other available investment products, CEO Valerie Baudson said in a call, citing Italy’s sovereign bonds, “banking products” and euro funds.

Assets under management in Asia totaled 451 billion euros at end of June, or four times the AUM in the region in 2015.

Continued macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties also fueled demand from retail and institutional clients for safe investments such as medium and long-term assets through exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Amundi, which is controlled by French bank Credit Agricole (OTC:), posted a 9.4% growth in adjusted net income in the second quarter from a year earlier to 350 million euros, also above an average analyst estimate of 335 million.

Revenue for the period increased by 7.7% to 887 million euros.

($1 = 0.9208 euros)