On May 29, according to the Fund Sales Data of the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association (HKIFA), the total sales of retail funds in Hong Kong reached 19.8 billion US dollars in the first quarter of 2024, a significant increase of 69% compared to the previous quarter, also marking a new high since the third quarter of 2021. HKIFA Investment Fund Committee Co-Chairman, Zou Jianxiong, predicts that the sales of retail funds in the second quarter will maintain the trend seen in the first quarter. The data shows that bond funds accounted for nearly half of the total sales, reaching 8.95 billion US dollars, more than doubling from the previous quarter. Net inflows in the first quarter totaled 3.8 billion US dollars, reversing the trend of net outflows in the past two quarters and also marking the highest amount in three years. By asset class, bond funds received the highest net inflows in the first quarter of this year, reaching 4.1 billion US dollars, followed by money market funds (0.63 billion US dollars). Stock funds and mixed asset funds had net redemptions of 0.65 billion US dollars and 0.5 billion US dollars respectively, marking net outflows for eight consecutive quarters. The overall performance of retail funds in Hong Kong this year has been impressive, with most fund categories showing positive returns. As of May 18 this year, the largest increases were seen in Central and Eastern European stocks, Hong Kong stocks, Greater China stocks, and North American stocks, with average returns of 17.2%, 13.1%, 10.2%, and 9.6% respectively. In terms of bond funds, emerging market and high-yield bonds saw an average increase of 6.4%, while global bonds also saw a 0.3% increase. Global mixed asset returns during the same period were 4.9%. Zou Jianxiong stated that the sales of retail funds in Hong Kong in the first quarter of this year exceeded expectations, possibly due to the strong performance of global stocks and bonds last year, prompting investors to re-enter the market after taking profits in the fourth quarter of last year. Although the Federal Reserve has delayed interest rate hikes, this may reflect the continued strength of the US economy, which bodes well for the overall investment environment in the second quarter of this year. Therefore, he expects that the sales of retail funds in the second quarter in Hong Kong will maintain the trend seen in the first quarter.