Asset Allocations by Country and Asset Type

masonic

Cus said:

It's a bit sad that the UK don't want to invest in their own domestic equity compared to the others (excl Norway but someone said they have a tiny domestic equity...since Nokia went rubbish 😁)

The views behind this are quite interesting and perhaps not what one would expect: https://www.theia.org/sites/default/files/2025-07/ISA Barometer Report_Going Long, Going Local_FINAL.pdf

Cus

eskbanker said:

Cus said:

It's a bit sad that the UK don't want to invest in their own domestic equity compared to the others (excl Norway but someone said they have a tiny domestic equity...since Nokia went rubbish 😁)

Why would a Finnish company affect the Norwegian stock market?

Oops. Didn't realise. So Norway have no excuse to be unpatriotic, but do we?

Cus

masonic said:

Cus said:

It's a bit sad that the UK don't want to invest in their own domestic equity compared to the others (excl Norway but someone said they have a tiny domestic equity...since Nokia went rubbish 😁)

The views behind this are quite interesting and perhaps not what one would expect: https://www.theia.org/sites/default/files/2025-07/ISA Barometer Report_Going Long, Going Local_FINAL.pdf

Interesting. Based on the summary, our younger generation are leading the patriotic way so to speak..

jifmoose

I find it curious comparing the UK proportions and my own distribution, particularly in light of the moving away from US equities thread and the OP asking if moving to 28% US is extreme. Most of my investments up until now had US equity over 60%, including one pension which was almost all in equities. I've been rowing this right back now, and it's interesting that even at half that I'm close to the average for UK investors...

chiang_mai

jifmoose said:

I find it curious comparing the UK proportions and my own distribution, particularly in light of the moving away from US equities thread and the OP asking if moving to 28% US is extreme. Most of my investments up until now had US equity over 60%, including one pension which was almost all in equities. I've been rowing this right back now, and it's interesting that even at half that I'm close to the average for UK investors...

Which was my main motivation for posting this. The case that UK investors should invest 60% in US markets, doesn't appear to be supported by current investing behaviour. Global trackers hold between 60% and 80% of US assets because that is the size of the US market, relative to the rest of the world. But that doesn't appear to be how Brits invest, nor how they want to, it's just that global trackers are convenient and that's what you're given when you buy one. 

Bobziz

Is it 'how Brits invest' or how British pension funds invest ?

chiang_mai

Bobziz said:

Is it 'how Brits invest' or how British pension funds invest ?

The report is based on data from Goldman Sachs Research. I don't see anywhere that it states the sources of its data, only that it refers to "investors", which I presuume to mean all investors.

Clicking on the Goldmans Sachs Research link reveals a GS Research strategy paper that is over 40 pages long. It will take me some time to read it and even longer to understand what is said but if I find anything of relevance, I'll post it here. One point that is made on the first page of the strategy paper is as follows:

"the equity weight relative to bonds has increased materially since the GFC but remains below the levels from the  1990's. Both in equities and bonds, the US has accrued a larger weight and is very dominant". 

The above is, of course, historic data, which means many readers may believe it is totally irrelevant! (I offer no apologies for that little dig). What that says for me is that US dominance in the equtiies market is a fairly new phenomena, as is over investment in equities, compared to bonds and other assets.  

Another quote worth repeating is this:  "the US needs to outperform non-US by 4-5% to justify its current equity weight in the World Portfolio, which is difficult with elevated relative valuations, ROE and concentration. Also, the Dollar might become a larger drag on US asset performance".

An interesting read, I can recommend. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-investors-allocate-their-investments-by-country/#:~:text=Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research

Bostonerimus1

I'm in the USA and have 48% US (ie domestic for me) equities and 52% Rest of the World. 

daveshep26

Just checked my numbers - US 41% & UK (domestic) is 29% - other europe (17%); tilting away from from US large from Autumn 24 in my case.  I remain a North America fan generally as global centre of enterprise and investment success - but sensible diversification is presenting good alternative options (for individuals) currently

chiang_mai

A US allocation around 40% strikes me as appropriate, given the high valuations and Tech. concentration. Perhaps it's just me but it's becomming harder and harder to justify the 60% and 80% allocations of the global trackers.